Arts & Culture :: Culture

Women on the edge in stunning fiction

Women on the edge in stunning fiction

  • by Jim Piechota
  • May 24, 2022

Several queer female authors have emerged in recent months to publish astoundingly impressive works of fiction. Each of the books profiled here are memorable, beautifully written, and well worth searching out for their resonant themes.

Pandemic prose: excerpts from 'Arlene Francis & Me -Pandemic Diaries from Castro Street 2020'

Pandemic prose: excerpts from 'Arlene Francis & Me -Pandemic Diaries from Castro Street 2020'

  • by Mark Abramson
  • May 3, 2022

While we holed up indoors in 2020 —which now seems like much more than two years ago— prolific local gay author Mark Abramson took notes. He shared a few witty diary entries which are included in his latest book.

Paul Mendez's 'Rainbow Milk' - an auspicious literary debut

Paul Mendez's 'Rainbow Milk' - an auspicious literary debut

  • by Brian Bromberger
  • May 3, 2022

Raw and transcendent are the words applicable to Paul Mendez's semi-autobiographical debut novel "Rainbow Milk," a multi-generational dissection of sexuality, race, and religion on the rocky evolution of a young gay Black man, set in England.

The art of Ajuan Mance  at the Cartoon Museum

The art of Ajuan Mance at the Cartoon Museum

  • by Laura Moreno
  • Apr 26, 2022

Opening April 30 and running until August 7, San Francisco's Cartoon Art Museum presents the art of Ajuan Mance as part of its ongoing Emerging Artist Showcase. The Mills College professor is known for her vibrant portrait series, '1001 Black Men.'

Rinabeth Apostol's take two: the luck and logistics of back-to-back roles

Rinabeth Apostol's take two: the luck and logistics of back-to-back roles

  • by Jim Gladstone
  • Apr 26, 2022

On May 8, Rinabeth Apostol will take her last bow as Alison Bechdel in the 42nd Street Moon production of the Tony-winning musical "Fun Home." Just three nights later, she'll be on stage at the Magic Theatre in "Monument, or Four Sisters (A Sloth Play)."

Ocean Vuong's rainbow afterglow: poet returns with 'Time Is a Mother'

Ocean Vuong's rainbow afterglow: poet returns with 'Time Is a Mother'

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Apr 26, 2022

One true way to envision Ocean Vuong is as, if not The Survivor, a survivor. His newly released second book of poems was occasioned by the silence that enveloped him after the death of his mother.

Women on the Verge - 'Fefu and Her Friends' at A.C.T.'s Strand

Women on the Verge - 'Fefu and Her Friends' at A.C.T.'s Strand

  • by Jim Gladstone
  • Apr 12, 2022

Domineering den mother Fefu dispenses aphorisms like casually tossed grenades in 'Fefu and Her Friends,' Irene Maria Fornes' oblique psychosocial puzzle play, now being mounted in a luxe American Conservatory Theatre production at the Strand Theater.

A wee boy's own story: Douglas Stuart's 'Young Mungo'

A wee boy's own story: Douglas Stuart's 'Young Mungo'

  • by Tim Pfaff
  • Apr 12, 2022

Douglas Stuart has carried forward from his Booker Prize-winning debut novel Shuggie Bain into its follow-up, 'Young Mungo.' What it shares with its predecessor is a brutal honesty about some lurid familial connections.

John Weir's 'Your Nostalgia is Killing Me'

John Weir's 'Your Nostalgia is Killing Me'

  • by Gregg Shapiro
  • Apr 5, 2022

John Weir's short story collection 'Your Nostalgia is Killing Me' is made of linked stories that span a 40-year period, illustrating the power of nostalgia to alternately bring us to tears and make us laugh with familiarity.

B.A.R. Talk 12: history in print

B.A.R. Talk 12: history in print

  • by Jim Provenzano
  • Mar 29, 2022

In closing our yearlong celebrations of the Bay Area Reporter's 50th anniversary, our twelfth online panel on April 7 will focus on five decades of the newspaper's history, with several current and former editors and writers.

Spring books: noteworthy queer fiction and nonfiction

Spring books: noteworthy queer fiction and nonfiction

  • by Jim Piechota
  • Mar 29, 2022

Welcome to Spring! Along with this year's vibrantly blooming trees and flowerbeds (and allergies!), we present a crisp, vibrant, notable selection of current and soon-to-be-published LGBTQ books arriving on shelves.

Lauren McBrayer's 'Like a House on Fire'

Lauren McBrayer's 'Like a House on Fire'

  • by Gregg Shapiro
  • Mar 29, 2022

2022 is proving to be one of the queerest ever in terms of literature, including fiction, non-fiction, and poetry titles. If it's not already on your reading list, by all means, add lesbian writer Lauren McBrayer's debut novel 'Like a House on Fire.'

Blair Fell's 'The Sign for Home' - Gay ASL interpreter and straight DeafBlind young man's lives intersect

Blair Fell's 'The Sign for Home' - Gay ASL interpreter and straight DeafBlind young man's lives intersect

  • by Jim Provenzano
  • Mar 29, 2022

In his debut novel, 'The Sign for Home,' author Blair Fell explores the friendship between Arlo, a young, straight DeafBlind Jehovah's Witness, and Cyril, his gay older ASL interpreter. Fell shared his inspiration and ideas behind his novel.

Steve Fellner's 'Eating Lightbulbs and Other Essays'

Steve Fellner's 'Eating Lightbulbs and Other Essays'

  • by Gregg Shapiro
  • Mar 29, 2022

Steve Fellner's new book is at turns hysterically funny and cause for hysteria. Fellner is relentlessly open in the way he details his struggles with mental illness that is alternately clinical and casual.