Best American Gay Fiction #3 [Paperback]

Brian Bouldrey (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Best American Gay Fiction | Publication Date: October 15, 1998

What's particularly surprising about the third volume of this acclaimed anthology series is the many genres it encompasses. The exceptional writing collected here, culled from mainstream and alternative publications released in 1997, ranges from historical fiction to erotica, from high comedy to suspense, from the experimental to the documentary. Each of the seventeen stories explores gay themes, of course, but, equally important, each is an outstanding piece of short fiction. The writers -- some of them celebrated, some of them new discoveries -- whose work has been selected for this year's anthology include:

--Keith Banner -- Justin Chin -- Dennis Cooper -- Alfred Corn -- Jameson Currier -- Jim Eigo -- Thomas Glave -- Bob Gluck -- Andrew Sean Greer -- Allan Gurganus -- Scott Heim -- William Haywood Henderson -- Tom House -- Eric Gabriel Lehman -- James Morrison -- Matt Bernstein Sycamore -- Peter Weltner

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"Is there something that is inherently 'queered' about the books gay men bring into the English language?" asks Brian Bouldrey. "Yes, and in an exquisitely subtle way, a way that can teach anybody, gay or straight, how to speak that language." He's selected stories for the third volume of the Best American Gay Fiction series with that principle in mind, looking for fiction that offers insight into the unique facets of gay life while offering new perspectives on the things we all take for granted. The 16 contributors include established authors like Allan Gurganus and Dennis Cooper (Cooper is represented by an excerpt from his novel Guide) as well as fresh new writers like Scott Heim and Justin Chin. Bouldrey also has recommendations for other great stories and novels that he was unable to include. Not that there's any cause for complaint about all the great literature he did manage to squeeze between these covers.

From Publishers Weekly

This intelligently assembled collection closes with one of the strongest stories (gay or otherwise) of the past few years. "Preservation News," by Allan Gurganus, is putatively a Southern widow's memoir of her friend Tad, a charismatic restorer and architect, who has died of AIDS. Gurganus's brilliantly impersonated narrator lets him combine technical cleverness with depth and pathos; readers may not know whether to grin or weep. It would be a Herculean labor to find 15 other new stories that good, and the editor hasn't. Still, there is more than enough here to interest and absorb readers. Cult favorite and sex-and-violence expert Dennis Cooper contributes the bristly, erotic "snuff fairy tale" "The Freed Weed"; Peter Weltner's "Buddy Loves Jo-Ann" is understated to the point of sneakiness; Andrew Sean Greer's elegantly constructed "The Future of the Flynns" brings an affable eeriness to its flashbacks and flash-forwards; and Scott Heim's moving "Deep Green, Pale Purple" expertly dodges the border of clich?. Bouldrey (Genius of Desire), who also edited the first two books in this annual series, has been careful to seek out work in both mainstream venues (like Esquire) and more marginal journals. He appends a "recommended" list of stories he couldn't fit in here.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Back Bay Books (October 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316102369
• ISBN-13: 978-0316102360
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,616,031 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Volume 3, January 8, 2006

By 

Earl R. Sutton "earlsutton" (Detroit, MI, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Best American Gay Fiction #3 (Paperback)

"Whether exploring topics unique to the gay experience, reinventing a genre from a gay perspective, or observing straight life through queer eyes, the stories in the third volume of this acclaimed anthology series offer compelling evidence that gay writers are producing some of the finest new fiction in America today. Best American Gay Fiction 3 highlights both outstanding new work by well-known writers and exciting original stories by emerging talents."--© zebraz

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed Assortment Of Short Stories, August 10, 2006

By 

F. Chloupek (Cleveland, OH) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Best American Gay Fiction #3 (Paperback)

While I typically like short fiction anthologies -- loved the Men on Men series for example -- I found this one mixed.

I found "Please Do Not Touch The Works Of Art" by Tom House to be strong as was Keith Banner's "Lily Of The Valley"

In the review below by michael, he mentions stories that weren't actually in the book, so he might have been reviewing an earlier edition. Picking up the earlier ones in the series first might be a better option. #3 was weak, though the strong stories were good enough to give this 3 stars and worthwhile to pick up cheaply. One can skim through the stories that don't catch one's interest