readingthepast | Mod post: theme suggestions

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damned_colonial posting in

readingthepast

Please suggest themes you'd like to see covered here! Cut and paste the following into a comment:

ETA: please put your theme in the subject of your comment!

Theme:
Are you prepared to run it? Yes/No
Suggested books, if you have them already:

What does it mean to run the theme?

1. At least one month in advance, you'll let everyone know about the theme and your suggested reading for it. You need to suggest at least 3 works of fiction.
2. On the first of the month, you will post a welcome/introduction/kickoff for the theme.
3. Throughout the month, you'll take an active part in discussion of the theme.

You do not have to be an expert on the theme to run it. You just need to have an interest in it.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

naraht

Homosexuality and Cold War America is such a great topic. J Edgar Hoover and Roy Cohn, oh my!

"The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay" by Michael Chabon might just fit under that theme, though it might not. A good secondary source is "The lavender scare" by David K. Johnson.

From:

gloss

See, I'd assumed that you'd claimed this topic, so when I realized you hadn't, I thought I'd nab it -- unless you want it.

I have Johnson's book next on my to-read list. WHEE.

I'm not sure about Kavalier & Clay, though I'm rereading it this summer, so I'll check. There's also James Ellroy's The Big Nowhere, but his depiction of gays leaves *a lot* to be desired. *thinks*

From:

naraht

I certainly haven't claimed it, although am happy to help out with suggestions. I've actually written two fanfics about homosexuality in Cold War America, so I suppose it's sort of an interest of mine. I did a bunch of reading for them which was how I found the Johnson book...

I adore Kavalier and Clay but I may be working too hard to fit it in here. :)

From:

jest

I've actually written two fanfics about homosexuality in Cold War America

What fandom? I'm currently writing Man from UNCLE slash so I am ALL over homosexuality during the cold war.

From:

naraht

One RPF (on Roy Cohn and his circle) and one X-Files. Both heavily focused on McCarthyism...

From:

damned_colonial

Re: Ellroy, that's *awesome* though, because we want conflicting perspectives.

I read Kavalier and Clay quite recently and I don't think it's really enough about homosexuality to put in the top 3, though it would make a good item on the "additional reading" list.