<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: More tabasco please
Review: As a fan of Rebel Yell 1 it is with resigned disappointment that I accord this Sequel the two star rating befitting most any Sequel in any Genre. Because to my disappointment that is all Rebel Yell 2 amounts to. Outakes...leftovers. "Let's take a good thing and see how far we can make it stretch". To anybody interested in this subject matter I can only say buy the first book skip the sequel. And hold your breath together with me in hope that Jay Quinn takes a long enough breather for Rebel Yell 3 to be something FRESH.
Rating:
Summary: More tabasco please
Review: As a fan of Rebel Yell 1 it is with resigned disappointment that I accord this Sequel the two star rating befitting most any Sequel in any Genre. Because to my disappointment that is all Rebel Yell 2 amounts to. Outakes...leftovers. "Let's take a good thing and see how far we can make it stretch". To anybody interested in this subject matter I can only say buy the first book skip the sequel. And hold your breath together with me in hope that Jay Quinn takes a long enough breather for Rebel Yell 3 to be something FRESH.
Rating: 
Summary: Three and a half?
Review: Compared with the first Rebel Yell volume, the standout stories in this book are stronger. However, the first book was more consistent. Jay Quinn, as a writer, is destined for great things. His story "The Kitchen Table" is one of the most readable pieces in the collection. He writes with great wisdom and insight. Other enjoyable ones were "Miles Away" by Martin Wilson, "Small-Town Boy" by Greg Herren, "That Year's Crop of Kisses" by Robin Lippincott, and the last story "Everybody Loves the Musee d'Orsay" by Marshall Moore. This anthology was too long by three or four stories but it's still an excellent read.
Rating: 
Summary: More Of Rebel Yell
Review: In REBEL YELL 2, Mr. Quinn continues what he started in his first volume REBEL YELL although the collection is bigger here with 22 writers represented, including some from the previous volume. The definition of a Southern gay writer and who therefore makes the cut seems to have gotten even milkier here with the likes of Felice Picano making an appearance. According to Mr. Quinn Mr. Picano comes from New York and now lives in California-- and I suppose he has changed planes in Atlanta if that makes him a Southern writer-- in any event, he's included.There are a lot of things Southern here-- bourbon, iced tea, pickup trucks, country music, kudzu. The quality of the stories is uneven, which is not unusual for an anthology. Some of my favorites include Jeff Mann's "Emory and Henry" which is a fine account of bigotry and prejudice among a group of high school biology honors students in a small college in Virginia in 1976. The story rings true and is filled with irony as a Jewish kid leads the assault against the gay narrator. I also liked Mr. Quinn's "The Kitchen Table" in which a "straight" carpenter with a grown son must come to terms with his feelings about the gay man whose home he is restoring. But the best was saved for last. Having gotten totally engulfed in all the kudzu in "Pueraria lobata", I almost skipped the final story "Everybody Loves the Musee d'Orsay" by Marshall Moore. That would have been my loss. About the conflict between a gay son and his overbearing, controlling mother, this fantastic story is not to be missed.
Rating: 
Summary: More Stories of the "Southern Gay Experience"
Review: Once I had read the first book of stories about the Southern gay experience, REBEL YELL, edited by Jay Quinn, I was hoping there would be a second book of stories to follow. My wish has now come true. Jay Quinn, who authored two other wonderful books, "METES AND BOUNDS" and "THE MENTOR" has gathered together twenty-two new southern gay stories. These are exciting and touching stories of awakening gay sexuality, and the impact that religion, friends and family have on their lives. They are told from a Southern gay perspective. There stories are from such noted authors as; Jeff Mann, Jameson Currier, Robin Lippincott, and Greg Herren, as well as many other new voices in Southern gay writing. These are not erotic, sex-filled stories, but heartfelt renderings of what it is like to be gay, and from the south. There's a feeling of Southern pride and heritage in each of these stories. Whether you're gay or straight, a southern boy will always be a proud southern boy.
All of these stories were a pleasure to read, but a few made quite an impression on me. "Miles Away" by Martin Wilson, tells of Michael's first sexual experience; "Jesse: November 1992" by Felice Picano, relates the emotional impact of HIV on two lifetime partners, and "The Kitchen Table" by Jay Quinn, is a truly sexy and emotional love story of the developing attraction that Phil, has for Trace, the man whose house he is remodeling.
Although the stories in this volume are universal in depictions of gay life in America today, they are a welcome addition for they are told by new voices, proud voices, from a perspective of different backgrounds, emotions and life experiences. These are the voices of Southern gay men. A wonderful book for gay adults to read, as well as parents and students who are trying to understand their gay son's sexual orientation. Don't miss this one! Could there be a REBEL YELL 3 coming? I hope so!!! Joe Hanssen
Rating:
Summary: More Stories of the "Southern Gay Experience"
Review: Once I had read the first book of stories about the Southern gay experience, REBEL YELL, edited by Jay Quinn, I was hoping there would be a second book of stories to follow. My wish has now come true. Jay Quinn, who authored two other wonderful books, "METES AND BOUNDS" and "THE MENTOR" has gathered together twenty-two new southern gay stories. These are exciting and touching stories of awakening gay sexuality, and the impact that religion, friends and family have on their lives. They are told from a Southern gay perspective. There stories are from such noted authors as; Jeff Mann, Jameson Currier, Robin Lippincott, and Greg Herren, as well as many other new voices in Southern gay writing. These are not erotic, sex-filled stories, but heartfelt renderings of what it is like to be gay, and from the south. There's a feeling of Southern pride and heritage in each of these stories. Whether you're gay or straight, a southern boy will always be a proud southern boy.
All of these stories were a pleasure to read, but a few made quite an impression on me. "Miles Away" by Martin Wilson, tells of Michael's first sexual experience; "Jesse: November 1992" by Felice Picano, relates the emotional impact of HIV on two lifetime partners, and "The Kitchen Table" by Jay Quinn, is a truly sexy and emotional love story of the developing attraction that Phil, has for Trace, the man whose house he is remodeling.
Although the stories in this volume are universal in depictions of gay life in America today, they are a welcome addition for they are told by new voices, proud voices, from a perspective of different backgrounds, emotions and life experiences. These are the voices of Southern gay men. A wonderful book for gay adults to read, as well as parents and students who are trying to understand their gay son's sexual orientation. Don't miss this one! Could there be a REBEL YELL 3 coming? I hope so!!! Joe Hanssen
<< 1 >>
|
