Arts & Culture :: Books

Ice queen Adam Rippon pens memoir

Ice queen Adam Rippon pens memoir

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Nov 5, 2019

In his effortlessly breezy and entertaining memoir "Beautiful on the Outside," U.S. Olympic athlete Adam Rippon demonstrates a natural knack for comedic writing.

Talking puppets talking trash

Talking puppets talking trash

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Oct 29, 2019

Call it an uptick in the collective unconscious or call it news, there's no mistaking the mushrooming of new books, fiction and non-, about Fascism.

Gay epic play connects

Gay epic play connects

  • by Brian Bromberger
  • Oct 29, 2019

The new play "The Inheritance" by Matthew Lopez, is an epic of current gay life in New York performed in two parts, lasting a total of 7.5 hours.

Love on the docks

Love on the docks

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Oct 22, 2019

The area around New York City's West Village piers in the 1970s was a hidden, secretive enclave where anonymous gay sexual activity was rampant, nude sunbathing was celebrated, and offbeat, radical works of queer art were created and appreciated.

Telepathic hackers: Caleb Crain's 'Overthrow'

Telepathic hackers: Caleb Crain's 'Overthrow'

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Oct 15, 2019

From its very title, Caleb Crain's second novel, "Overthrow," is comedy of the highest order.

Dishing Barbra: Ethan Mordden's 'On Streisand'

Dishing Barbra: Ethan Mordden's 'On Streisand'

  • by John F. Karr
  • Oct 15, 2019

I was initially dismayed to see Ethan Mordden's latest book, "On Streisand" (Oxford Press, hardcover, $21.95).

Five gay authors who played the intelligence game

Five gay authors who played the intelligence game

  • by Peter Garland
  • Oct 15, 2019

"The necessity of procuring good intelligence is apparent and need not be further urged." — George Washington, 1777. Here are five homosexual authors through history who dabbled in espionage.

There is nothing like a Hollywood Dame

There is nothing like a Hollywood Dame

  • by Tavo Amador
  • Oct 15, 2019

As Sloan De Forest shows in TCM's "Dynamic Dames: 50 Leading Ladies Who Made History" (Running Press, $23), today's gifted actresses continue to make noteworthy films.

Debbie Harry Faces It: Blondie singer's memoir and fan art

Debbie Harry Faces It: Blondie singer's memoir and fan art

  • by Jim Provenzano
  • Oct 9, 2019

Blondie cofounders Debbie Harry and Chris Stein were guests at the Arts & Ideas series hosted by the Jewish Community Center on October 3, to discuss Harry's memoir, 'Face It.'

Fall for fiction: new book season

Fall for fiction: new book season

  • by Gregg Shapiro
  • Oct 8, 2019

The first new Henry Rios mystery novel in 20 years, "Carved in Bone" (Persigo Press) by award-winning gay author Michael Nava, is set in mid-1980s San Francisco.

Still here: The Castle on the Hill

Still here: The Castle on the Hill

  • by Tavo Amador
  • Oct 1, 2019

In "The Castle on Sunset — Life, Death, Love, Art, and Scandal at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont," Shawn Levy breathlessly relates the fascinating history of a unique property.

Modern bi-romance

Modern bi-romance

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Oct 1, 2019

Novelist James Gregor has written "Going Dutch," a dynamic debut novel about the difficulties in searching for love, and how supremely messy the entire process can become.

Troubled souls in Chris Dennis' stories

Troubled souls in Chris Dennis' stories

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Sep 10, 2019

One of the great things about author Chris Dennis' outstanding debut story collection "Here Is What You Do" is its penchant for expressing the tone of uneasiness in his characters.

Casual cruising

Casual cruising

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Sep 3, 2019

In its subtitle, Alex Espinosa's new book, "Cruising: An Intimate History of a Radical Pastime" (The Unnamed Press), "history" seems almost to relegate to the past the pleasures of what was a "pastime."