Reviews (23)

Good but could be better.
The book is good and it keeps your attention, but you are left with the thought of "what was the point"? The book does not go in depth at all. And he only touches on his eating disorder which would have made an amazing chapter. He did not go through anything in high school that anybody, straight or gay, did not experience. There was not point to this book. It was funny and quick witted but he got on my nerves right from the beginning.He does not tie in the Snap to the whole story. You are left to figure that out on your own. I do not recommend this book.

Snap, Crackle, Pop
Man oh Man (or better still, man on man) can this guy write!His last name is Read and that is what he makes us do.You all know by now that this is a coming of age, coming out story set in the South in the eighties.What differentiates it is how adorable the authorand star character comes across.His swish side is offset by his tough soccer playing and ability to beat up the homophobic bullies. Above all else is his terrific sense of humor.Then there's the writing.Describing a particularly intense right-wing, holy-roller Christian recruiting experience: "If God had to go to such lengths to invite people to his birthday party, He probably wasn't servingvery good cake." (Interesting that the "H" is capitalized.) On his "emotional girlfriend's" driving habits: "...we were a pair of crash test dummies waiting for our brick wall to arrive." There are plenty of other examples.Unfortunately, the author's website (kirkread.com) is not nearly as well put together as the book (only two non-descript photos of Mr. Read) but it does indicate that a second book is in the works.Bring it on!

When is the movie coming out?
What an incredibly open and honest and captivating story!Read is a storyteller to reckon with -- he gives us the coming-of-age story that makes all of those coming-out stories just look silly.This is a story about growing up that doesn't pull any punches or make you grimace because it's cutesy or fake -- bravo, Kirk Read! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Gay Studies    5. General    6. Personal Memoirs    7. Specific Groups - Male Gay Studies    8. Biography & Autobiography / Personal Memoirs   

Reviews (10)

A Truly Inventive Writer
This wry, witty, entertaining, and eminently readable tome is about as different from your typical paint-by-numbers, self-serving, egocentric showbiz autobiography as any I've ever read. Rather than blandly follow the timeline of his life and career, actor Craig Chester - an "openly gay" performer who never came out of the closet because he was never in it! - introduces himself to his readers through a series of clever and thought-provoking essays in which he uses his past as a launching pad to discuss general topics on which he wishes to comment.This fresh and unusual approach allows the reader both to pick up on the threads of Chester's life story and to get a handle on his personality, as well as his views on the worlds of filmmaking, gay politics, relationships, and many other subjects.Chester's writing proves that should he ever decide to abandon acting, he has another equally vital career awaiting him as a writer."Why the Long Face?" is one of those books you have trouble putting down, and wish would never end.Very highly recommended!

Laugh fest all the way--but also much wisdom in the telling
WHY THE LONG FACE? is one of the funniest books I have read in years--and mind you, I have only just read the first two chapters. The first (camp) had a smile on my smile throughout, and the second (Halloween) had me laughing aloud. I have no doubt that I am going to enjoy every chapter that follows, and I have no problem puting pen to paper and calling the work positively delicious only 22 pages into it. I toss more books than I finish, as I am easily bored--but this book hooked me immediately. Chester's delightfully bizarre personality, truly independent take on life, and wonderfully wicked wit shine on every page; they are just what the doctor ordered after a week of stress at work. I feel as if I have a friend sitting next to me on my couch, cracking me up with tales of his most offbeat moments. The world needs more writers/actors/genuine human beings like Craig Chester! Bravo!

Some downtime between movies?
I was prepared to enjoy this book a great deal thinking it would be full of tales about the trials and tribulations of being gay and grabbing for fame.
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Subjects:  1. Acting    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    6. Individual Movie Actors And Actresses    7. Personal Memoirs    8. Social Science / Gay Studies   

Reviews (8)

Author !Author !
I wonder if other men love this book like I do. I loaned this book to someone then forgot whom I loaned it to.Doesn't matter. I've thought about this story a thousand times.
Lillian's best yet
By far, Lillian's best yet.Her previous writings were way too heady for me, but this one held my attention.For those looking for the juicy tidbits of Faderman's personal life, this book pretty much hits the spot.I am looking forward to the sequel -- this woman has much more to tell.

