Great books by women, or with great female characters

[xita]

technopagan, I wanted to add that I really enjoyed both of the first 2 books you recommended by sarah shulman.



I'd like to make a recommendation for one of my favorite lesbian books ever:



Send my Roots Rain by Ibis Gomez-Vega

Quote:

---

Midwest Book Review

An urban woman artist arrives in a small southwestern town near the Mexican border at the invitation of the town priest. She has come to paint murals in his church, not knowing that the church has burned down in a catastrophic fire. The artist becomes the catalyst for the town's release of its collective guilt, allowing the rebuilding of the church and a truce between the Catholic priest and the town's old woman healer. In the process she faces her own terrifying nightmares, their source and the resolution of her sexual identity. Send My Roots Rain is a wonderfully engaging, fast-paced, brilliantly written novel.

---

and



Alma Rose by Edith Forbes

Quote:

---

From Library Journal

Curl up on the couch with a cup of hot tea and this book by first novelist Forbes. It's worth reading far into the night for the way it spins out its story with good humor, likable characters, and even a couple of plot twists. Sit back and read about taciturn Pat Lloyd, whose daily routine in Kilgore, the sleepy town off the highway, barely has a ripple in it until a truck driver named Alma Rose bursts onto the scene and focuses her relentless charm and energy on Pat. Soon she wins Pat over, in much the same way that Ann wins over Evelyn in Jane Rule's Desert of the Heart (Naiad Pr., 1985). When Alma stops coming to Kilgore, Pat creates ripples of her own by carving a statue of Alma's likeness into a hillside beside the highway. Showing a special affection for similes, the author writes effortlessly, creating characters that are genuinely warm and believable. Fortunately, she avoids the pitfall of making Peggy Treadwell, the town's voice of morality, into a stereotype. Highly recommended.

---

-----------------------------------

Si nos dejan buscamos un rincón cerca del cielo

Si nos dejan haremos con las nubes térciopelo


José Alfredo Jiménez

[mollyig]

I recently read one of Sandra Scoppettone's Lauren Laurano books, which I really enjoyed. There was a Q&A at the end of the book in which she remarked:



"Over the years I've had options on different books, but the last time was when Cybill Shepherd wanted to do Everything you have is mine", the first of the Lauren Laurano series. She couldn't get anyone to do it because lesbianism is too scary for people unless the lesbians are miserable and kill themselves or someone else".

I love my Love, and well she knows
I love the ground whereon she goes

Edited by: mollyig  at: 5/18/03 4:36:18 am

[Traggic Prose]

Not sure where to put this so...



I read a book several years back but cant remember the author. Its about Nancy Drew and the hardy boys but both Nancy and the Hardy's are gay. Its a humuorous more than anything else.



I know there are serveral book of the series so is looking forward to finish it of.



Anyone know what I am on about?



TP

[tarawillow66]

by the looks of your list of books i don't think we read the smae thing but hey you could always try something new or not. but Patrica C. Wrede is one of my favorites. and as far as kick ass female char. go The Enchanted Forest Chronicals are the best. it's all about drgons and fantasy stuff. really cool! then again i might be a big sci-fi/fantasy dork. but i heard dorks are in this year so i guess i'm cool in a dorkish way.

well anywho i hope i helped. gotta jet.

love ya

megan

[darkmagicwillow]

I made a new discovery on my vacation: Teresa Edgerton. She's an amazing writer, with the best handling of the Celtic legends of Wales and Ireland that I've encountered since Lloyd Alexander. I just finished her trilogy which includes these three novels:



The Castle of the Silver Wheel

The Grail and the Ring

The Moon and the Thorn



I'm curious as to others' recommendations on authors and books that use the Celtic myths in an excellent way. They're so often touched upon, but so rarely used well in my experience that I often avoid novels that deal with them because of the many disappointments that I've experienced.



p.s.: tarawillow66, I've read the first of Patricia Wrede's Enchanted Forest novels. Quite fun and humorous light reading, especially the whole idea of a princess escaping her castle to find a dragon so she won't be bothered by the dreary pointlessness of a princess's role in life.

--

"Omnia mutantur, nihil interit." -- "Everything changes, but nothing is truly lost."

