#Books of the month

[the-bi-library]

Happy bisexual visibility day! Here are bisexual books out in September!

Books listed:

The Lovers by Rebekah Faubion

Pumpkin Spice & Poltergeist by Ali K. Mulford and Elle Morrison

Love and Loathing in El Olvido by Sylvia San Sebastian

At the End of the River Styx by Michelle Kulwicki

We Will Devour The Night (The Essence of the Equinox, #2) by Camilla Andrew

The Hunter's Gambit by Ciel Pierlot

The Seemingly Impossible Love Life of Amanda Dean by Ann Rose

The Age of Larkspur by Aleighsha Parke

She Slipped Through the Cracks by W. Payne Sillavan

The Glass Scientists, Vol. 2 by S.H. Cotugno

The Shadowbearer's Curse by Jasmyn Morning

Nightstrider (Nightstrider, 1) by Sophia Slade

No One Does It Like You by Katie Shepard

Imbued (Imbued, #1) by Helyna L. Clove

Ménage à Claws (Wayward Déine Chronicles Book 1) by Amelia Lascaux

Spells to Forget Us by Aislinn Brophy

Not The Fainting Kind (Not That Kind Of Dandy Book 2) by Will Soulsby-McCreath

Old Wounds by Logan-Ashley Kisner

The Gods Below (The Hollow Covenant, #1) by Andrea Stewart

Gravity’s Fire by C.J. Aralore

Hating a Witch by Brigid Hunt

Stuck in the Middle With You by Frances M. Thompson

You and I Collide by E. A. M. Trofimenkoff

The Kings of Dusk & Dawn (The Heir to Moondust, #4) by Lou Wilham

[yilisbookclub]

"The Mastery of Love" is a book by Don Miguel Ruiz. It teaches us how to have good relationships with others and ourselves. The book says we should love and accept ourselves first, so we can love others better. It talks about how to stop feeling scared or jealous and how to love and be loved. It also tells us that people show and feel love in different ways. It helps us learn how to talk nicely and set good limits in relationships.

Some lessons from the book:

To have good relationships, you need to love and accept yourself.

You can learn to overcome fear and stop it from ruining your relationships.

Real love doesn't depend on conditions. It's not about what someone does for you.

Good communication is important. You should talk honestly and nicely to others.

Understand your feelings and thoughts so you can have better relationships.

Holding onto anger and resentment hurts you. Forgiving is good for your heart.

It's okay to say no and set limits. This helps you have balanced relationships.

Love is stronger than fear. Choose love in your actions and thoughts.

Focus on the moment. Don't worry too much about the past or future.

Loving is a skill you can practice and get better at over time.

The book has short chapters with things to do and think about. It helps us use these lessons in our own lives. Read this book if you want to learn how to make relationships better and feeling good about yourself.

[xoceansx]

"She often felt she was nothing but a sponge sopped full of human emotions."

— Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse

[e-b-reads]

Books of the Spring (April-May 2024)

I started this back in June but then life got busy again...books of the summer will be out soon, but for now: here's some books I read way back in April and May that I think other people should read too!

Maniac Magee (Jerry Spinelli): I think I read this when I was a kid, but long enough ago that I forgot most of it. Anyway, picked it up at a thrift store to put in the camp bookshelf of free books to borrow/take, and wanted to (re)read it first. It's good! A good book for kids (or adults) to read. Silly and exaggerated in the way good middle grade fiction is, but also about racism and family and having a home. Sweet, and a good way to get you thinking.

The Right Sort of Man (Allison Montclair): Yet another first in a historical mystery series, this one following a pair of women who have started their own business in post-WWII London - a matchmaking agency. Except they also keep getting caught up in solving murder mysteries. I enjoyed it; the dialogue and actions are snappy and funny, but the characters also have and acknowledge real struggles (they go to therapy! unusual in a 1950s-set book but handled realistically). I have now read through the latest published book and look forward to more.

Tomboy (Liz Prince): A graphic novel memoir of the author's gender experiences. Not earth-shattering, but I have long enjoyed a book that makes me feel less alone in my own experience of gender. Obviously I'm not exactly Liz Prince (for one thing, based on the illustrations, she's maybe willing to wear skirts as an adult but wasn't as a kid? And I am the exact opposite) but a lot of what she had to say struck home for me. And it's good for books to exist that showcase a small part of the diverse ways people are.