One Eye Closed ?
Ms. Faderman has always been an outstanding scholar, giving the academic and Lesbian worlds her well researched, and highly informative books about Lesbians and Lesbianism. She has also written other scholarly works that are highly recommended, if not a little heavy for most readers. In her latest venture, her memoir " Naked in the Promise Land", Ms. Faderman shows her readers another side of her makeup, her personal side. The Memoir is as interesting for what it reveled about Ms. Faderman's past life as well as what has been carefully left out. Readers may well have to wait for a bioghapher to tell the complete story of Lillian Faderman's life for it appears that she is willing to go only so far in its telling.Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Educators    6. Faderman, Lillian    7. Jews    8. Lesbians    9. Personal Memoirs    10. Scholars    11. Specific Groups - Lesbians    12. United States    13. Biography & Autobiography / Women    14. Biography: general   

Editorial Review

More than 20 years have passed since Ellen DeGeneres came out to her mother on a beach in Mississippi. Stunned, Betty DeGeneres could only think of her own disappointed expectations. As she put her arms around her daughter, she was struck by the realization that she would never see Ellen's picture on the engagements page of the Read more

Reviews (26)

Unconditional love
What is it like to have a child who is gay?In this book, Betty DeGeneres describes the moment that her daughter Ellen came out to her and admitted the secret which she kept from her mother for 20 years.After learning that her daughter was gay, Betty herself was forced to keep this secret for 20 more years, before Ellen came out to the world.This is a book about a mother's unconditional love for her daughter and about how her daughter's sexual orientation caused a complete change in her life.It is also about Ellen's family and how she went from being a sweet, funny little girl from New Orleans to being one of the top actess/comediennes of our times.It is also about how mother and daughter went from keeping Ellen's homosexuality a secret to how they became activists in the gay/lesbian movement.Throughout the book, the loving and positive spirit of both Ellen and Betty become very evident.

Love, Betty!
It's simply one great book!
what I've been looking for
This is the book I've been wishing Ellen herself would write!!! Ellen's mom tells pretty much the whole story here! But it's far from an E! True Hollywood Story type EXPOSE. Its a warm, human, family story that makes you laugh and cry! Betty tells not only Ellen's life story but her own and her son's and her sisters' and basically the entire family is touched on here. And it really is a beautifully written very real story. Betty is most definately a gifted writer. If you're an Ellen fan this book is definately for you. But you really don't have to be to enjoy the wonderful collection of personal stories that Betty shares. They could be stories from anyone's family, not just a celebrity's. I think that was the best thing about this book: where other celebrity biographies are usually sensationalistic and extraordinary this book humanizes Ellen and her family and her story. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Case studies    6. Entertainment & Performing Arts - Actors & Actresses    7. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    8. Lesbians    9. Mothers and daughters    10. Parenting - Parent & Adult Child    11. Parents of gays    12. Specific Groups - Lesbians    13. United States    14. Biography & Autobiography / Women    15. Biography: film, television & music    16. Television   

Subjects:  1. Alternative Sexual Behavior    2. Biography    3. Gender Studies    4. Gender identity    5. General    6. Identity    7. Social Science    8. Sociology    9. Transsexualism    10. Transsexuals    11. Social Science / Gender Studies   

Reviews (10)

The Best Yet!
This is the most informative and entertaining book about Melissa Etheridge.The book is well written, well organized and has some detailed information on how each CD was made and what the stories were behind them. It's the only book about Melissa Etheridge you will ever need.

The Definitive Biography
This was the book both Lifetime's "Intimate Portrait" and VH-1's "Behind the Music" used as a reference for their specials on Melissa.Can't get much more definitive than that!!!

just a punk chick from new jersey
im a great fan just want to express my thoughtsthe web site contains to many commercial thoughtsi dig all the cds you have releasdedthe one that striked home is yes i am#5 that is the greastest tune everreleasedmelissais cooljust a humanlike me ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Composers & Musicians - General    6. Composers & Musicians - Rock    7. Discography & Buyer's Guides    8. Etheridge, Melissa    9. Lesbians    10. Rock Music    11. Rock musicians    12. United States    13. Women rock musicians    14. Rock & pop    15. Melissa Etheridge   

