Building on the success of The Mammoth Book of Gay Short Stories, The Mammoth Book of Lesbian Short Stories collects an international array of the best-known lesbian authors and new talents. Few of the stories have been anthologized before, and some have been specially commissioned for this work. With its focus on new writing, editor and author Emma Donoghue has gathered stories from such writers as Dorothy Allison, Patricia Dunker, Tanith Lee, Jennifer Levin, Anna Livia, Ingrid Macdonald, Sara Maitland, Shani Mootoo, Elizabeth Taylor, Shay Youngblood, and many others.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
It's no secret that commercial markets for short stories have been drying up for the past 30 years. This is considered a reflection of the diminishing readership for short fiction, and, as a result--with the occasional startling exception--book advances are small, reviews scarce, and promotion negligible. The prophets of literary doom have more or less ignored gay and lesbian fiction, however, where the short story flourishes among a feisty and increasingly discerning readership. "At the end of the 1990s," notes Emma Donoghue, "the only difficulty in compiling a collection of three decades of superb lesbian stories is that there are so many to choose from." Perhaps the best and widest-ranging of recent anthologies, the Mammoth Book includes the work of established writers (Jane Rule, Sara Maitland, Dorothy Allison) alongside that of novices, and corrects the usual overemphasis on American fiction. Like the editors of The Vintage Book of International Lesbian Fiction, Donoghue has chosen a thematic rather than biographical approach, including women writers "of all persuasions." But don't try to choose between this excellent book and the Vintage anthology, which has a different emphasis. Buy them both and become an expert in the lesbian short story. --Regina Marler
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More About the Author
Born in Dublin in 1969, Emma Donoghue is a writer of contemporary and historical fiction whose novels include the bestselling "Slammerkin," "The Sealed Letter," "Landing," "Life Mask," "Hood," and "Stirfry." Her story collections are "The Woman Who Gave Birth to Rabbits," "Kissing the Witch," and "Touchy Subjects." She also writes literary history, and plays for stage and radio. She lives in London, Ontario, with her partner and their two small children.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great for a quickie!,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Mammoth Book of Lesbian Short Stories (Paperback)
This book is structured very differently. Its 30+ stories are divided under 5 sub-headings, each characterizing different tastes and temptations. These include stories of times gone by, futuristic stories, and phase of life (and womanhood) stories, including tales of open lesbian love affairs, forbidden passions, life-long lovers, and stories about identity confusions--basically, very similar to real life. Any one section is bound to hold a gem of a tale. I just picked this book up, so I haven't read that many stories, but the one I like so far is "Free Love" by Ali Smith, which is about a young girl's first love-making experience, and the first time she falls in love with another woman. Very touching. If you're in the mood to read a short and tender, romantic lesbian love story, minus nasty sex scenes that often demean the female body, then this book is for you. It's great...very enjoyable!
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
wonderful collection,
This review is from: The Mammoth Book of Lesbian Short Stories (Paperback)
The variety of stories in this book is wonderful; some are risque, some are tragic, some are terribly romantic... sexy, sad, nostalgic, and funny. Most times I couldn't put it down. My favorite story has to be "The Lobster Queen" because it reminds me so much of my first romantic... episode with a woman. It's positively heart-wrenching. Other excellent stories include "The Woman Who Loved the Moon," "The Dark House," "The Burning Times," and "The Catherine Trilogy." (That was devestating. I cried myself to sleep after reading that.) One the whole, this book is great. I would recommend it to anyone, straight or not so straight, because it offers so many honest and varied views on lesbians and lesbianism. It's compassionate. It's tender. It will win your heart.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Book,
By
This review is from: The Mammoth Book of Lesbian Short Stories (Paperback)
First off, Emma she's an amazing writer, I actually borrowed the book from the Library, once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down, it was that good. Some of the stories I could identify with and it also helped me with some problems I was going through, this book is a definite plus in my book, if you haven't gotten it or read it you should, go for it! .
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