Lavender Lit Club

In this episode we review one of the first queer books, Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu as edited and introduced by Carmen Maria Machado. We talk queer coding and blood sucking and female sexuality. While vampires are a fun distraction, we'd like our listeners to know about some changes coming to our line up. This episode was recorded before the death of George Floyd and the nationwide protests that followed. Though we started this podcast with the intent to diversify our own reading lists, we recognize how little representation of BIPOC we have included. We took a break from posting in order to figure out how we are going to do better to honor and make space for the voices of Queer BIPOC. We are committed to featuring BIPOC authors much more in our coming episodes and to continuing to do the work we need to do behind the scenes to learn from Black leaders and shed our own biases. We look forward to growing with you. 

In this episode we get wild and rowdy with Tom Spanbauer's gay western The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon. A problematic fave, for sure, this novel is a trip right from page one. We follow a Two-

Ocean Vuong's debut, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, is a complicated novel tackling themes of trauma, poverty, homophobia, and death. We discuss language, what is accessible and not, but also the beauty of poetry and how Vuong's themes carry from his poetry into his prose. 

Ocean Vuong's debut, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, is a complicated novel tackling themes of trauma, poverty, homophobia, and death. We discuss language, what is accessible and not, but also the beauty of poetry and how Vuong's themes carry from his poetry into his prose. 

In this episode we discuss the parody/fanfiction/spinoff thing that is Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. This is a silly and queer alternative perspective on the Chosen One trope we all already love reading, and we dig into what that means and if it reaches it's queer potential.

In this episode we discuss the parody/fanfiction/spinoff thing that is Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. This is a silly and queer alternative perspective on the Chosen One trope we all already love reading, and we dig into what that means and if it reaches it's queer potential.

In our second poetry minisode, we read and discuss five of our favorite queer poems. "Come slowly--Eden" by Emily Dickensen, "After God Herself" by Justice Ameer, "Hubble Photographs: After Sappho" by Adrienne Rich, "Tonight in Oakland" by Danez Smith, and "Ardent" by Jill McDonough.

In our second poetry minisode, we read and discuss five of our favorite queer poems. "Come slowly--Eden" by Emily Dickensen, "After God Herself" by Justice Ameer, "Hubble Photographs: After Sappho" by Adrienne Rich, "Tonight in Oakland" by Danez Smith, and "Ardent" by Jill McDonough.

In this episode we get wild and rowdy with Tom Spanbauer's gay western The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon. A problematic fave, for sure, this novel is a trip right from page one. We follow a Two-Spirit Native American named Shed as he reclaims his life and tells his mythic tale of love and loss, hurt and shame, and fighting the powers that be. Possibly the gayest book we've ever read, The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon is certainly one of our top favorites.