| Title | : | Too Queer: Essays from a Radical Life |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1563410745 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781563410741 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 261 |
| Publication | : | First published May 1, 1996 |
This multiple Pulitzer Prize nominee, the author and editor of eight previous books, presents an anti-assimilationist, broadly multicultural, and fiercely iconoclastic vision of American radicalism - a political perspective she fears is becoming eroded even within the communities for which it is most vital.
Too Queer: Essays from a Radical Life Reviews
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The first word that comes to mind when I think of this book is mediocre. Brownworth’s writing is neither extremely bad nor extremely good. It just kind of exists. Except for “ER – Queer Style,” all of her essays fell flat for me at different points but especially in their endings. She writes with a lack of rootedness that’s hard to describe but contradictory, repetitive, reductive, and meandering are words I thought often as I made my way through this collection.
To get to every idea she wrote that felt insightful or thought-provoking, I had to push through a series of distorted perspectives, poor logic, and bad metaphors (most notably, her use of the oppression of communities she’s not a part of as metaphors for her own life and community experiences). Ultimately, it felt like she viewed her writing as more persuasive, more impactful, more important, and more revolutionary than I actually found most of it.
I found out online after I started reading this book that Brownworth is a TERF but kept reading because I picked this book up more to observe queer stylistic choices in non-fiction as I’m working on a writing project of my own. I bring it up because there are a few places where you can see the underpinnings of her transphobic beliefs but she argues in a contradictory fashion when it comes to gender and trans folks, so perspectives on those sections may vary. She also writes graphically about female genital mutilation and death (including suicide), so be prepared for that if you consider reading this. -
A very personal look into her life and politics. She cares deeply, and cares to change inequity deeply. I wish we all had a bit more of her moral fiber. This book will be an important resource when looking to see how societal attitudes towards lgbt have shifted, (and hopefully continue to shift). It's a snapshot in time, reflecting the culture lesbians and other gbt have lived in.
