Parted Lips: Lesbian Love Quotes Through the Ages [Paperback]

Simone Rich (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2008

Have you ever had one of those moments when the time was right to lean over and whisper the perfect tender something into your lover's ear, but your mind went blank? Have you ever searched for a gift that would express the exact way you felt about your love but come home empty-handed? Never again. In this collection of love quotes from the seventh century B.C. to the present are more than 250 timeless passages from poetry, drama, film, books, and other sources covering desire, love, fidelity, infidelity, heartbreak, temptation, passion, and seduction. Illustrated throughout with heartwarming romantic photographs, this volume is an indispensable bedside companion-the perfect romantic gift for any occasion.

Simone Rich lives in New York City. This is her first book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Alyson Books; 1 edition (October 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555835767
• ISBN-13: 978-1555835767
• Product Dimensions: 5.6 x 4.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,932,021 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fun, but could use a touch of lip gloss, December 18, 2002

By 

M. J. Lowe "www.mjlowe.info" (Denver, Colorado United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Parted Lips: Lesbian Love Quotes Through the Ages (Paperback)

Parted Lips is a pleasant little book of quotations. Although of trade paperback quality, it is an unusual size (appx 4.5" X 5.75") with 187 pages worth of witty quotes from a broad range of individuals. Everyone from Sappho (circ 612-550 BCE Greek poet from the island of Lesbos) and Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz (17th Century poet) to Groucho Marx and Lucy Lawless, provides bon mots. The quotations are divided into a baker's dozen of thematic chapters such as Lovers & Relationships, Beauty, Marriage, Butch and Femme, Bisexuality, and Odds and Ends. Observations range from the Rita Mae Brown's wry, "Love is the wild card of existence." (p 54) to several deliciously baudy comments from Tallulah Bankhead. Each chapter opens with a lovely black and white photograph that reflects the chapter's subject from the suggestive to the amusing.

However, Parted Lips could use a touch of lip gloss, for this reader. First there is the subtitle: Lesbian Love Quotes Through the Ages. It's not clear how some of these quotations qualify as lesbian or love quotes. For example Harper Lee's "the one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience." (p179), though a favorite of this reader, doesn't clearly strike one as a love quote, unless there is some context that is not provided. Then there is the general uneven quality to the credit citations. Some citations have the author's name and the title of a published source. Others have the context of the quote, such as a response to an interview question, but no source for the interview. In some cases the author's view has actually changed over time, as with Rita Mae Brown's comment about bisexuality (p 90) which clearly reflects her radical days with the Furies in the 1970s. Some names have simple biographic information. Other names have none. An appendix with brief biographical information would have been nice. However, the lack of an introduction by the editor to explain how she came to pull this volume together, how the quotes were chosen, and how she sorted them is probably the most annoying omission. The back of the book states that Rich has been collecting lesbian quotes and trivia for some 15 years. Finally there is no index to the individuals quoted. Since several persons are cited more than once, an index would have been a simple, yet helpful addition. All in all, Parted Lips is a fun little volume and could make a nice gift book, although it is a tad expensive for its weaknesses.