New York Is A Town of Ghosts (You’ve Fucked): Cult Classic

It’s no secret that staying at the fair that is New York for too long (to paraphrase Joan D.) will lead to irreparable damage. Usually of the emotional variety—though you might also need a liver transplant after all the drinking expected of you as well. Sloane Crosley is here to crystallize that fact in literary form with her sophomore novel, Cult Classic. In contrast to her … Continue reading New York Is A Town of Ghosts (You’ve Fucked): Cult Classic

Rollercoaster by Lindsey Wentzel

You were the highest andMost dangerous rideI’ve ever encountered The tracks were wornThe lows were undergroundAnd the highs felt like flying You felt the same about meWe both knew that the Cars were on fire butWe rode on anyways The highs were the mostTantalizing of all highsWe felt shot to the moon The lows were horrificAs though we were part ofA haunted carnival A beautiful disaster … Continue reading Rollercoaster by Lindsey Wentzel

Glamorama and the Sasha Ultra Violet Mix Edit of “Ray of Light”

Since Madonna seems to be in the mood to throw us back to the 90s (despite cursory “fans” associating her with the 80s), she recently presented the world with a remix (David’s Radio Edit) of 1992’s club hit, “Deeper and Deeper.” But she hasn’t seen fit to stop there via her latest remix single from an upcoming compilation of hits, called Finally Enough Love. That single … Continue reading Glamorama and the Sasha Ultra Violet Mix Edit of “Ray of Light”

Don’t Hide Your Pride (and Prejudice): The Gay-ification of Jane Austen in Fire Island

Some might offer the idea that Jane Austen was already the pinnacle of gay. What with all of her main characters forced to stifle their true desires and feelings due to the pressures of a subjugating society that not only looked down upon the free expression of sexuality, but especially the free expression of sexuality on the part of women. Who might end up “making … Continue reading Don’t Hide Your Pride (and Prejudice): The Gay-ification of Jane Austen in Fire Island

The Weightiness of a “Small” Event: Annie Ernaux’s L’événement

Maybe there’s a reason you can’t spell “foetus” without “foe.” At least not in British English. In any case, Annie Ernaux must have feared on some level that future generations would need a reminder of how harrowing life in a country where abortion is outlawed can be. Women of the present might have grown accustomed to the apparent “luxury” of having access to a safe, … Continue reading The Weightiness of a “Small” Event: Annie Ernaux’s L’événement

This Ain’t Joan Didion’s Sacramento (And It Never Was)

Is there a chance that California’s capital is crying out in some way for its dead daughter? The only so-called “high-value star” of its show? Is that why the town—usually referenced solely as a footnote to where Didion is from—is now only being mentioned on an international scale for serving as the site of a second mass shooting in the span of a month? It’s … Continue reading This Ain’t Joan Didion’s Sacramento (And It Never Was)

The Literary Nods of 10 Things I Hate About You

Long before Olivia (Sydney Sweeney) and Paula (Brittany O’Grady) from The White Lotus were flaunting their book covers, we had Katarina Stratford (Julia Stiles), the “tempestuous” lead character in 10 Things I Hate About You. And, being that the movie was an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, it’s only fitting that there should be plenty of literary nods throughout. Including the fact that Kat herself is … Continue reading The Literary Nods of 10 Things I Hate About You

They Don’t Build Statues of Critics…Just Mansplainers: On White Men Feeling the Need to Chime in About Statues of Literary Critics When a Girl Just Wants to Have Fun

Charli XCX is finally having a moment. Or, at least, a moment that’s more in the mainstream than ever before. This being a result of her push to become a Right Proper Pop Star by fully utilizing all the major resources of her juggernaut label, Atlantic, to promote her last album of the contract, Crash (an erudite J. G. Ballard reference, in case you didn’t … Continue reading They Don’t Build Statues of Critics…Just Mansplainers: On White Men Feeling the Need to Chime in About Statues of Literary Critics When a Girl Just Wants to Have Fun

Bath Haus Asks the Question: Aren’t Gay Sugar Daddies the Ultimate Villain?

P. J. Vernon has perhaps done the previously unthinkable: set himself apart from the usual mold of gay fiction with his sophomore novel, Bath Haus. Unlike more recent efforts in the gay male genre, namely Jonathan Parks-Ramage’s Yes, Daddy, inexplicably praised with generic words like “propulsive” and “ambitious” (sort of a polite way of saying that the ambition was not achieved), Bath Haus turns expectation on its ear through a thriller … Continue reading Bath Haus Asks the Question: Aren’t Gay Sugar Daddies the Ultimate Villain?