Looking for new reads?

Hey..I just began looking into the lesbian book novels and stories and i was wondering if i could get some of your best recommendations to add to my reading list.

Sarah Waters is my favourite: Tipping the Velvet and Fingersmith are good places to start.

I also love all of Ivan E. Coyote's books.

Pages for You by Brownrigg is also interesting.

Rubyfruit Jungle is a classic for a reason.

Kissing the Witch is another favourite of mine.

I'll stop there, but you can check out my lesbian book blog (lesbrary.wordpress.com) for more.

I just finished reading Pages for You. It left me wanting to read more lesbian books.

But how about poetry? I still am and will always be excited about Adrienne Rich's "Dream of a Common Language". And how about the wonderful erotic and dramatic "Love, Death and the Changing of Seasons" by Marilyn Hacker? Try it - it's great

If you enjoy Hacker and 80's Rich, then you'll enjoy Beginning with O, by Olga Broumas. I've always had a soft spot for Edward the Dyke by Grahn, too.

Thank you - I just ordered it and it's on its way to Germany :-)
I also enjoyed Edward the Dyke - I read it some years ago. There is also a good poetry anthology called Naming the Waves edited by Christian McEwen. I especially liked the poem This Space the Tiger by Caroline Griffin.
(Hope you understand my German-English...)

Crocodile Soup by Julia Darling is one of my favorites. The Wives of Bath by Susan Swan is also very good.

And I'll second the recommendation for Rubyfruit Jungle - I read this book to tatters in my teens.

Jodi Picoult's new book, Sing You Home, has a lesbian protagonist, but I haven't read it yet, so I don't know if it's good.

These are a few newer ones that I have read recently and liked:

The Big Bang Symphony
Red Audrey and the Roping
The Sublime and Spirited Voyage of Original Sin (lesbian pirate adventure...fun and a bit silly but enjoyable)

Some not as new favorites:

The Blue Place
Ammonite
The World Unseen
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit

Hope these help!

I haven't read many books classified as lesbians, but I can recommend Jeanette Winterson. She is a literary gem.
I'll back up the other girls on Rubyfruit Jungle, funny, moving, entertaining and free-spirited!
And lately I have read a marvellous, perfectly crafted book called the Summer Book by Tove Jansson. She was a lesbian, though this book has no lesbian characters it is a must. She has written other books with lesbian characters that I am looking forward to reading. hope it helps!
oh and a last one Annie on my Mind by Nancy Gardner, maybe more for teenagers but still sweet.

Thank you, yesAna. I'd never heard of The Summer Book or Tove Jansson. On my wishlist it goes!

you're welcome! the bookseller at Gay's the Word here in London was so enthusiastic about this book, I am glad he recommended it.

While reading the 'Bending the Landscape' series of genre short story anthologies, I came across Tanya Huff's Terizan stories, picaresque tales of a lesbian master thief living in a vaguely ancient-world/Middle Eastern magical fantasy setting. These stories are lots of fun-inventive, witty, and exciting, with a wryly humorous character at the center and some great secondary characters along for the ride. While I don't think Terizan has a single book dedicated to her, stories featuring her escapades can be found in Huff's collections Relative Magic and Stealing Magic.

I'll agree with yesAna. Winterson is a genius, if not a little hard to read sometimes. Also, Stilettos and Steel by Jeri Estes is very gritty, and more of a memoir than fiction but worth the read from a lesbian historical perspective, if not for the hot sex. Oops, did I say that?

And then there's my book, Rose's Will, by Denise DeSio. Oops! Did I say that too?

Her_Royal_Orangeness,

I read Jodi Picoult's Sing You Home. Rather, I listened to the audio book. (Don't do that. Picoult's friend sings all the songs, not very well, in my opinion).

The book follows Picoult's usual format: Issue - Confllict - Trial. The ostensible issue is, who owns the harvested eggs belonging to an infertile couple, after the couple breaks up. Having read the book from a lesbian perspective, I found it to be more of a handbook for straight people, an education if you will, to savvy them up about how to deal with homosexuality. So to me, it sort of felt like preaching to the choir. But it's definitely a great book for Holy Rollers - if you could get them to read it - because of the conflict between the lesbian and her right-wing X-husband.

Try Some Girls by Kristin McCloy, I really enjoyed this book, very insightful. I'll second anything by Tove Jansson, if anyone knows where i can get a copy of The Sculptor's Daughter from without breaking the bank let me know please.

Do you mean to read or to buy. Have you tried your local library or library branch. If they don't have it themselves, then they may be able to get it via ILL from another library.

It may sound funny but i don't use public libraries, if i want a book i'll buy it or borrow it from a friend. If it's to read and pass on i'll get the cheapest copy i can, if i find a book that i love i'll buy a nice copy to keep. I've been looking for this title for months if not years and even old paperbacks go for $hundreds.

Any particular reason why? If you live in a city/town in the US and pay taxes you're already paying for it. May as well get some use of it.

I guess it also depends on what you read, newer stuff, or older (or quickly out of print) stuff.

Two more recent books that I adore are Jericho by Ann McMan and Branded Ann by Merry Shannon.

I also read Jericho by Ann McMan as well as Dust by Ann McMan. Both were pretty good and can be found on Kindle.