Reviews

Faggots by Larry Kramer

burnedtothewick's review

challenging dark funny reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

irnwrks's review

challenging slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

romethegreenwood's review against another edition

3.5

Very interesting look at a culture that doesn't exist anymore. It's odd, because my natural response to people saying gay men should be less slutty is to emphasise sex as a morally neutral thing and ask why you see gay people having sex as a bad thing, but I am coming at this as a 21st century lesbian and Kramer is an actual gay man and activist so it's very much a different times different perspectives kind of thing - who am I to criticise THEE larry kramer, particularly when I am not in fact a gay man! Kramer really loves a moralist story (for better or worse!) - as a novel, this reads more like a series of vignettes, but when you think of it more like a play (because Kramer is a playwright) it plays much better. As always, I think sometimes books may not speak to us, but are incredibly vital and meaningful pieces of work, and this is one of those times. And I'm always saying we should be reading things that make us uncomfortable (to be clear I do not mean the detailed gay or kinky sex here - I was far more uncomfortable from the incest scene!). Nothing like what I was expecting, and I can't say I enjoyed it (which feels like a sin to admit! Larry Kramer I promise I enjoyed your writing in The Normal Heart/Destiny of Me and am even more in awe of your activism!) but definitely a seminal work that offers a glimpse into the past and the communities left out of official histories.

b_fruits's review

4.0

A gay Naked Lunch. A fun adventure of a read. 

patrickblanner's review

dark funny reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

warwriter1939's review

3.0

I suppose it would be a lot more funny if I was gay.

dharper87's review

adventurous challenging dark funny reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Deliciously perverse to a degree that I, who have been to the rodeo before, was agog and squeamish at some of the descriptions. A fascinating look at pre-AIDS gays that has now gone all the way around and become extremely relevant to gays post-PREP.

izzynichols's review

funny reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

hanhantap's review

adventurous funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

bwood95's review

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5