Editorial Review

Colin Turnbull (1924-94) made his reputation with two bestselling works of popular anthropology that tell diametrically opposed tales. Read more

Reviews (13)

informative yet rather strange
This is an informative biography, no question on that, but one wonders what the relationship was between the author, Roy Grinker, and his subject, Colin Turnbull.Both did doctorates in anthropology at Harvard, and both studied the same peoples in Africa (does getting a PhD in anthropology absolutely necessitate studying pygmies in Afriac?sure seems like it...).From what I've read in other sources, Grinker turned his back on Turnbull's "approach" to pygmie culture, only to regret this after Turnbull's death.One wonders whether or not this book is a too-late tribute to the author's academic father-figure.

Curiosity Satiated
I have been curious about Colin Turnbull ever since I read the "Mountain People" several years ago.As an anthropology student, I identified with Turnbull's willingness to "learn" the lifeways of the "other", and in doing so, reshape his own worldview.I am afraid that this book may have told me a little more than I wanted to know however... Turnbull's life
This is an interesting book, but I did not find it as compelling as other reviewers.The material is fascinating, but the presentation is a bit plodding and detracts from the narrative.As a fellow academic, I understand Grinker's desire to include the wealth of details his painstaking research uncovered; but as a reader I wished he'd had a more careful editor who would have excised some of the irrelevant, distracting details and polished the presentation of the rest of the book.(Apart from some clumsy writing, there are even spelling and typographical errors in several chapters!)Read more

Subjects:  1. Adventurers & Explorers    2. Anthropology - General    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. General    7. Social Scientists & Psychologists    8. Specific Groups - Male Gay Studies    9. Africa    10. Anthropology    11. Biography & Autobiography / Social Scientists & Psychologists    12. Biography: general   

Reviews (14)

amazing
This is truly an amazing book. And Mel Cheren has lived an amazing life, from being a record promoter in the 60s who was living a closeted life, to being at the epicenter of gay life in the 70s, to fighting the AIDS crisis in the 80s. I bought this book just hoping to get more info on the Garage but I got so much more. I got a history lesson in gay life over the past 30 years. Truly educational and fascinating. But yes I must agree with the past poster--a little too much backpatting and a little too much taking credit for other people's successes. Other than that, a fine book and one definitely worth owning if you have any interest in disco, gay life or the Paradise Garage.

I really liked this book ...
I thought this book was great.I live in Boston and have spent a considerable time going back and forth to New York over the years.I think I spent most weekends there in the mid-80's.Anyway, I moved in a different crowd form Mel's Boston crew, but I knew some of them casually.His appendix held a few surprises for me as to what happened to some of them. Mixed feelings. (Please read the *whole* review!)
I must admit that I have very mixed feelings about this book. Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Business Aspects    6. Cheren, Mel    7. Discotheques    8. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    9. Gay men    10. New York    11. New York (State)    12. Regional Subjects - MidAtlantic    13. Sound recording executives and    14. Sound recording executives and producers    15. United States    16. Memoir    17. Music History   

Reviews (2)

Powerful!
Several years ago, while I was in the "coming out process", I read the first edition of this text.It did inspire me, in that, it made me realize that I was not the only gay person (let alone teacher) on the planet.
Very Inspiring
Prepare to be inspired!This is one of the most important education books to come out in 2005.In this edition of new essays, almost 40 educators tell their stories.Not only do educators from all over the U.S. weigh in on this critical topic, but essays from educators in Canada, England, and Japan are also included.Sometimes second editions are a letdown.But after ten years of work, Kevin Jennings and his team have compiled a second edition worthy of sharing a title with the now-classic One Teacher in 10.I've been reading the stories and they run the range from poignant to funny to energizing.I think this book can be helpful to educators, students, professors, parents, LGBT, and allied.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Gay Studies    3. Gay teachers    4. Gender Studies    5. General    6. Lesbian teachers    7. Social Science    8. Sociology    9. United States    10. Education    11. Gay & Lesbian studies    12. Social Science / Gay Studies   

Reviews (1)

