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notlikethebeer's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
Part memoir, part history, part exploration, Gay Bar tries to do a LOT. Not to mention that it aims to do this across three different contexts (London, San Fran, LA). I really appreciate what it tried to do, but I think it became quite sprawling and hard to follow at times: I often didn't know whether we were in a historical contextualization or Atherton Lin's present day. Personally, I found this to be a memoir more than anything else: which is not to say that there wasn't an impressive amount of research and information (there was!!) nor that it failed to provide a history and analysis. It was just more anchored to Atherton Lin's experience more than anything. I went into this hoping to learn more about why WE, as a community, seek refuge in bars and clubs. What I learnt was why Atherton Lin and his compatriots did this. Again, there was a wealth of information in here and I really appreciate just how much I learnt, but there were some clear limitations. Some aspects were touched upon - such as the policing of (non-white) bodies in clubs and the increasing presence of straight women in gay clubs - but not really analyses; other important topics felt glossed over altogether, like much semblance of women's history or a more considered analysis of the role of the gay bar in a community often so strongly affected by addiction. That being said, it sparked some fantastic book club conversation, and has left me with a lot to chew over. I also really appreciated that this focused on an era of gay bars I haven't read much about, in the wake of the HIV/AIDS crisis. Lastly, and perhaps what I will take most from this, is that I was incredibly struck and appreciative by the way that sex and sexuality was presented!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, and Islamophobia
jazhandz's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
I have an admittedly bad habit of reading reviews before I read a book. As such I was surprised by how many reviews for Gay Bar were unhappy with the mixture of memoir and broader history. I am not a gay man but I identify as queer, and this book captures the essential connectedness of gayness. The bars he describes are snapshots of gay culture, and his experience is at once individual and intensely relatable. You can’t talk about the history of gay bars without talking about the people who go to them. You can’t talk about gay bars without talking about gay history. Sure, I would have preferred a different balance of the three, but you need all three.
As a whole I thought this book was lovely and honest and thoughtful, and full of so much love for the subject. Some parts of it resonates, other parts didn’t, and the author’s penchant for dropping in six-syllable words was a little annoying. But as a whole I hugely enjoyed reading this.
As a whole I thought this book was lovely and honest and thoughtful, and full of so much love for the subject. Some parts of it resonates, other parts didn’t, and the author’s penchant for dropping in six-syllable words was a little annoying. But as a whole I hugely enjoyed reading this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime and Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use, Homophobia, Racism, and Alcohol
Minor: Islamophobia
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