Product Description

Following the success of last year's debut volume, this Best American Gay Fiction collection broadens the range of contributors, styles, and genres. Here is outstanding new work by such well-known writers as Andrew Holleran, Dale Peck, Michael Nava, and David Wojnarowicz alongside fresh talents who capture the full spectrum of gay life today -- African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Americans. The impressive writing presented here -- all drawn from works published in 1996 -- reflects this diversity as well, and ranges from coming-of-age narratives to reflections on growing older, from edgy 'zine fiction to elegant tales wrought with lapidary precision.

Unified only by their excellence, these twenty-one selections are resounding proof of yet another banner year for gay fiction.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #942178 in Books
• Published on: 1997-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

Amazon.com Review
Since the Stonewall riots and the emergence of a vibrant, public homosexual culture, gay male fiction has been gradually coming out of the shadows and Brian Bouldrey's series Best American Gay Fiction is a fine barometer of its current state. These 21 pieces--ranging from excerpts of recently published novels to original short stories to fictionalized memoir--reflect the emotional and literary diversity of gay writing today. Bouldrey has chosen work by the already famous such as Andrew Holleran and Dale Peck, cult writers such as Kevin Killian, and up-and-coming authors such as Kolin M. Ohi and Tom House.

From Publishers Weekly
This intelligently assembled collection closes with one of the strongest stories (gay or otherwise) of the past few years. "Preservation News," by Allan Gurganus, is putatively a Southern widow's memoir of her friend Tad, a charismatic restorer and architect, who has died of AIDS. Gurganus's brilliantly impersonated narrator lets him combine technical cleverness with depth and pathos; readers may not know whether to grin or weep. It would be a Herculean labor to find 15 other new stories that good, and the editor hasn't. Still, there is more than enough here to interest and absorb readers. Cult favorite and sex-and-violence expert Dennis Cooper contributes the bristly, erotic "snuff fairy tale" "The Freed Weed"; Peter Weltner's "Buddy Loves Jo-Ann" is understated to the point of sneakiness; Andrew Sean Greer's elegantly constructed "The Future of the Flynns" brings an affable eeriness to its flashbacks and flash-forwards; and Scott Heim's moving "Deep Green, Pale Purple" expertly dodges the border of clich?. Bouldrey (Genius of Desire), who also edited the first two books in this annual series, has been careful to seek out work in both mainstream venues (like Esquire) and more marginal journals. He appends a "recommended" list of stories he couldn't fit in here.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Over the last decade production of gay fiction collections, both one-shots and annuals, has accelerated. This latest entry sets itself apart through a titular claim to contain only the highest-quality short stories and novel excerpts from the previous year. More specifically, of the 21 pieces just under half are drawn from periodicals and just over half are excised from books, either novels or other anthologies. Several credible choices stand out, including Adam Klein's "The Medicine Burns" and Bernard Cooper's "Arson." Though others are less to this reviewer's liking, most anthology readers expect variation, and because editor Bouldrey has based his selections purely on his personal taste such criticism seems pointless. Bouldrey (Genius of Desire, Ballantine, 1993) begins his introduction with a conversational riff on the pleasures of reading and putting together an anthology. But his later attempts to analyze individual stories and gay writing generally are superficial and strained. While there is nothing especially wrong with this book, neither is there anything especially right, and its claim to contain the "best" is not particularly credible. Libraries will be better served with the outstanding new His (LJ 9/1/95) and the venerable Men on Men 5 (LJ 8/94), both of which are parts of ongoing series.?Eric Bryant, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Great Assortment
This is a great assortment of fiction. Just when I was getting tired of gay anthologies comes this very different bunch of tales. From Jim Provenzano's scorching account of a gay-bashing to Adam Klein's "the Medicine Burns," the voices vary and the styles differ enough to provide a great sampling of gay men's fiction from 1996.

I was disappointed that some were novel extracts (Michael Cunningham's, Chris Bram's from "Father of Frankenstein" and Edmund White's) but on the whole an interesting collection, particularly Kevin Killian, Stephen Beachy and Michael Lowenthal's touching account.

Also recommended:
Father of Frankenstein (or anything by ) Christopher Bram
Shy by Kevin Killian
Mysterious Skin and In Awe by Scott Heim
PINS by Jim Provenzano

Volume 3
"Whether exploring topics unique to the gay experience, reinventing a genre from a gay perspective, or observing straight life through queer eyes, the stories in the third volume of this acclaimed anthology series offer compelling evidence that gay writers are producing some of the finest new fiction in America today. Best American Gay Fiction 3 highlights both outstanding new work by well-known writers and exciting original stories by emerging talents."--© zebraz

Mixed Assortment Of Short Stories
While I typically like short fiction anthologies -- loved the Men on Men series for example -- I found this one mixed.

I found "Please Do Not Touch The Works Of Art" by Tom House to be strong as was Keith Banner's "Lily Of The Valley"

In the review below by michael, he mentions stories that weren't actually in the book, so he might have been reviewing an earlier edition. Picking up the earlier ones in the series first might be a better option. #3 was weak, though the strong stories were good enough to give this 3 stars and worthwhile to pick up cheaply. One can skim through the stories that don't catch one's interest