Sensitive, layered portrait of a complicated man
This is one of the best Hollywood bios around. While numerous authors rehash the tired stories of Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, and others (for the 10th or 11th time - and who cares) this book opens new, original territory by looking at the life and times of Tony Perkins. The author first published the book ten years ago and this is a great update - no one else has come along to do a better job either. Tony Perkins lived on the cusp of the social revolution, balancing between the uptight propriety of the 50s with the psycho/sexual upheaval of the 60s and 70s. Winecoff meticulously lays out this world, and Perkins difficult and often troubled, sometimes comical, walk through it. Tons of interviews and vivid descriptions of people and places makes Tony pop off the page in this "true Hollywood story" that is hard to out down. Winecoff's timing is impeccable - the book is a fast, fun read as well as an informative one. The reissue is more tightly woven (I read the first version when it came out ten years ago). The author has grown more sophisticated and observant with passing years, as all good writers should. The final scene, September 11th and all, is a fitting tribute to changing times and the end of an era. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Entertainment & Performing Arts - Actors & Actresses    5. Film & Video - General    6. Gay Studies    7. General    8. Specific Groups - Male Gay Studies    9. Biography & Autobiography / General    10. Biography: film, television & music    11. Films, cinema    12. Individual actors & performers   

Reviews (2)

An all too brief glimpse of Genius
There was a greatness there in these women, in that time. They loved Paris and France and the freedom and the people they met there. They came alive living and loving in a city that seemed to inspire them to certain greatness. Poets, writers, artists their talents ran the gamut of art.
Paris through female eyes
Profusely illustrated and painstakingfully researched, this book is an enlightening account of women who between wars found their self and their own voice in Paris. Though mostly concerned with the stories of lesbian or bisexual women such as Colette, Gertrude Stein, Alice Toklas, Sylvia Beach, Djuna Barnes and Natalie Barney who came to the City of Light attracted by an aura of unbridled freedom missing in their places of origin, this book will appeal to all those who are interested in this fascinating early period of the twentieth century as well. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th Century Literature - History And Criticism    2. Biography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. France    5. Gay/Lesbian Nonfiction    6. General    7. Lesbian Studies    8. Paris    9. Paris (France)    10. Social Science    11. Women    12. Women In Literature    13. Women authors    14. Women intellectuals   

Reviews (3)

Honest authors
Covering everything from first relationships, to tension between gay and straight friends, to conceptual lesbianism, to the lesbian phenomenon of being attracted only to straight women, this collection of essays by both famous and not-so-famous authors is a great read.The book does have a few duds, but the excellent writing of Grace Paley, Martha Southgate, and Elizabeth Wurtzel, to name only a few, definitely makes up for it.All the authors write honestly and openly about women, friendship, relationships, and lesbianism.It is refreshing to see a book that pulls its authors from such varied backgrounds (including different sexual orientations).Some essays make you nod your head in agreement, thinking, "I know exactly what she means, I've always felt that way," and others make you think about things from a new angle: "I'd never even thought of that before"--which is something that ultimately promotes understanding.I'd recommend this book to ANY woman.

You understand, don't you?
This book was incredible.I would recommend it to any women, straight, gay or bi.It puts things into perspective, that you didn't even know were out of perspective. I love this book!!!

This is an amazing book!
I would buy any book that has an essay by sarah schulman in it! However,this book is worth it for many other reasons. Beautifuly written essays,stories, and excerpts from books make Surface Tension a good book to read.I found it moving, thought provoking, and fullfilling. I was notdisappointed. All the authors had very different ways at looking at thesame thing. One essay (The FeMale Gaze) mentions the popular folkrock band,the Indigo Girls.Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Bisexual women    5. Female friendship    6. Gay Studies    7. Heterosexual women    8. Lesbian Studies    9. Lesbians    10. Political    11. Sociology    12. Women's Studies - General    13. Interpersonal relations    14. Modern fiction    15. Social Science / Gay Studies    16. Social Science / Lesbian Studies    17. Social Science-Gay Studies    18. Social Science-Women's Studies - General   

Reviews (12)

