Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent book, July 14, 2003
For those who are interested in in Gay studies or the study of subcultures in Sociology, this is a great book.
For those who have an agenda (such as some American skinheads and a couple other reviewers here) it might not be so great.Some skins take issue with the idea of gay skinheads actually even existing, imagining a necessary distinction between being Gay and embracing a subcultural construct, like "skinhead." For them such men aren't "real skinheads." Unfortunately this perspective misses the mark, and the point (in part) of the book: Gay cultural identity, as distinct from Gay being, is as much a social construct as skinhead identity, punk identity, hip hop identity, etc.. More importantly in respect to skinheads and this book, Gay cultural identity has often been about appropriating and (at times) even co-opting images of masculinity within the culture at large. This book (and a little time in London) simply point this fact out as it relates to skinhead identity.
Perhaps some skinheads feel more comfortable imagining their chosen identity is somehow intrinsic to their nature, but all one has to do to disprove this is line up a bunch of skins. One will find differing groups with differing definitions of what constitutes an authentic skinhead...racism, anti-racism, leftism, rightism, class identity, etc.. In the final analysis the only common trait IS shaving ones head, wearing docs and shouting Oi!
The beauty of this book can only be appreciated from a cultural studies perspective focused on gender identity issues and Gay issues. I guess it could also be appreciated from a strictly Gay perspective too...but probablly not much.
If you're a skinhead simply looking for a book for and by whatever kind of skin you are, then this book is not for you. Unless...of course...you're a Gay skinhead.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Gay skinheads exist...what's left to prove?, May 12, 1999
By A Customer
I'm not sure what the previous reviewer's expectations were before he/she read the book, but I found Gay Skins to be full of interesting and valid insight on this youth culture phenomenon. In relation to the larger (and decidedly older aged) "clone" population of roughly the same time period, gay skins were part of another unique, highly stylized gay subculture. The book details how manner of dress and custom defined this group's social, sexual and political behavior. A good read and highly informative, especially in the context of how today's gay youth survive.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
very interesting and informative, February 20, 2005
i bought this book a few years ago and just checked if it's still available. very astonishing how little people seem to understand that there is a difference between skinheads and boneheads. sounds like they didn't really read the book...
living in berlin, germany i do see both sides plus the gay part, and i think that this book is a good source for those who want to know a bit more about the whole thing.
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