Books have always played a HUGE role in my life, so it should come as no surprise that when I began coming out as femme turned to books. Since that time there have been a number of books and authors whose words have nourished my soul sharing with me their strength, and stories as femmes. For my blog this week I decided that I would highlight my top ten favorite femme books, and five of my favorite femme authors. These were both difficult lists to make simply because there were so many people and so many books that I could have included, finally I just had to go to the bookshelves in my living room and make some decisions.

Favorite Femme Authors:

1. Minnie Bruce Pratt

2. Dorothy Allison

3. Joan Nestle

4. Anna Camilleri

5. Leslea Newman

Top 10 Favorite Femme Books!

1. “The Persistent Desire: A Femme-Butch Reader” edited by Joan Nestle

This anthology is a phenomenal look at butch/femme culture from the perspectives of both femmes and butches (something that one does not always see) and really explores the beauty, strength, history, and future of this gorgeous dynamic.

2. “The Leather Daddy and the Femme” by Carol Queen

One of my favorite books that looks at femme as a gender transgressive and inherently queer state of being. The book (beyond being extremely sexy) explores leather culture and the boundaries of identities.

3. “Out of the Closet and Nothing to Wear” By Leslea Newman

One of those light and fluffy books that’s just fun to read on the subway, at the beach, or while sinking into a nice relaxing bubble bath. This book is a collection of short stories about the daily adventures of a femme’s life.

4. “Boys Like Her: Transfictions” by Taste This (Ivan Coyote, Zoë Eakle, Lyndell Montgomery, and Anna Camilleri)

This book is absolutely my favorite book of all time, through incredible storytelling and photography this book weaves a phenomenal journey through the lives of the four storytellers, and amongst other themes a look at gender and femininity shine through.

5. “Brazen Femme: Queering Femininity” edited by Chloe Brushwood Rose and Anna Camilleri

This anthology of the queering of femme experience truly changed my life. It was ;)the first book devoted to femmes that I ever read and it helped me to really think about the diversity of femme experience and to realize that I could find a home within that identity.

6. “Skin: Talking About Sex, Class and Literature” by Dorothy Allison

Skin is one of those books that I think everyone should read as it complicates identities, experience, and tells stories in a way that very few but Dorothy Allison, I adore this book, and find something new each time I read it.

7. “The Femme Mystique” edited by Leslea Newman

This anthology provides an exciting look at what femme can mean, what femme can look like and explores who we are as femmes and what that can mean in this society. It’s a bit repetitive at times, but on the whole I adore it.

• Brief explanation * I love all books, including picture books so the following books that I lovingly call my baby femmes (and am planning on having them incorporated into a tattoo sleeve at some point in the future) anyway the following books are ideal for any baby femmes in your life, or those of us who are young at heart.

8. “Olivia” by Ian Falconer

What could be better than a highly precocious pig that loves to get dressed up, do art, be loud, and have adventures. All the books are wonderful but I especially love her first book, and the one where she joins the circus

9. “Eloise” by Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight

Don’t be fooled by the “new” Eloise books you’ve got to go find the original ones. These books make me happy each time I read the adventures of Eloise her dog and turtle as she runs about NYC’s Plaza hotel where she lives with her Nanny.

10. “Fancy Nancy” by Jane O’Connor

If Fancy Nancy isn’t a femme I don’t know what femme is anymore. This fantastic character is fantastic as she teaches readers “lace socks do help me play soccer better” and builds costumes and outfits, pouts about her family’s lack of love for the fancy.

11. Well someday I hope that my book “GSA to Marriage: Stories of a Life Lived Queerly” which will be released from Homofactus Press this August will make it to someone’s list of favorite femme books more info can be found here http://www.pomofreakshow.com

This entry was posted on Friday, April 11th, 2008 at 12:00 pm and is filed under musings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.