Compelling from beginning to end
I just finished the complimentary ("Thanks!") copy of your book, and I must say I've never read anything as disturbing and frightening as "Father's Touch." I cannot relate; I'm a son and a father, but your background is one I could not even begin to imagine.
'Suffer little children, to come unto me.....'
Anyone who has regard for the future can only view the destruction of a child's innocence as one of the most heinous crimes in the human lexicon of brutality. When this occurs in the family home and is perpetrated by a parent with an obvious duty of care, the betrayal and it's consequences are immeasurable.
Powerful, well-written, painful memoir, with a touch of joy
The Story: Donald D'Haene tells the story of how he and his siblings were raised by a father who seduced them into escalating sexual abuse, and a naive mother who was controlled by her deceptive and manipulative husband. This book relates the subtle, and not-so-subtle, horrors of the abuse; the damage done to the family; the eventual legal process against the abuser; and, Donald D'Haene's inspiring journey to a healthier identity, sense of self, and way of life.
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Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography / Personal Memoirs    2. Specific Groups - Male Gay Studies    3. Adult child sexual abuse victims    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Child sexual abuse    6. Childhood Memoir    7. Gay men    8. Personal Memoirs   

Reviews (3)

A great book, very informative!
Bert does not fit the typical "stereotype" I'm sure many people have. He's not gay for one thing. Most cross-dressers aren't, but there is so little information in the "real world". This book is a breath of fresh air. I highly recommend it for married couples dealing with these issues. Bert is basically your average guy, except for the fact he likes wearing dresses!

Bert & Lori : The Autobiography of a Crossdresser
THe Autobiography of a cross-dresser was a unique book, It gave the reader a unique understnading of cross-dressing from the cross-dresser and from his own words.It also gives a history of when the author started and Howit affects his life now, All in All it was a good book

Bert & Lori : The Autobiography of a Crossdresser
THe Autobiography of a cross-dresser was a unique book, It gave the reader a unique understnading of cross-dressing from the cross-dresser and from his own words.It also gives a history of when the author started and Howit affects his life now, All in All it was a good book ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Alternative Sexual Behavior    2. Biography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Human Sexuality    6. Rowe, Robert J    7. Social Science    8. Sociology - General    9. Specific Groups - General    10. Transvestites    11. United States    12. Biography: general    13. Sexual behaviour    14. Transsexuals   

Reviews (4)

If you can't go to Paris (or even if you can), read this book!
A delightful book about White and Sorin's life in Paris, with an inevitable undercurrent of sadness, because Sorin is dying. Yet his inability to practice his work as an architect led him to develop the "unique, exuberant drawing style" that illustrates this book.
Parisian anecdotes told with American-style intimacy
I picked up this little book for a return flight from Paris to LA.It looked like perfect plane reading -- short, gossipy, topical.And although it lived up to each of those expectations, the devastation implicit in the book (and explicit at the end) hit hard.The book is not easily forgettable -- and probably no less memorable for the passengers and crew of American Airlines flight 45 who watched me become a sniffling, tear-stained disaster. Grand Deception
I love deceptive books.Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. 4e Arrondissement (Paris, Fran    3. AIDS (Disease)    4. Americans    5. Biography    6. Europe - France    7. France    8. Gay men    9. History    10. Paris    11. Paris (France)    12. Pictorial works    13. Social life and customs    14. Travel    15. Travel - Foreign    16. Homes and haunts    17. Sorin, Hubert    18. Travel / Europe / France    19. White, Edmund   

Reviews (4)

Weird, Unkind, and Dissolute
"She was a weird, unkind, dissolute person." This is how her goddaughter remembers Patricia Highsmith, and after reading Andrew Wilson's biography, you may think so, too.
Haunting Biographical Study
Fans of Patricia Highsmith's dark and disturbing fiction will undoubtedly find Andrew Wilson's biography an absolutely fascinating if occasionally harrowing reading experience.Highsmith's life was far from a happy one, in fact in many ways it could be charitably described as a disaster. Wilson movingly details her sad, troubled childhood and adolescence during which Highsmith developed an obsession with gruesome death and decay that would haunt her short stories and novels.As an adult, her many sexual encountersalways ended in unhappiness.With advancing age, Highsmith became ever more distrustful and ultimately hateful of humankind.Wilson portrays a supremely talented but cold-hearted, misanthropic woman who was eminently unlikeable, even downright detestable.(One of Highsmith's publishers describes her as "the most odious woman I've ever met.") All of this sadness and despair makes us understand and appreciate her disturbing creations all the more.In addition to providing us with a detailed glimpse into the strange life of one of the finest contemporary thriller writers, Wilson adds much to our appreciation of her art by providing concise and revealing analyses of her best works.So good is this exhaustive biography that once you've finished it you'll want to immediately pick up a copy of NOTHING THAT MEETS THE EYE (or any of the other currently available Highsmith collections) and renew your acquaintance with this excellent, morbidly captivating writer.