To Shape a Dragon's Breath (Moniquill Blackgoose): This one has done some of the rounds on tumblr for sure, but I did enjoy it, and posted something about it here. An interesting fantasy world that's obviously this world but with alternate history where the Norse colonized the Americas. (And the dragons, that's different too). I don't usually reach for YA fantasy anymore, but I will be looking for the sequel to this one when it comes out.

[arieso226]

Read all of the books on the so-called "banned list;" I myself have yet to read Fahrenheit 451, but I know what's on my to do list.

[weird-little-book-lover]

I need a recovery book 😭Pls drop your suggestions. I'd love something in a similar vein, I've been eyeing a few of Terry's books. Thoughts from the fandom??

[loveelizabeths]

love elizabeth s.

[hansoeii]

guess who finally finished the main part of their final and can now draw poolverine without feeling guilty?? It is I!!!

[abernathyvalois]

How about in 2024 we stop it with reading books with the goal in mind to finish the book so you can add it to your list of read books and start reading books slowly and intentionally with the goal to rip it into pieces with your mind and be touched by it and formed by it and changed by it

[the-bi-library]

Here are bisexual books of August!

Books listed:

The Last Witch in Edinburgh by Marielle Thompson

The Dark We Know by Wen-yi Lee

Catching the Con by Dominique Davis

Mistress of Lies by K.M. Enright

The Phoenix Keeper by S.A. MacLean

Full Shift by Jennifer Dugan Kristen Seaton

Practical Rules for Cursed Witches by Kayla Cottingham

Rules for Ghosting by Shelly Jay Shore

Queen of Dreams by Kit Rocha

Better Left Buried by Mary E. Roach

Kindling by Bonnie Woods

The Sea of Clouds by Sheila Jenné

Mighty Millie Novak by Elizabeth Holden

Navigating With You by Jeremy Whitley, Casio Ribiero

Covington Acres by Riley Hart

Heads Will Roll by Josh Winning (UK release)

Inversion Point by Jenn Burke, Kelly Jensen

Phase Shift by Jenn Burke, Kelly Jensen

[endusviolence]

Rowling isn't denying holocaust. She just pointed out that burning of transgender health books is a lie as that form of cosmetic surgery didn't exist. But of course you knew that already, didn't you?

I was thinking I'd probably see one of you! You're wrong :) Let's review the history a bit, shall we?

In this case, what we're talking about is the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft, or in English, The Institute of Sexology. This Institute was founded and headed by a gay Jewish sexologist named Magnus Hirschfeld. It was founded in July of 1919 as the first sexology research clinic in the world, and was run as a private, non-profit clinic. Hirschfeld and the researchers who worked there would give out consultations, medical advice, and even treatments for free to their poorer clientele, as well as give thousands of lectures and build a unique library full of books on gender, sexuality, and eroticism. Of course, being a gay man, Hirschfeld focused a lot on the gay community and proving that homosexuality was natural and could not be "cured".

Hirschfeld was unique in his time because he believed that nobody's gender was either one or the other. Rather, he contended that everyone is a mixture of both male and female, with every individual having their own unique mix of traits.

This leads into the Institute's work with transgender patients. Hirschfeld was actually the one to coin the term "transsexual" in 1923, though this word didn't become popular phrasing until 30 years later when Harry Benjamin began expanding his research (I'll just be shortening it to trans for this brief overview.) For the Institute, their revolutionary work with gay men eventually began to attract other members of the LGBTA+, including of course trans people.

Contrary to what Anon says, sex reassignment surgery was first tested in 1912. It'd already being used on humans throughout Europe during the 1920's by the time a doctor at the Institute named Ludwig Levy-Lenz began performing it on patients in 1931. Hirschfeld was at first opposed, but he came around quickly because it lowered the rate of suicide among their trans patients. Not only was reassignment performed at the Institute, but both facial feminization and facial masculization surgery were also done.

The Institute employed some of these patients, gave them therapy to help with other issues, even gave some of the mentioned surgeries for free to this who could not afford it! They spoke out on their behalf to the public, even getting Berlin police to help them create "transvestite passes" to allow people to dress however they wanted without the threat of being arrested. They worked together to fight the law, including trying to strike down Paragraph 175, which made it illegal to be homosexual. The picture below is from their holiday party, Magnus Hirschfeld being the gentleman on the right with the fabulous mustache. Many of the other people in this photo are transgender.

[Image ID: A black and white photo of a group of people. Some are smiling at the camera, others have serious expressions. Either way, they all seem to be happy. On the right side, an older gentleman in glasses- Magnus Hirschfeld- is sitting. He has short hair and a bushy mustache. He is resting one hand on the shoulder of the person in front of him. His other hand is being held by a person to his left. Another person to his right is holding his shoulder.]

