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biandlesbianliterature · 5 years

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This is part 1 of three of the bi and lesbian books that I’ve read and loved! Click here to see the full list at the Lesbrary.

If you like what we do here and want to see more of it, buy us a coffee on ko-fi, or support this tumblr & the Lesbrary on Patreon for $2 or more a month and be entered into monthly book giveaways!

Classics:

Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown

The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall (review)

The Color Purple by Alice Walker (review)

Orlando by Virginia Woolf (review)

Mystery/Thrillers:

Double Dog Dare by E.J. Cochrane

A Whisper of Bones (A Jane Lawless Mystery) by Ellen Hart

The Locket by Gerri Hill

Secrets of the Last Castle by A. Rose Mathieu

A Study in Honor by Claire O’Dell

Stolen by Linda J. Wright

↓ Click through for Fiction, Historical Fiction, and Poetry! ↓

Fiction:

Nevada by Imogen Binnie (review)

My Education by Susan Choi (review)

Missed Her by Ivan Coyote (review)

Drag King Dreams by Leslie Feinberg (review)

Just Girls by Rachel Gold (review)

Painting Their Portraits in Winter by Myriam Gurba (review)

Stray City by Chelsey Johnson (review)

When Fox is a Thousand by Larissa Lai (review)

The Collection edited by Tom Leger and Riley Macleod (review)

Lost Boi by Sassafras Lowrey (review)

Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado (review)

The Summer We Got Free by Mia McKenzie (review)

Hero Worship by Rebekah Matthews (review)

Hymnal for Dirty Girls by Rebekah Matthews (review)

Lizzy & Annie by Casey Plett (review)

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (review)

Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera (review)

Marriage of a Thousand Lies by S.J. Sindu (review)

(You) Set Me On Fire by Mariko Tamaki (review)

Written on the Body by Jeanette Winterson

Historical Fiction:

The Last Nude by Ellis Avery (review)

Miss Timmins’ School for Girls by Nayana Currimbhoy (review)

Silhouette of a Sparrow by Molly Beth Griffin (review) [YA]

Prairie Ostrich by Tamai Kobayashi (review) [YA]

All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages edited by Saundra Mitchell (review) [YA]

Pulp by Robin Talley (review) [YA]

Fingersmith and Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters

The Passion by Jeanette Winterson

Poetry:

Sisterhood by Julie R. Enszer (review)

Bodymap by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha (review)

A Place Called No Homeland by Kai Cheng Thom

When I Was Straight by Julie Marie Wade (review)

If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho edited by Anne Carson

If you like what we do here and want to see more of it, buy us a coffee on ko-fi, or support this tumblr & the Lesbrary on Patreon for $2 or more a month and be entered into monthly book giveaways!

This is only part one of the list! Click here to see the entire list at the Lesbrary, or check out Part 2: Young Adult, SFF, and Horror and Part 3: Romance, Comics, and Nonfiction.

#queer books #lesbian books #lesbian fiction #saffic books #wlw books #lgbt books

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justincaseitmatters · 3 years

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Rewind: A Man and His Film

L.Q. Jones returns to KC with his cautionary tale, A Boy and His Dog

by Dan Lybarger KCActive.com April 14, 2010

At 82, character actor L.Q. Jones has a lot to be proud of. Even if his name doesn’t sound familiar, it’s a safe bet that he’s been in the movie theater with you or on your TV. The tall Texas-born actor with the craggy voice and a bushy mustache has been in The Wild Bunch, Casino, Gunsmoke, Hell is for Heroes, Rawhide and even the movie version of A Prairie Home Companion, directed by Kansas City’s own Robert Altman.

He’s collaborated with everyone from Elvis Presley to Marlon Brando to Meryl Streep to Martin Scorsese to Charlton Heston to Clint Eastwood to Sir Anthony Hopkins to Antonio Banderas.

Because he’s best known for starring in a long string of television and movie westerns, it initially seems odd that Jones is in his own words “inordinately proud” of having written and directed a 1975 science fiction film that has stayed in theaters like gum under the seats. This is despite the fact that A Boy and His Dog has been on video and “Netflixable.”

The film received the 1976 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation at the 34th World Science Fiction Convention-Mid America. Jones came to Kansas City to promote the film when it originally opened and will be returning to Cowtown with a new 35mm print on Saturday, 7 p.m., at the Tivoli Theater as part of KC FilmFest. Tickets are available at www.kcjubilee.org.

True vision

If Jones seems an unlikely custodian of science fiction writer Harlan Ellison’s vision of a world where the surface of the earth is a vast wasteland because of World War IV, a few minutes on the phone will let you know the source of the film’s droll, sardonic humor.

While setting up an interview, I told Jones I was looking forward to our conversation. He replied, “You may not think so after we’re through.” Before we eventually talked, he politely told his other caller, “Let me lie to this gentleman, and give me a buzz back in a couple of hours.”

