Book Review - Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Identities in Families: Psychological Perspectives

Breaking through long-held presumptions about family relationships, this volume focuses on lesbian, gay and bisexual identities as an important facet of life in many families. For the first time, it examines the entire multifaceted experience of such relationships, in contrast to studies which have looked exclusively at the lives and origins of lesbian and gay couples. The editors bring together the most important recent scholarship on lesbian, gay, and biosexual identities in families, and identify directions for future research and theory in this area. The first section of the book discusses different perspectives on sexual orientation in families. It highlights important and controversial new research on sexual orientation and emphasizes the interplay of continuities and discontinuities across generations. The next section focuses on key aspects of interpersonal relationships within the families of lesbians, gay men, and bisexual individuals. The relationships between children and parents of different sexual orientations are discussed. The final section of the book focuses on the community and contextual issues. It explores the economic issues, antigay attitudes, policies, and social structures. This volume, the first to discuss the family relationships of gay men, lesbians, and bisexual men and women, will be interesting to psychologists, scholars of gay/lesbian/bisexual studies, as well as lay audience.

Book Review - GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Queer and Questioning Teens

Are you queer or questioning? If you are, this book is for you. Do you know someone who might be queer or questioning? If so, this book is for you, too. Or are you someone who just wants to learn more about what it's like to be queer or questioning? This book is a great place to begin. Discovering that you, or someone you love, might be GLBTQ is a revelation. Accepting it is a process. One thing that can help that process is information. This book can't answer all of your questions or counter all of the misinformation, misconceptions, myths, half-truths, and outright lies you might have heard about being GLBTQ, but it's a start.

Book Review - Bi America: Myths, Truths, And Struggles Of An Invisible Community

Gain an in-depth understanding of the unique struggles of the bisexual community!
"To me the gay and straight worlds are exactly the same; equally limited, judgmental, and bourgeois . . . just mirror images of each other. I truly like and overlap with some of the gay world, but my roots refuse to take hold there and grow. Unfortunately, my well-established roots in the straight world are simultaneously shriveling and dying too, leaving me feeling extremely unstable." —"Cool," a bisexual woman involved in a support group

There are at least five million bisexual people in America, generally invisible to straight society, the gay community, and even to each other. While the vast majority of these five million live within the straight or gay world, there are a few who have formed a community of their own. Bi America: Myths, Truths, and Struggles of an Invisible Community offers an inside look at the American bisexual community and gives an understanding of the special circumstances unique to being bisexual. The book takes the reader to bi community events from picnics, to conferences, to support groups, to performances in order to expose the everyday trials of the bisexual community.

Bi America includes very personal stories that let the voice of everyday bisexuals be heard through interviews, the "Bisexual History Project," in which ten bisexual people tell their life stories, and the "Online Support Group," a group of about 75 people who meet in cyberspace to talk about their lives and challenges. The book also includes the findings of a 2002 survey of about 300 bisexual people conducted via the Internet, an appendix that offers a concise list of resources for further study and personal enrichment, and an unabridged transcript of the "Bisexual History Project."

Get the answers to these questions in Bi America:

What is bisexuality?

Is there a bisexual community?

What is the culture of the bisexual community?

What are commonalities and differences between the experiences of bi men and bi women?

What is the special relationship between the bisexual and the transgender community?

How have bisexuals and the bi community been affected by HIV/AIDS?

What is the future of bisexual activism, if any?

and many more!

Bi America is a fascinating resource that exposes the challenges, struggles, and triumphs of bisexuals in America. Bisexuals, especially those newly coming out, can use this book to help understand their identity, and family members and friends seeking some insight into the unique circumstances faced by their loved ones will also find it helpful. This book will interest those concerned with the sociology of deviance or with subcultures in general. It is also appropriate for undergraduate sociology and cultural anthropology, as well as feminist studies and LGBT studies classes. This book offers one of the few accessible, nonacademic looks at this unique and interesting community.

Book Review - Forms of Desire: Sexual Orientation and the Social Constructionist Controversy

Perhaps the foremost issue in the emerging area of inquiry known as lesbian and gay studies is the social constructionist controversy. Social constructionism is the view that the categories of sexual orientation are cultural constructs rather than naturally universal categories. Forms of Desire brings together important essays by social constructionists and their critics, representing several disciplines and approaches to this debate about the history and science of sexuality.

Book Review - Queer Theory (Readers in Cultural Criticism)

What is queer theory? What does it do? Is queer theory only for queers? This vibrant anthology of ground breaking work by influential scholars, activists, performers, and visual artists is essential reading for anyone with an interest in sexuality studies. The fifteen articles--including one from Judith Butler, as well as an engaging introduction--map, contextualize, and challenge queer theory's project both within and beyond the academy. Summaries and suggestions for further reading make the volume an ideal course textbook.