Speaking Out

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Book of Many People, One People for ALL People
Review: I have a very strong urge to buy this little book for everyone I know--gay and straight alike. This is no surprise, however, for I felt that way after reading Hanes' *The Gay Guy's Guide to Life*, too. Hanes has done such an amazing thing by "merely" compiling the thoughts, comments, inspirations, and dreams of these many gay men that it's results are almost magical. Although the idea of a collection of "inspired sayings" is getting to be an old one, Hanes fuels the notion with new life with his books, always managing to astound me by the depth and span of the thoughts in his collections.

Though he acknowledges that he doesn't agree with everything quoted in the book, the reader might find him or herself disagreeing with him. Although it might seem like an impossibility to say that one agrees with two opinions which are clearly contradictory, a reader picking up this book and flipping through its sections will surely find him or herself finding bits of truth in most, if not all, of its statements. What Hanes *seems* to have done is to merely have collected the sayings of gay men. What he has acheived, however, is a revelation of the fact that there is a bit of truth in all theories of human existence and that the sooner we realize that, the sooner we can move on and achieve fulfilling, rewarding lives as people...not as labels.

Despite what might appear as a narrow audience focus (directed specifically toward gay men, not even to all gays), Hanes' inadvertant "revelation" makes *Speaking Out* a wonderful book for *everyone*--not just gay men. Although many of the quotations have special meanings for gay men and little for others, the majority of the book can be revelatory for all people--to remind everyone that many experiences (joy, love, excitment, sorrow, anger, and frustration) are shared by all (albeit in many forms). This book shows just how true that statement is and how varied those experiences are.

One magical, yet slowly revealed, aspect of the book is the nature of its contributors. Although, of course, writers, playwrights, musicians, and poets are oft-quoted, the reader quickly discovers the many varied players in Hanes' field: from banker, to activist, to plumber, to mechanic, to airline steward, to dancer, to politicians, and many, many more, *Speaking Out* speaks from not only a "gay" perspective (though it certainly does that, too, in a number of ways), but also from wider perspectives--those of the "other" lives of these men. The gay glass is no longer just half-full or half-empty. It is reflected in a myriad ways in this magnificent collection.

Because of its wide relevance and amazing depth of experience, I have to say that I believe this is a necessary book for most everyone. No gay man should be without it...and (not unlike, perhaps, the breadth of *The Diary of Anne Frank* or *Red Scarf Girl*) no straight person should not have read it at least once.