When I informed him that I viewed the film online before the interview, he sounded almost sorry and said, “I can’t blow smoke at you because you’ve seen it. I can lie, but you’ll catch me at it.”

When I talked with him about the film’s print, I found out I hadn’t seen the movie properly. On VHS, the film was presented in pan and scan, which means that nearly a quarter of the picture was removed in order for the movie to fit on a standard television. Through much of the film, a pre-Miami Vice Don Johnson is wandering through the frame with only a dog for company, and the sense of loneliness gets lost in the narrower format.

Even on DVD or Blu-Ray, there are some subtle shots that need the big screen treatment. According to Jones, the opportunity to catch A Boy and His Dog on a theatrical screen was almost lost. “They said, you need to put (the movie on stock) where the negative will last 50 years,” he recalls. “Of course, it cost an arm and a leg, but that’s what we wanted to do, so we took it up. Then, of course, they came back and said, ‘Well, we do have a little problem. It doesn’t last 50 years. It’s barely lasted 30.’

“The picture was sliding off the negative. We were losing our picture. When I say losing it, I don’t mean it was totally falling off of the print. But everything was changing. Blues were going to greens. Greens were going to pinks. And everything’s shifting, which is bad for us.”

The restoration was additionally hampered by the fact that the film was shot in a process known as Technoscope, which was initially cheaper than 35 mm film because it took up half as much space. Unfortunately, the machines necessary to print the negatives aren’t readily available so the film had to be restored one frame at a time. This meant the restoration and the new prints took nearly three to four months to complete. Jones says, “When we got through, you have a product just like you shot the picture yesterday.”

Not your typical dog story

Part of the reason the film required restoration is that Jones and Ellison’s story is tricky and requires a clear image to be properly understood. To say the film is out of the mainstream is an understatement. After a prologue of nuclear warheads exploding (which was added in 1982), we hear a couple of voices talking as a scruffy, battered young man named Vic (Johnson) crawls along the ground along a seemingly endless desert. We hear both Johnson’s familiar nasal drawl with a deeper, unfamiliar voice.

Tiger and Vic (Don Johnson) in A Boy and His Dog

Jones says, “We start with the bottom of a shoe. The voice to most people is friendly, courteous, reverent. It’s a father speaking. It’s a brother, a mother. It’s a military man. It’s a professor that’s talking. It’s got all those timbres. And it starts telling you things your eye sees. You go, ‘Ah. It’s the truth. It knows what it’s talking about. It knows what it’s doing.’

“Incidentally, the voice is coming from a dog.”

The animal in question is Blood, played by Tiger, the dog who starred in The Brady Bunch. He has the disembodied voice of Tim McIntire, who also provided some of the film’s music. Blood, through reasons that are only alluded to in the film, can communicate telepathically with Vic and is smarter, more compassionate and more perceptive than any human being left in the world.

“You realize the only smart human thing in the picture is the dog. All the rest of the things have become animals,” says Jones. “Believe it or not, I’m trying to get you to think. If we don’t get our head out of our fanny, what’s on the screen in A Boy and His Dog is going to happen. That’s the way the world’s going to end up if we don’t stop being so damn greedy and beating up on each other.”

This especially applies to the uncouth Vic, who seeks out women for sex when he’s not scrounging for food. Johnson was an unusually brave performer because he played second fiddle to Tiger. Jones recalls Tiger may indeed have been as bright as the character he was playing.

“No matter how brilliant, you can’t teach any animal sequential tricks. You can teach them to do one, maybe even two, but that’s it,” Jones says. “I said, ‘Tiger, god dammit, you’re on the wrong side of the boiler. I can’t see you. I’m talking to the dog. I’m not talking to the trainer. The dog stays glued to (Johnson’s knee). He stays with him. When Don stops, the dog stops, the way an actor should.”

The dog then proceeds to change positions and bursts into tears on cue in a single take. “Now think about that, sports fans. There are eight tricks in a row. I can’t teach a human actor to do that, and the dog did it in one take,” says Jones. “I accused (trainer) Joe Hornok of reading him the script every night because the damn dog knew what to do that day,” Jones says.

Local vibe

Although the film was shot in California, some of the film’s success can be tied to some intended and unintended local ties. Johnson was a born in Flat Creek, MO, grew up in Kansas and went to college at KU. According to Jones, Johnson was seen as a promising talent during the mid-‘70s, even if he wasn’t a household name yet.

“He was doing big pictures, but he wasn’t making an imprint. I talked to a little over 500 people for the male and female (Susanne Benton) leads in the picture. I worked on that for, good heaven, a year and a half to see if I had the right person. In watching Don work, I knew he could do it, and he does a marvelous job. The old adage is don’t ever work with dogs. Nobody’s even saying don’t work with talking dogs, but he did, and he made it work,” says Jones.