Fine for Fans
This is an impressive work of conjecture based on interviews, diary notes and the author's obvious adoration of his subject.Unfortunately, much of it seems only that: his opinion and theory.As interesting as the work of the prolific Highsmith continues to be, the writer herself comes off pretty thoroughly unlovable and not altogether fascinating.The good news, however, is that the biography succeeds in stimulating one's desire to explore Highsmith's works beyond the RIPLEY stories and STRANGERS ON A TRAIN.I've already ordered several and look forward to reading them. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. American novelists    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Lesbians    8. Literary    9. Novelists, American    10. United States    11. Women    12. Biography & Autobiography / Women   

Reviews (2)

A diverse and illuminating collection of voices
"Restoried Selves: Autobiographies of Queer Asian/Pacific American Activists," edited by Kevin K. Kumashiro, is an anthology with a very tight focus (as indicated by the title).The bulk of the book consists of 17 autobiographical pieces written by different activists.In addition, the book contains a foreword, a preface, an afterword, an index, and capsule biographies of the contributors. BLTG Asian-Am Activists Speak OUT (pun intended)
While reading this anthology, I kept being reminded of Cheryl Dunye's film "Watermelon Woman."At the end, she proclaims, "I am a black lesbian filmmaker."I can understand struggling to make peace with one's racial and sexual identities.But is identifying as a filmmaker an equally difficult struggle!?Well, in this book, non-straight Asian-Americans do not just speak about themselves, but they purposely dissect their political activism.In this book, activism is given as much weight as race or sexual orientation.Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Ethnic Studies - Asian American Studies    5. Personal Memoirs    6. Specific Groups - Lesbians    7. Specific Groups - Male Gay Studies    8. Sociology, Social Studies   

Reviews (2)

Disappointing Reading
When I first read this book I was expecting a story about "a lesbian mother's fight for her son." In reality, very little of this book deals with the author's family situation and relationship with her son. Most of the book chroncicles the author's political activism and there is compartively little dealing with her partner or child. A profound disappointment

I loved this book.
This book tells two parallel stories: the author's struggle to adopt and raise the son she had with her partner, and the story of Queer Nation - San Francisco from about 1990 to 1992. It's an excellent documentary of both her personal story and the historical events of those years: protests against the Gulf War, christian evangelists, and the film "Basic Instinct." I participated in the protests and am mentioned in the book, but that's not why I like it. It's funny, accurate, touching and dramatic. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. California    3. Children of gay parents    4. Lesbian couples    5. Lesbian mothers    6. Parenting - Motherhood    7. San Francisco    8. Sociology    9. Women    10. Non-Classifiable   

Reviews (13)

One can't blame James Frey for making stuff up...
...because addiction is basically boring to all but the addict, and all addictions are pretty much the same.So are all hustlers, at least when they're hustling.Which doesn't leave Ron Nyswaner much to work with.So we get the FEELINGS OF INADEQUACY!!!(The guy's an Oscar nominee; excuse me if I don't weep too much for him.)And the LONELINESS!!! And the SELF-MUTILATION!!! And the SHADY CHARACTERS!!! and the BOASTING DISGUISED AS CONFESSING!!! (He didn't just insult his agent's top client while under the influence; we must know that it was BETTE MIDLER, and that LIBERACE was there, too.) And all of it smothered with SELF-IMPORTANCE like so much schlag.Meanwhile, Johann, the hustler, remains such a caricature of macho detachment that we have a hard time feeling for him, or believing that Nyswaner feels for him -- especially as, until it's too late, Nyswaner misses that the kid is an addi