Friends and Lovers: Gay Men Write About the Families They Create [Hardcover]

John Preston (Editor), Michael Lowenthal (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1995

A collection of twenty-three moving and thoughtful essays by gay writers addresses the lives, families, and homes that gay people build, structures that exist outside the traditional nuclear family, yet still offer nurturance and support. 10,000 first printing.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Preston, who died of AIDS-related illness in 1994, and Lowenthal, a freelance writer who contributed to Preston's Flesh and the Word series, have fashioned an absorbing, fresh and unpredictable collection of essays that explore the alternative "families" gay men create. The book is the third in another series?Preston also edited Hometowns: Gay Men Write About Where They Belong and A Member of the Family: Gay Men Write About Their Families. The better essays move beyond the trappings of upscale gay culture (a preoccupation limiting Eric Latsky's Fire Island reminiscences and activist-writer Michael Bronski's valentine to a Boston bar). Michael L., in retreat from a family "addicted to normal," finds solace among the straight and gay members of his Alcoholics Anonymous group, the "good parent." Novelist Christopher Bram wittily describes his fleeting but intense collaboration with friends in making a movie short. Randy Boyd?black, 30-plus, HIV-positive?movingly recounts his friendship with a 19-year-old, straight Los Angeles Hispanic. Jesse Monteagudo, a Latino converting to Judaism, finds his new faith, more than his sexuality, the defining factor of his life.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Some of America's top gay authors, including Andrew Holleran, Michael Nava, and William Haywood Henderson, write about the families they were born into and the ones they have created for themselves. "Family" takes on a broader definition here, sometimes too broad, as a few of the writers recount favorite bars, consciousness-raising groups, and stays at summer houses on the beach with friends and acquaintances. The best of the stories, however, tell how these men, some ostracized from their biological families, have established their own family units. Their touching stories recount the same themes common to all families: a sense of history and continuity, of support and acceptance, and, yes, sometimes even of dissension and hurt. In the end, however, it is the unconditional love and respect for one another that defines family for these writers. Recommended for most collections.?Jeffery Ingram, Newport P.L., Ore.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult (May 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525938583
• ISBN-13: 978-0525938583
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,203,553 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

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5.0 out of 5 stars One of the very best anthologies, September 2, 2010

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Lawrence - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Friends and Lovers: Gay Men Write About the Families They Create (Mass Market Paperback)

This is one of the very best anthologies of any kind. The essays were well written and edited, covering various issues related to love and relationships with unconventional family members, friends and lovers. It is a very good read, extremely moving, and it touches my heart deeply. It is a very good book for yourself, to give to others as a gift, and most importantly, to keep before it is officially out of print. It is one of the best books from and on the gay community.