What a great year 2016 has been for books, especially books by and about queer people. That's why these outstanding titles in poetry, fiction, nonfiction and even picture books should make holiday shopping a breeze.
Literary language: Primer (Univ. of Pittsburgh Press), the third full-length book by gay poet and educator Aaron Smith, explores some of the darker corners of existence while letting in just enough light for the poems to glow with cool radiance.
The seven short stories in At Danceteria and other stories (Squares and Rebels Press), the debut collection by Philip Dean Walker, are deeply entrenched in the 1980s, with appearances by era icons Keith Haring, Princess Diana, Freddie Mercury, Halston, Liza Minnelli, and Sylvester.
The late renowned African-American lesbian-feminist poet and performer Pat Parker (1944-89) is feted with the massive compilation The Complete Works of Pat Parker (Sapphic Classics/A Midsummer Night's Press/Sinister Wisdom). Edited by Julie R. Enszer with an introduction by Judy Grahn, the tome contains poetry, prose and two plays.
Set during the Cold War and based on the "hidden life" of award-winning lesbian writer Lucy Jane Bledsoe's aunt, the novel A Thin Bright Line (Univ. of Wisconsin Press) follows Lucybelle's struggles with "the impossible compromises of queer life" at the dawn of the civil rights movement.
Sinister Wisdom editor/publisher and poet Julie R. Enszer's new full-length poetry collection Avowed (Sibling Rivalry Press) encompasses celebration, mourning, and aspects of being a lesbian in a long-term relationship, including being the one who always does the dishes.
Straight author Ann Patchett, who created unforgettable queer characters in her 1997 novel The Magician's Assistant, returns with her new novel Commonwealth (Harper), about generations of the Keating and Cousins families.
Winner of the 2015 Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize, In the Volcano's Mouth (Univ. of Pittsburgh Press), the debut collection by queer poet Miriam Bird Greenberg, is a "portrait of life on the enchanted margins."
Described as a "contemporary odyssey," The Troubleseeker (Chelsea Station Editions) by Alan Lessik combines Greek mythology and Cuban Santeria as a means of telling the story of Antinio in post-revolution Cuba through the early days of the AIDS epidemic.
Words & pictures: With an introduction by Kate Clinton, Pride & Joy: Taking the Streets of New York City (New Press) colorfully celebrates the institution of the NYC LGBT pride parade via photos by Jurek Wajdowicz and affirming quotes from Holly Hughes, former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Lea DeLaria, Michangelo Signorile, Edie Windsor, Dan Savage, John D'Emilio, Governor Andrew Cuomo, Mayor Bill DeBlasio, and Cyndi Lauper.
"Real-life couple" artist-authors Lynn Dowling and Asia Kepka expanded what began as a collaboration exhibited at the Griffin Museum of Photography in Boston into the book Horace & Agnes: A Love Story (Blue Rider Press), a love story between a middle-aged horse and squirrel.
As dishy as it is enlightening, including a chapter on "The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name," The Art of the Affair: An Illustrated History of Love, Sex and Artistic Influence (Bloomsbury) by Catherine Lacey and Forsyth Harmon is about the affairs behind great works of art.
No One Told Me To Do This: Selected Screenprints 2009-2015 (Akashic Books) by Jay Ryan, with a foreword by Aaron Horkey, features Ryan's colorful concert posters, including those for shows by queer artists Bob Mould and St. Vincent.
Rad Women Worldwide (Ten Speed Press), written by Kate Schatz and illustrated by Miriam Klein Stahl, features "artists and athletes, pirates and punks, and other revolutionaries who shaped the world," including Frida Kahlo, Venus and Serena Williams, Poly Styrene, Ugandan LGBT activist Kasha Jacqueline Nagabasera, Chavela Vargas, Audre Lorde, Sylvia Rivera, Grace Jones and Pussy Riot.
True stories: Anatomy of a Song (Grove Atlantic), expanded from Wall Street Journal contributor Marc Myers' column, features interviews with the artists and songwriters behind 45 essential pop songs, including queer acts Michael Stipe of R.E.M. (on "Losing My Religion") and Janis Joplin, as well as performers beloved by LGBT folks, including Joni Mitchell (on "Carey"), Cyndi Lauper (on "Time After Time"), Bonnie Raitt (on "Nick of Time") and Debbie Harry and Chris Stein of Blondie (on "Heart of Glass").
Boys in the Trees: A Memoir (Flatiron Books) is the bestselling memoir by singer/songwriter Carly Simon, who openly discussed her sexuality in a 2008 interview in the Bay Area Reporter. She writes with humor and sensitivity about the lesbians of Sarah Lawrence College and Provincetown, and leaves off at the end of her marriage to James Taylor. With any luck, there might be more to come from the "You're So Vain" diva.
The Sea Is Quiet Tonight: A Memoir (Querelle Press) by retired psychotherapist Michael H. Ward takes readers back to the early days of the AIDS epidemic in Boston.
Described as "the partial inspiration" for Dustin Lance Black and Gus Van Sant's forthcoming ABC miniseries, When We Rise: My Life in the Movement (Hachette) is Cleve Jones' personal story of self-discovery in 1970s San Francisco through the AIDS crisis and his co-founding of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt.
The travel memoir anthology Inspired Journeys: Travel Writers in Search of the Muse (Univ. of Wisconsin Press), edited by gay writer Brian Bouldrey, features contributions by queer writers Raphael Kadushin, Goldie Goldbloom, Lucy Jane Bledsoe, Trebor Healey, and Susan Fox Rogers.
Not your typical music memoir, Tranny: Confessions of Punk Rock's Most Infamous Anarchist Sellout (Hachette) follows Against Me!'s Laura Jane Grace's journey from being Tom Gabel in Naples, FL, to the groundbreaking trans musician and activist she is today.