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Rating: 
Summary: We were everywhere
Review: A great book of wonderful pictures that proves that men have been loving men for quite some times. Really great eye candy with a historical perspective.
Rating:
Summary: We were everywhere
Review: A great book of wonderful pictures that proves that men have been loving men for quite some times. Really great eye candy with a historical perspective.
Rating: 
Summary: Extremely Narrow Definition of Gay Life
Review: Mostly British queens (the term the author prefers), with a chatty text presuming an intimate knowledge of the minutiae of the British drag queen subculture of the last 50 years. Few masculine men, although some muscle boys were included for the fun of it (including some who were straight and homophobic, such as bodybuilder Eugene Sandow). Few Americans or other Europeans, not a single person of color (except for a few entertainers). No lesbians at all. Big emphasis on sex-and-drugs, minimal coverage of social and political organizing -- Stonewall rates a blip. Some of the photos are engaging, but overall the book presents a limited, even claustrophobic picture. There is nothing wrong with the idea of a photo album about British queens, but one should frame it as a view into a distinctive subculture, not about "gay life" in general. Also, an idiosyncratic classification system makes it difficult to connect pictures with legends. Not recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A multifacteted overview
Review: To dismiss this book as just an excuse to dredge up some titillating photographs for the purpose of publishing is an injustice. This collection is an historical perspective on many levels - the camera as a art form since its invention, a survey of sociolgical transformations as to the perception of homosexuality, the psychological sweep from the closet to the stage to Stonewall to the AIDS bedside and beyond. There are many many captured moments that seem voyeuristic in the best sense of the word in that the spontaneity of individuals interacting as well as groups entertaining are fresh and often off guard. Here is a portfolio of tenderness, of hilarity, and of tragedy. Would that there were more essays interspersed to document the various periods traversd. But then we must also pay homage to the phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words". Well worth your time.
Rating:
Summary: A multifacteted overview
Review: To dismiss this book as just an excuse to dredge up some titillating photographs for the purpose of publishing is an injustice. This collection is an historical perspective on many levels - the camera as a art form since its invention, a survey of sociolgical transformations as to the perception of homosexuality, the psychological sweep from the closet to the stage to Stonewall to the AIDS bedside and beyond. There are many many captured moments that seem voyeuristic in the best sense of the word in that the spontaneity of individuals interacting as well as groups entertaining are fresh and often off guard. Here is a portfolio of tenderness, of hilarity, and of tragedy. Would that there were more essays interspersed to document the various periods traversd. But then we must also pay homage to the phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words". Well worth your time.
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