There was always push back against the Institute, especially from conservatives who saw all of this as a bad thing. But conservatism can't stop progress without destroying it. They weren't willing to go that far for a good while. It all ended in March of 1933, when a new Chancellor was elected. The Nazis did not like homosexuals for several reasons. Chief among them, we break the boundaries of "normal" society. Shortly after the election, on May 6th, the book burnings began. The Jewish, gay, and obviously liberal Magnus Hirschfeld and his library of boundary-breaking literature was one of the very first targets. Thankfully, Hirschfeld was spared by virtue of being in Paris at the time (he would die in 1935, before the Nazis were able to invade France). His library wasn't so lucky.

This famous picture of the book burnings was taken after the Institute of Sexology had been raided. That's their books. Literature on so much about sexuality, eroticism, and gender, yes including their new work on trans people. This is the trans community's Alexandria. We're incredibly lucky that enough of it survived for Harry Benjamin and everyone who came after him was able to build on the Institute's work.

[Image ID: A black and white photo of the May Nazi book burning of the Institute of Sexology's library. A soldier, back facing the camera, is throwing a stack of books into the fire. In the background of the right side, a crowd is watching.]

As the Holocaust went on, the homosexuals of Germany became a targeted group. This did include transgender people, no matter what you say. To deny this reality is Holocaust denial. JK Rowling and everyone else who tries to pretend like this isn't reality is participating in that evil. You're agreeing with the Nazis.

But of course, you knew that already, didn't you?

Edit: Added image IDs. I apologize to those using screen readers for forgetting them. Please reblog this version instead.

[xoceansx]

"She wanted something more, though she did not know, could not think what it was she wanted."

— Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse

[e-b-reads]

Books of the Month: Sep 2024

Whoops, should probably do this before it gets any closer to Halloween. Interestingly, and unusually, my reading seems to have slowed down a little in terms of sheer number of books after the summer, but I think this is partly because 1) the fall has still been pretty busy (still plenty of work, though less than during summer camp season, with added school stuff) and 2) I've had the mental energy to read some different, longer books instead of lots of mindless, quick murder mysteries. (Still plenty of mysteries, though). Here's the books from September that I think are worth reading:

The Curse of Chalion (Lois McMaster Bujold): Had an odd experience reading this book: I didn't exactly know what was going to happen, but after I hit some fairly major plot points, I would think, "Oh yeah, that's right," as if I'd been expecting them. (There's some neat twists in this book! I was not expecting them all!) Anyway, I do read a lot and sometimes forget what I've read, so it's possible I read this a while in the past (sometime before I started tracking my reads, 3 years ago) and then forgot most of it. I don't plan to forget it this time, because I really enjoyed the experience! Good writing, and I do like a main character who's already seen a lot of shit and would ideally like to just live a quiet life (but also sighs and takes responsibility for things pretty regularly). Sad to see that the sequel is not also focused on Caz. (I'll read it someday anyway, because again, good writing!) (I'm not sure the etiquette on this, but to give credit where due: I had a few reasons to check this book out of the library, but one was that I've seen @wearethekat rec it convincingly multiple times!)

Broken Ice (Matt Goldman): OK, so this is actually book 2 in the Nils Shapiro mystery series (I read book 1 in August), so I recommend starting with book 1, but I'm more recommending the series than any individual book. Each mystery is interesting and original, but none of them stands out to me in particular; what I like is that the main character could very easily be a loner, sad, possibly alcoholic, slightly sexist private detective, but instead he builds up some healthy relationships over the series (romantic and other), and generally is someone I think I would get along with. There are 4 books so far, I wouldn't be surprised if there's a book 5 someday but I see nothing online promoting one.

Overture to Death (Ngaio Marsh): I don't think I've recommended this Inspector Alleyn mystery before, anyway? I think it's one of her better-crafted ones (they're all pretty good tho, imo), with some fascinating characters. (Though I feel I should mention, I reread it this time because of @oldshrewsburyian mentioning that 2 of the spinster-ish characters were at least somewhat - unflatteringly - based on Dorothy Sayers and wow, they're even worse than I remembered!)

[grimgoregrimoire]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Gabryél Grimm-Goretz (@patronsaintofhomosandpain)

Books I read this month instead of writing!

[possuminthetrashh]

[pangur-and-grim]

Belphie got to join me on an important business call today