Another local connection isn’t immediately obvious. Later in the film, Vic is lured into a subterranean community that seems like a nightmarish parody of small-town life before the nuclear war. The bizarre community resembles Silver Dollar City on crack, only without any willing tourists. Ellison and Jones named it “Topeka.”

As a native of Kansas’ capital, I had to ask him why he and Ellison chose that name for the dystopia, he first quips, “No. Google. You’re now Google.”

“I really don’t. I tried to stay as close to what Harlan what was doing in the book. I’m used to the name. I’ve been there. I know what the people are like. It’s comfortable, Middle America. I said, ‘Hey, it’ll work.’ I’ve asked Harlan. You can talk to Harlan about things like this. Eventually, you realize he doesn’t know what he’s saying anyway.”

According to Jones, Kansas City was where he faced the most puzzling question about his five-year labor of love with A Boy and His Dog. When a radio host asked him why he made it and wouldn’t accept what Jones told him, the director mulled the question for months.

“The real, real answer is they told me I could not do it. That made me so mad that made me say, ‘By God, I’ll show you,’ he says.

While most films or television shows might employ dozens of animals to play a single character. A Boy and His Dog was entirely dependent on Tiger.

“Do you know what we were going to do if the dog didn’t work or if the dog got sick?” Jones asks. He then answers, “Me. I had makeup. I had wardrobe. I was going to be the dog, as a character, not as a dog, of course.”

“We’ve got one dog. His stand-in was a stuffed toy. If he steps on nail or a piece of glass, we’re done. We’ve got 52 tons of crap to build our sets: everything broken, rusty wires, crap, junk from hospitals. If something happens to the dog, I put on the stuff, and I become a human character. That’s losing 99 percent of what’s making it work. But that’s better than not getting the picture done at all. From listening to everybody, they told me it couldn’t be done.”

He laughs, “They were right. I couldn’t do it.

#LQ Jones #a boy and his dog #Don Johnson

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tsgnorthwestarkansas · 5 years

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Meet Fayetteville Tennis Fanatic, Podcast Host and The Scout Guide Northwest Arkansas Associate Editor, Jennifer Esty!

We are beyond excited to add a new member to The Scout Guide Northwest Arkansas team — our Associate Editor, Jennifer Esty! Fyi, you will quickly learn that Jenn is known for always having the best concert tickets and the latest local intel making her the perfect Scout for all things local! We recently asked Jenn, who’s home base is Fayetteville, a few questions about what she enjoys most about The Scout Guide, what’s on her radar, just how she got so good at tennis and what are some of her local loves in Northwest Arkansas.

Why were you drawn to The Scout Guide?

I’ve enjoyed getting to meet the makers and owners of Northwest Arkansas’ small businesses through seeing their faces and brands highlighted in the last three volumes of TSG Northwest Arkansas and following along on TSG’s social media and blog (some of Jenn’s favorite local loves to shop are Lola [above] and Shindig Paperie [below] in Fayetteville). Through this experience, I’ve come to realize that TSG makes a community out of living local. Community is super important to me. Plus, it’s our livelihood. My husband and I have our own landscape business, so when we see the local community thrive that’s a good sign for us. The Scout Guide has found a way to do that all organically by connecting community members to local businesses, other businesses to each other, and showing how our local businesses are the foundation of our community.

What do you hope to accomplish as TSG Northwest Arkansas’ associate editor?

First of all, I am so excited to work with Rebekah Lawrence, the editor of TSG Northwest Arkansas. She has such a talent for connecting people! I’m hoping I can complement that and add my fresh perspective. A lot of these TSG businesses I love and frequent are not as well known, or are just fresh on the scene, so not many people know about them yet. I’d love to bring new businesses in to the TSG family and further connect to TSG member business network. One of the first things I can’t wait to start content-wise is an ongoing blog series called “On Our Radar.” This will be a curated list of new happenings and experiences that people don’t know about yet. We’ll also include scouting new arrivals and must-haves at local shops and sharing some of our “bests” for eating and drinking local. If you know me, you know I’m always sharing my favorite places and tips for local living, so with this regular feature I’ll be able to really get the word out.

What’s on your radar right now?

There are two new places in Rogers that I’m planning to check out very soon and report back on. I’ve been hearing amazing things about the newly opened restaurant Heirloom. It’s an intimate 20-seat restaurant (by reservation only) in downtown Rogers sourcing locally-grown ingredients served as a multi-course prefix dinner experience and created by local chef/owner Jason Paul (there is no menu!). Who doesn’t love the sound of that? I’m also dying to get out to Fox Trail Distillery where they are distilling, aging and bottling small batch spirits on site right here in Northwest Arkansas (I can’t wait for a tour of the distillery and to enjoy some chill time over cocktails at The Bar at Fox Trail!).