[Tibbs]

For the life of me I can't remember the author, but the book is titled " Annie on my Mind". One of my absolute FAV books. Great story. The synopsis is 2 girls meet, one from a prep school, one from a local school, fall in love, scandle in the prep school ensues and all goes hectic. The two lead characters make you develop such a bond to them ,I often found myself speaking out loud and voicing my opinions. They are both so smiliar to each other, but drastically different.



Now although my description is a little.. bland, ( i never was good at explaining books without giving everything away) I urge you to run, flock, flee, skedaddle or whatnot to read the book.





Tibbs

[xita]

Oh yes Tibbs, I agree the author is Nancy Garden, Annie on my Mind beatiful book!

- - - - - - - - - - -
"The suspense is terrible. I hope it'll last."

-Willie Wonka

[Puff]

slayer747 I love Radclyffe's books. Passion's Bright Fury isn't out yet but that story rocks. Her characters are always really well developed and her stories are fascinating.



Of course I love lesbian fiction so I also have to recommend Madam President by T. Novan and Blayne Cooper. The sequel (First Lady) is also very good and will hopefully get published If not you can always read it online.

---

So, the day started and I knew my name and had my pants on. So far, so good. Yay.
Amber Benson

[darkmagicwillow]

I recommend Terry Pratchett's Weird Sisters for the funniest set of witches in modern fiction.

--

"Omnia mutantur, nihil interit." -- "Everything changes, but nothing is truly lost."

[Shiney and New]

I kinda have a thing about Nancy Garden. I do agree with the masses that Annie on my Mind is a beautiful story and I adore that she mainly writes for young adults but I just thought her actual writing was somewhat... teacheresque.



You know how at high school the english teachers had rules you must follow to write the perfect story like not to use the term 'and then' excessively or not to directly describe a character and all that jazz? I just feel she's trying too hard to write somethingthat's 'well writen' and not just letting the story go.



But that's just my opinion. And I probably shudnt argue with whatever awards it got.



Rubyfruit Jungle - now there's a good book! Rita Mae Brown is God. Ess.

~Nomi~



Though lovers be lost love shall not and death shall have no dominion

[Ben Varkentine]

I just finished Diane Ravitch's The Language Police, which tells how US schools have been completely fucked by pressure groups from both the right and the left.



It's a great, thought-provoking book which speaks to why modern literacy rates are so low, among other things. All the reading material that might engage students has been leeched out of the system, leaving only bland, boring stories selected only because they meet an agenda. Regardless of whether or not they're actually any good.



I think its an important book to read, especially for any Kittens who were concerned, as I was, on the occasions that our protests flirted with censorship. I don't think we ever crossed that line, but there was definite flirting going on, which is troubling to me.



There are roads paved with the best of intentions (in our case, to improve the images of gays and specifically lesbians on TV) but if we follow them too far...



Some of Ravitch's examples of censorship in schools may astound you (they did me). An essay on Matthew Shepard was ordered to be rewritten to remove references to his sexuality. And a school principal tried to remove Huckleberry Finn on the grounds that it was "racist trash." This wouldn't be noteworthy (lots of people have tried, as I'm sure you know)were it not for the fact that the school in question was named after Mark Twain.

Ben



"Somewhere, inside something, there is a rush of greatness

Who knows what stands in front of our lives...

Silence tells me secretly everything."-Flesh Failures

[Jennpurr]

Hey kittens,



I had a general question and seeing as I haven't read this whole thread, forgive me if anyone has already recommended some good ones, k?



Um... I was looking for a recommendation on a good Lebian-themed book? I'm a sucker for romance, but if anyone knows any "risque" books, those will work, too. I guess I'm just looking for a good story and something that will leave me wanting more when it's all over.



Any suggestions?



Thanks in advance,



Jen

||My Fan Fiction and More!|| ||My Yahoo Group|| ||September 11th 2001 - An on-line Memorial||
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Chiana and Talikaa lean towards each other. They touch upper lips, moving their faces in response to each other. They kiss lightly and move away a bit. Talikaa touches Chiana's lip with her tongue, Chiana leaning towards her again. Chiana smiles. They kiss again. ~ Farscape, Season 4: "Twice Shy"

[Ben Varkentine]

Hey kittens,



I have this gig as print reviews editor for the online 'zine Ink 19, and we have this handful of Witch-related books requested for review. Unfortunately, they were requested by someone who doesn't really write for us very much any more. So I thought I'd see if any Kittens wanted to take a whack at it.



