AmosL
08-10-2006, 11:01 AM
LITERARY PRIDE
a gay reading group
Amos Lassen
Two years ago a group of gay men met and organized "The Oscar Wilde Reading Group" which had several sessions and then became defunct. When I moved to Little Rock after Katrina, I tried to find a sense of community and while at Wordsworth and Company Books, I noticed the announcement about the reading group. I called and went to the next meeting. Little did I know then was that that meeting was to be the last of the Oscar Wilde group. I enjoyed and was looking forward to the next meeting which was not to be. The organizer of "Oscar Wilde" found himself tou busy with his studies and his departure caused the group to disintegrate. I was determined that this was not going to happen. Reading has always been a major part of my life and my past in the field of gay literature made me hungry to meet some guys and get it started again. After two unsuccessful attempts to get a group together, I finally decided to hit the bars, the coffee shops and the bookstores and posted an announcement of a new group to be formed. We finally met in June--only 2 members of "Oscar Wilde' and a bevy of new faces and set up our organizational framework. Our first two meetings saw us outgrow our meeting place at Sufficient Grounds in Hillcrest and establishment of the name "Literary Pride" and for our third meeting we moved into one of my member's homes. We began our reading with "Grief" by Andrew Holleran-a book that explains that by grieving we are keeping alive the memory of those we have loved and lost. Our second book was "My Lives: An Autobiography" by Edmund White, a tell all no holes barred life story of the pre-eminent gay writer alive today as he took us on a worldwind tour of his life as an out gay man. That was followed by the novel, "Full Circle", the story of four friends spanning four decades of gay life. Beautifully written by a young gay man, Michael Thomas Ford, we laughed and cried our way through the history of gay life in America. Coming up next is "Running with Scissors", another autobiography this time by Augusten Burroughs. This book was chosen to tie in with the upcoming release of the movie which is rumored will win an Oscar for Annette Benning. Addtionally for September we are reading "My Undoing" by Aiden Shaw. This critically acclaimed autobiography deals with the porn star's drug addictions, his life as a male prostitute and his search for love. Each member has the opportunity to choose a book and the choice simply alternates from person to person. Reviews of new books appear regularly at littlerockpride.com.
The beauty of Literary Pride is that the group is completely independent of everything else and aside from enjoying reading, we also enjoy getting together and just talking. Friendships have been made and the excitement that each meeting generates is exciting. The books we read are mainly just a jumping off point to the dtscussions of matters that affect gay life today. It is such a wonderful feeling for us to come together with the sole purpose being our enjoyment of being together. This year Literary Pride will participate in the Arkansas Literary Festival. For the first time, gay literature will be part of the festival and we are presently working to bring authors into Arkansas for the festival. We have just recieved word that one of the finest gay authors writing today will honor us by attending the Festival. ANDREW HOLLERAN, author of the gay classic Dancer from the Dance as well as Nights in Aruba and The Beauty of Men notified me last night that he is excited to have been included. His new book Grief has garnered rave reviews including two from the New York Times. Rarely is a book reviewed twice by the Times.
The group is open to anyone (regardless of sexual orientation and gender) who wishes to participate. The only expense you may have is the price of the book and members get a discount at a local bookstore. We are looking forward to a great year of activity. More information can be gained by dropping me a line at alassenamos@yahoo.com. Membership is always open and we look forward to welcoming all. Also in formation is Cinema Pride--a gay movie group and hopefully there will be news of that soon.
Amos Lassen
a gay reading group
Amos Lassen
Two years ago a group of gay men met and organized "The Oscar Wilde Reading Group" which had several sessions and then became defunct. When I moved to Little Rock after Katrina, I tried to find a sense of community and while at Wordsworth and Company Books, I noticed the announcement about the reading group. I called and went to the next meeting. Little did I know then was that that meeting was to be the last of the Oscar Wilde group. I enjoyed and was looking forward to the next meeting which was not to be. The organizer of "Oscar Wilde" found himself tou busy with his studies and his departure caused the group to disintegrate. I was determined that this was not going to happen. Reading has always been a major part of my life and my past in the field of gay literature made me hungry to meet some guys and get it started again. After two unsuccessful attempts to get a group together, I finally decided to hit the bars, the coffee shops and the bookstores and posted an announcement of a new group to be formed. We finally met in June--only 2 members of "Oscar Wilde' and a bevy of new faces and set up our organizational framework. Our first two meetings saw us outgrow our meeting place at Sufficient Grounds in Hillcrest and establishment of the name "Literary Pride" and for our third meeting we moved into one of my member's homes. We began our reading with "Grief" by Andrew Holleran-a book that explains that by grieving we are keeping alive the memory of those we have loved and lost. Our second book was "My Lives: An Autobiography" by Edmund White, a tell all no holes barred life story of the pre-eminent gay writer alive today as he took us on a worldwind tour of his life as an out gay man. That was followed by the novel, "Full Circle", the story of four friends spanning four decades of gay life. Beautifully written by a young gay man, Michael Thomas Ford, we laughed and cried our way through the history of gay life in America. Coming up next is "Running with Scissors", another autobiography this time by Augusten Burroughs. This book was chosen to tie in with the upcoming release of the movie which is rumored will win an Oscar for Annette Benning. Addtionally for September we are reading "My Undoing" by Aiden Shaw. This critically acclaimed autobiography deals with the porn star's drug addictions, his life as a male prostitute and his search for love. Each member has the opportunity to choose a book and the choice simply alternates from person to person. Reviews of new books appear regularly at littlerockpride.com.
The beauty of Literary Pride is that the group is completely independent of everything else and aside from enjoying reading, we also enjoy getting together and just talking. Friendships have been made and the excitement that each meeting generates is exciting. The books we read are mainly just a jumping off point to the dtscussions of matters that affect gay life today. It is such a wonderful feeling for us to come together with the sole purpose being our enjoyment of being together. This year Literary Pride will participate in the Arkansas Literary Festival. For the first time, gay literature will be part of the festival and we are presently working to bring authors into Arkansas for the festival. We have just recieved word that one of the finest gay authors writing today will honor us by attending the Festival. ANDREW HOLLERAN, author of the gay classic Dancer from the Dance as well as Nights in Aruba and The Beauty of Men notified me last night that he is excited to have been included. His new book Grief has garnered rave reviews including two from the New York Times. Rarely is a book reviewed twice by the Times.
The group is open to anyone (regardless of sexual orientation and gender) who wishes to participate. The only expense you may have is the price of the book and members get a discount at a local bookstore. We are looking forward to a great year of activity. More information can be gained by dropping me a line at alassenamos@yahoo.com. Membership is always open and we look forward to welcoming all. Also in formation is Cinema Pride--a gay movie group and hopefully there will be news of that soon.
Amos Lassen