What are some of the local establishments you frequent daily?

First: I love coffee. I have an office in my home but I have to get up and out to really get work done, otherwise I end up doing home stuff. So you can find me often at Mama Carmen’s, Little Bread Company (I’m a huge fan of their Everything Bagels pictured above) or Arsaga’s Depot all in Fayetteville, or Onyx in Bentonville with my laptop on hand. I’m a total sun junky so on a nice day I love to be outside as much as possible (I especially love some outdoor patio time at Wood Stone Craft Pizza in Fayetteville).

Where do you like to go when you’re not working? My husband Wade and I love to go to Vault in Fayetteville for cocktails. It’s in an old bank building, but it’s really small and modern with a speakeasy sort of feel and amazing mixologists. We also love to meet a big group of friends at Prairie St. Bar & Tap in Fayetteville, with garage doors that open and the food truck Big Sexy Food out front. It’s family and dog friendly, which is really important to us.

Tell us more about your dogs!

We actually have two dogs and a bird. The dogs are Gus Fred and Moose, and my son’s bird (a girl) is named Archie. Moose goes to work with my husband every day and so he is our guest of honor when we meet up for lunch, which is why finding dog-friendly patios is so important to me.

Can you tell us more about your family and what you like to get into on the weekends?

We’re never bored living here, that’s for sure. I have two sons, so keeping busy and active is really important. My oldest, Ben, just graduated from high school (he’s off to college soon), and Oliver is going to sixth grade next year. On the weekends we like to hit the Ozarks, either riding bikes on the Razorback Greenway, kayaking, or our family favorite, floating on the river. My boys love when we end any activity with Reubens at Hugo’s in Fayetteville.

We hit the Fayetteville Farmers Market on the downtown square every Saturday from April through October. My favorite market booth is Dripping Springs Garden (above: Jenn selects her favorite bundle of locally grown blooms.) They are flower overload! You turn the corner and you can just smell the flowers! Every week you never know what you’ll find at the market.

You‘re also kind of a concert fanatic. What are some of your recent favorite shows?

I’m always going to see live music! We have a lot of incredible venues in NWA, like The Walmart Amp in Rogers, where recently The Killers and Leon Bridges performed. In Fayetteville, if we want to keep it old school and more intimate then we head to George’s Majestic Lounge on Dickson Street. We’ll see a lot of the bands we used to listen to in college, but we also recently saw Cold War Kids. I’ll also travel for live music. This year I saw Beyonce in Chicago and Kendrick Lamar in Dallas. I’m also a huge fan of the Fayetteville Roots Festival that happens in August every year.

We know that whenever we can’t find you, it’s safe to assume you’re playing tennis. How did you get into it?

It was post-holiday winter of 2016 and a friend and I were sitting around drinking wine and eating cheese, and we were like, “Ok it’s time to do something physical.” She invited me to try cardio tennis, which I had never heard of before. I dusted off my old tennis racquet that I had since college and joined her. It was just the best time. We went back the next day, and the day after and the day after that. We were really not very good at first, but we played every single day, sometimes twice a day. Then we decided we wanted to take lessons. And I have got to say, we have gotten pretty good! She’s still my doubles partner and one of my closest friends! We play four times a week at the Fayetteville Athletic Club, and I’ve met such a strong network of awesome women through tennis, too. Image (above) shot on location at Mount Sequoyah Center tennis courts; fashion by Lola and styling by Hope Cavell.

Speaking of strong networks of women, we are so excited and intrigued by your podcast, Company Club Radio. Can you tell us a little bit about it?

Company Club is an idea created by Jade Terminella, serial entrepreneur and dear friend, to create a club house for the modern woman in NWA. Company Club will have a physical space, which is going to be stunning, in downtown Bentonville in the Haxton District. Members can go to learn, work, socialize or escape the everyday of the home or office. It’s not a co-working space, although I plan to set myself there with my laptop often. It’s more about a space to be productive, to conference and of course, drink coffee on tap. Outside of the physical club house, its purpose is to inspire through carefully curated experiences, education and community. I’m hosting Company Club Radio, a podcast that we are recording at Haxton Road Studios (above, Jenn hosts a segment of the Company Club Radio podcast). The podcast will highlight women in our community but also provide resources and education. We also want to entertain, so it should be a fun little project.

“I would really love to invite people to connect with TSG Northwest Arkansas on Insta and let us know what’s ‘on your radar’ so we can share our fave local spots and happenings.” – Jenn Esty

Feel free to share “what’s on your radar” and how you LIVE. LOVE. LOCAL. in Northwest Arkansas by emailing Jenn at [email protected].

#livelovelocal #scouted #tsgnwarkansas #thescoutguide #local #supportlocal #nwarkansas #northwestarkansas

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