Please respond only if you really think you can produce about 500 words on a book; contact me by e-mail (in my profile), I'll let you know the titles and we'll work from there. I should tell you there's no money in it but hey, free books, your name in lights, the chance to influence the minds of thousands of people...can't be bad.



Thanks in advance,

Ben



"Somewhere, inside something, there is a rush of greatness

Who knows what stands in front of our lives...

Silence tells me secretly everything."-Flesh Failures

[GreenNeutron]

I'd like to add a second or third recommendation for The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon. I've not read any of her other stuff, but this trilogy was awesome. :-) I really like her writing style in this series, the story moves along the whole time and the story itself, and the character of Paksenarrion are both fascinating. You can buy the massive book pretty cheap on Amazon.

[vix84]

I'm recommending the author Jodi Picoult. I've read nearly all her books and each one takes on the law and family drama in a new, interesting way. I suggest starting with 'The Pact' or 'My Sister's Keeper'. Picoult is sometimes written up as an easy-read author but I think her writing is strong and complex.

~*@.......We are the weirdest person in the world.......@*~

[SySnootles]

This is as close to a literature discussion thread as I could find, and thankfully my question (and quest) fits, so here I am.

Has anyone on the Kittenboard read Mary Shelly's Frankenstein and is interested in discussing it? None of my RL friends have read it within the last 20 years (the two who have read it), and I'm itching to discuss what I feel is a more topical and poignant interpretation of the theme. Anyone? Anyone?

[NewRuthRising]

My recommendation is Tamora Pierce. She writed medieval fiction aimed at teenagers, but her style of writing extends beyond that. The Tortall series are particularly good, I feel.

[boomstick79]

I don't know if anyone else has recommended these, but I really like Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series. Though be warned, although the series starts off as kick ass tales of rogue vampires, werewolves and other preternatural beings, as they progress they get a lot more 'adult' shall we say.... Still a damn fine read however

My friend lent me Fannie Flagg's (that is such an unfortunate name if you have a British sense of humour) Fried Green Tomatoes at The Whistle Stop Cafe and while the film rules, the book is even better, there is a lot of heart to it.

I also heartily recommend Martina Cole as an author. She writes mainly around the London East End gangster and underworld scene, but has a great grasp of characterisation and the knack of hooking you in from the first few pages. Well worth a read.

~Lou

[cyndaminthia]

Hello all, I lurk, but I saw a book thread, so thought I'd speak up. Maybe I'll speak up more from now on.

Jodi Picoult has really good books - interesting plots and compelling writing. I've also recently picked up some books by Sarah Waters, whose writing is pretty darn amazing.

[Candleshoe]

Boomstick, I love Fried Green Tomatoes...it's my favourite film and one of my favourite books! I really must remember to try the recipes at some point. Have you read any others by Ms Flagg? I can thoroughly recommend Standing In The Rainbow which has the same cosy small-town feel to it.

Cyndaminthia, I love Jodi Picoult too. They really are books that make me think, and stay with me for ages after I've read them.

I'm reading Marian Keyes' The Other Side of the Story at the moment, I like Ms Keyes' humour, and her characters are always so recognisable...

[boomstick79]

Candleshoe, I'm sorry I still haven't got this bloody quoting thing sorted yet!

But yes I am reading another one of her books; Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man, which I am quite enjoying
I may check out your other recommendation after I've finished this one as well, as my friend has them all and has been desperately trying to pimp the books out to me for ages

~Lou

[billy]

Boomstick, I love Fried Green Tomatoes...it's my favourite film and one of my favourite books! I really must remember to try the recipes at some point.

My arteries are hardening at the thought of it. Is everything fried in baconfat in Alabama?

I love Anne McCaffrey's books, particularly the Dragonrider and Tower & Hive series. Science fiction with lots of heart.

[Candleshoe]

Boomstick, Welcome to the World, Baby Girl is good too, but very different.

I read and re-read the Darrow Series of books by Susan Howatch who manages to seamlessly link psychology and Christianity - showing that the two are not mutually exclusive - in some truly absorbing plots with some incredibly sensible (and theologically correct if you are fussed by that sort of thing) comments on life and faith.

Jon and his son Nicholas Darrow are clergymen who are very human and very flawed, but who are inspirational in their own way.

I can thoroughly recommend the series.