For a viscerally experimental and gorgeously postmodern glimpse at queer Canadian women’s herstory, there is no better place to look than Daphne Marlatt’s 1988 novel Ana Historic. I say postmodern and experimental because the novel undoubtedly is, but this is not so much a warning as an invitation to watch Marlatt deftly and beautifully useRead More
Danika reviews The Salt Roads by Nalo Hopkinson
First of all, how amazing is that cover? Doesn’t it make you want to pick it up just by itself? Amazingly, this was a book I was assigned in a class. I very reluctantly put down Inseparable by Emma Donoghue (which is also amazing, and I will be reviewing it later) to read The Salt Roads, butRead More
MFred reviews Bittersweet by Nevada Barr
The back copy of Nevada Barr’s Bittersweet promised me a truthful, accurate portrayal of two women living together in the 1800s West. Imogene, a spinster teacher, is forced from her job in the East when her secret affair with a female student is revealed. She ends up in small Pennsylvania farming town, where she starts a friendshipRead More
Anna reviews The Jewel Box by Alcamia Payne
Clemmie Beaumont is a just-widowed southern belle who prefers the company of women. Pearl, a recently freed slave, is her new maid. She’s described as a sensual, “exotic” creature who has been watching Clemmie from the shadows and jumps on her first opportunity to slide a well-formed and “dextrous” [sic] toe up Clemmie’s skirts. Yes,Read More
Laura Mandanas reviews Fearless by Erin O’Reilly
Fearless by Erin O’Reilly is a work of historical fiction about the brave members of the Auxiliary Transport Authority who ferried planes during World War II. Delivering aircraft from the factories to Royal Air Force stations throughout the United Kingdom, ATA pilots flew in the face of danger on a daily basis. This book follows pilotsRead More
Allysse reviews The World Unseen by Shamim Sarif
The World Unseen is set in South Africa in the 1950’s and relates the story of two women – Miriam and Amina – and the way their lives impact each others. Let me start this review by saying that I love this book. After a lot of trouble to get it from my library IRead More
Laura Mandanas reviews Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
A darker tale than one might expect, Sarah Waters’ Fingersmith is a story of deception, double-dealing, and dysfunction. Opening in 1862 in a dilapidated London slum known as the Borough, we meet heroine #1: 17-year-old Susan Trinder. Orphaned at a young age, Sue has been raised as a fingersmith (pickpocket) by Mrs. Sucksby, a crookedRead More
Anna reviews Ghosts of Winter by Rebecca S. Buck
I enjoy reading historical fiction and, of course, lesbian fiction, so the opportunity to read Rebecca S. Buck’s Ghosts of Winter, which features both, was too good to pass up. Protagonist Ros Wynne has come to a crossroads in her life after losing her mother to cancer, leaving her job, and breaking up with her long-term girlfriend.Read More
Guest Lesbrarian Ami reviews Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters
We have another guest lesbrarian! Her name is Ami, and here’s her review: Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters Pages:474 My rating: C Summary: At 18, Nancy Astley is a fishmonger in coastal Whitstable, working with her sister and parents in the family oyster parlour. Smitten by male impersonator Kitty Butler, Nancy attends every showRead More
Guest Lesbrarian Stefanie reviews Marthy Moody by Susan Stinson
Welcome to our first Guest Lesbrarian post! This one is by Stefanie for lesbian writer Susan Stinson’s book Martha Moody, published in 1995. She also recommends some of Stinson’s other fiction, including Venus of Chalk and Fat Girl Dances with Rocks. Please, send in your own guest lesbrarian review! Susan Stinson’s Martha Moody is anRead More