QReview!
To all our loyal readers,
Ah, another year at UCSC! To all our new readers, welcome. To all our old readers, welcome back. What more is there to say? Enjoy the book review!
*Please remember to return any books you may borrow from the Lionel Cantú Library! Also search our online library database.*
Descendants of Darkness, Volume One
Author: Yoko Matsushita
Section: Manga (Japanese graphic novels)
Genre: Fantasy fiction, drama, gay
Rating: 9.0
Plot Rundown: In the afterlife, the Ministry of Hades judges the sins of the dead and decides upon their destination: heaven, hell, or reincarnation. Sometimes souls die before their time, or do not die when their time comes; the Summons Department exists to sort out these mishaps. When people begin turning up drained of blood in Kyushu as though by a vampire, the Summons Department sends their best (albeit wacky) agent, Asato Tsuzuki, to find the culprit. Partnered with the surly Hisoka Kurosaki, Tsuzuki searches for the vampire...and finds instead a hapless victim, a diabolical doctor, and maybe-dare I say it?-love.
Review: Told through humorous dialogue and breathtaking illustrations, Matsushita's Descendants of Darkness series is a must-read for any fantasy lover. Artfully weaving together loveable heroes, outrageous fantasy, gritty reality, and twisted mystery-to say nothing of a deliciously hateful villain in Doctor Muraki-Matsushita has created a manga masterpiece. When you reach the last page, you'll be screaming for more.
~Ian Sentelik
Christine Jorgensen: A Personal Autobiography
Author: Christine Jorgensen
Section: Biography
Genre: Male-to-Female Transsexualism
Rating: 9.5
Plot Rundown: Here, in her own words, is the story of Christine Jorgensen, about who over half a million words were printed in only eighteen months. An unsuccessful photographer and ex-GI, Christine made history when she went to Denmark male in body and returned as the sex she was born to be. She viewed her transformation humbly, as a simple physical change to reflect her mind and feelings; the world, on the other hand, saw her differently. Despite her aversion to the spotlight she was forced into, Christine managed to walk the path given her with grace, dignity, and a healthy touch of charismatic glamour. This is her story—a story now forgotten by the majority of the world that once simultaneously idolized and maligned her.
Review: This is a story that should never have been forgotten. Although she was hardly the first transsexual, or even the first transsexual to undergo the transformation, Christine Jorgensen was, entirely due to coincidence of timing, the first to make national news—and she made it marvelously. Here, Jorgensen recounts her life in all its fantastic notoriety with an involving, lightly humorous writing style, making this book a must-read for anybody with even the slightest interest in the stars who once shone so bright in our sky.
~Ian Sentelik
Long Hot Summoning
picture 1 Author: Tanya Huff
Section: Fiction
Genre: Fantasy, Straight, Gay, Lesbian
Rating: 10
Plot Rundown: This final installment in the Summon the Keeper trilogy deals with a situation that should be familiar to everybody--the local mall is attempting to take over the world. Claire and Diana Hanson, sisters and extremely powerful Keepers charged with protecting the world from things such as killer Gameboys and megalomaniacal malls, plunge into the otherworldly dimension of this mall only to find themselves hindered by giant bugs, mutated police, and a very disturbing night-watchman. Fortunately, the two Keepers are aided by a platoon of mall elves on skateboards and a sugar-pink magic wand--but even the pinkness of the wand might not be enough to stop this mall from doing exactly what it wants.
Review: There is simply no criticism to make about this novel. Huff perfectly manages a plethora of memorable characters through her premise (and the thunderstorm of hilarity that follows it) all the way up to the dramatic, climactic, and VERY pink conclusion, ending not only a marvelous book, but a truly fantastic series.
***Six boxes of pristine new books have been donated to the Cantú Queer Center library by Fr. James K. Graham, ranging from mystery to biography to romantic anthologies. The list of nearly one hundred books includes titles such as Waiting For Gertrude, The Popsicle Tree, and A Really Nice Prom Mess. Stop by the Center and peruse the new additions to our shelves!
~Ian Sentelik
Our Arcadia
Author: Robin Lippincott
Section: Fiction
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Straight, Gay, Lesbian
Rating: 6.5
Plot Rundown: Best friends Nora Hartley—a divorced mother of two—and Lark Marin—a determinedly cheerful yet jaded gay man—buy a house together in Truro, Cape Cod in order to move away from the hustle, bustle, and upset of the Boston city life. In order to make ends meet while still keeping to themselves, the two rent rooms of their new house out to a cast of colorful characters whose combined support becomes necessary when tragedy strikes down one of their own.
Review: The plot is unrealistic and the ending kind of drags, but the quirky charisma of the characters and the intriguing layout of the chapters pull this book out of the garbage pile, even though they can’t do much more than that. Although this book is worth a read, it’s not really worth going out of your way for.
~Ian Sentelik
