Arts & Culture :: Books

Semiotext(e)'s new and recent translated books

Semiotext(e)'s new and recent translated books

  • by Mark William Norby
  • Nov 8, 2022

You can build a compact, power-packed little library of books translated for the first time into English and released by Semiotext(e) this fall or in recent years. Each work seems to touch the vast cosmos of French arts and letters.

'Diaghilev's Empire' - how the Ballets Russes rocked the dance world

'Diaghilev's Empire' - how the Ballets Russes rocked the dance world

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Nov 1, 2022

In 'Diaghilev's Empire: How the Ballets Russes Enthralled the World,' Rupert Christiansen's absorbing new chronicle of one of history's most influential dance companies documents a gay producer's influence on the early 20th-century arts scene.

'Vampire Cinema: The First One Hundred Years'

'Vampire Cinema: The First One Hundred Years'

  • by David-Elijah Nahmod
  • Oct 25, 2022

In his new book "Vampire Cinema: The First One Hundred Years," author and film historian Christopher Frayling recounts a century of blood-sucking cinematic (and small screen) masterpieces and camp classics.

Vincent Paterson: choreographer on making iconic moves for Madonna, Michael Jackson and many others

Vincent Paterson: choreographer on making iconic moves for Madonna, Michael Jackson and many others

  • by Jim Provenzano
  • Oct 18, 2022

While you may not recognize his name, you definitely know his work. Vincent Paterson has choreographed some of the most iconic dances for pop music in the 20th century, plus musicals, operas and more, all shared in his new memoir.

Nonetheless: Andrew Sean Greer's "Less Is Lost" is less than "Less"

Nonetheless: Andrew Sean Greer's "Less Is Lost" is less than "Less"

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Oct 18, 2022

Andrew Sean Greer's last novel, "Less," was a uproarious surprise hit. If you loved it, snap up "Less Is Lost," the sequel. But in what could be called a second act, the follow-up is —literally, sadly— less.

John D'Emilio's 'Memories of a Gay Catholic Boyhood'

John D'Emilio's 'Memories of a Gay Catholic Boyhood'

  • by Brian Bromberger
  • Oct 18, 2022

One of the preeminent queer historians instrumental in helping establish Gay and Lesbian Studies as an academic discipline, John D'Emilio's memoir, "Memories of a Gay Catholic Boyhood," details his coming of age from the 1960s to Stonewall.

Moody blues: Stephan Ferris' 'Blue Movie: Scenes from the Life of a Sexual Outlaw'

Moody blues: Stephan Ferris' 'Blue Movie: Scenes from the Life of a Sexual Outlaw'

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Oct 14, 2022

Former gay porn actor Stephan Ferris's debut memoir that chronicles his life in 77 unflinching and graphically depicted scenes. Ferris (aka Blue Bailey) considers the experiences that shaped his early years as "dangerous and potentially deadly."

Love and losses in K.M. Soehnlein's 'Army of Lovers'

Love and losses in K.M. Soehnlein's 'Army of Lovers'

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Oct 11, 2022

For his latest novel, celebrated Lambda Literary Award-winning novelist K.M. Soehnlein channeled his personal history as a New York City AIDS activist in the 1980s to lend the story authenticity and heartfelt emotion.

Gerard Cabrera: gay author discusses his novel, 'Homo Novus'

Gerard Cabrera: gay author discusses his novel, 'Homo Novus'

  • by Gregg Shapiro
  • Oct 11, 2022

In his debut novel, 'Homo Novus,' gay writer Gerard Cabrera takes us back to the late 1980s, a time when AIDS was still a death sentence and the pedophile priest scandal that shook the foundation of the Catholic Church.

'Strange Inheritance of Leah Fern' - novelist Rita Zoey Chin's inspiring tale

'Strange Inheritance of Leah Fern' - novelist Rita Zoey Chin's inspiring tale

  • by Laura Moreno
  • Oct 11, 2022

Chin's truly luminous writing delivers the unexpected at every turn. The themes of the story are derived from her own childhood and are recounted with plenty of suspense, culminating with a dramatic yet hopeful ending.

Len Handeland's 'Tales From the Chair'

Len Handeland's 'Tales From the Chair'

  • by David-Elijah Nahmod
  • Oct 11, 2022

If you're looking for some light, fun reading, look no further than "Tales From the Chair: Adventures and Sordid Tales From my Life" in the Hair Business" by Len Handeland.

Fall books 2022 roundup 4: memoirs & non-fiction

Fall books 2022 roundup 4: memoirs & non-fiction

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Oct 4, 2022

In a concluding section to our Fall books roundup, we present several new and upcoming memoir and nonfiction titles of note; shocking and surprising autobiographies, from notorious whistleblower Chelsea Manning, and Hilton Als' Prince obsession.

Julian Aguon's 'No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies'

Julian Aguon's 'No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies'

  • by Mark William Norby
  • Oct 4, 2022

"No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies" by queer Indigenous writer and human rights lawyer Julian Aguon, is part memoir and part manifesto, focusing on environmental and political strife for the colonized people of Guam.

Lars Horn's 'Voice of the Fish' - exploring the trans experience

Lars Horn's 'Voice of the Fish' - exploring the trans experience

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Sep 27, 2022

A collage of essay, travelogue, history, meditation, and aphorism, Lars Horn's book is packaged —as is so much writing now— as a memoir.