Outlander

by Jane Rule

Paper Book, 1981

Status

Checked out

Genres

LGBTQ+

All Topics

Fiction

Publication

Tallahassee, Fl : Naiad Press, 1981.

Description

Fiction and nonfiction form compelling counterpoints in this powerful look at love and lesbianism The stories and essays in this anthology depict homosexuality in all its variegated forms. In "Home Movie," Alysoun Carr, a clarinetist with the San Francisco Symphony, learns about overcoming fear from a woman named Constantina. "In the Attic of the House" depicts sixty-five-year-old Alice, who rents rooms to younger gay women who have no inkling of Alice's tragic lesbian past. "Outlander" is about a widowed alcoholic trying to stay sober through a war that will take her son and, possibly, her longtime lover. "Sexuality in Literature" is a lively essay about everything from the homophobia that exists in all of us to the new words that need to be invented for female sexuality.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member csoki637

I had never read anything by Jane Rule, but this was a good introduction. With about a dozen short stories and essays each, the collection offered a good overview of her writing and politics. I enjoyed all the stories, which all cented on women's lives and their relationships (platonic or romantic)

to other women. The essays, ranging from personal stories to literary criticism and reflections on feminist politics, were a diverse, thought-provoking mix, although I wasn't too impressed by Rule's "not all men" defense, nor her position that sexual relationships between adults and teenagers could be healthy. I probably wouldn't read the book again, but for someone who generally can't get through literary anthologies, it offered a surprisingly enjoyable read.

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