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This novel from 1992 is being reissued by New Directions in May, and it is hilarious, very sad, and constantly teetering on the brink of being genuinely offensive. But it isnât offensive! It depicts the fraught, competitive, and co-dependent relationship between gay men and women in a way that not many writers of either group have been able to pull off. I donât know that many writers at all have attempted to depict this relationship as a primary goal in their textsâit does come up as a consequence of other plots and themesâbut thatâs what this book is âabout.â I was going to add one of my favorite lines from the book here, but out of context it does indeed seem offensive, even if I promise itâs narrated from the perspective of an Emma Bovary character, so you just have to get the book and see for yourself.
Jun 6, 2024
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Mar 8, 2025
read this recently and itâs been mad long since I reaaaaally dug a book like this. so frank and truthful and didnât feel contemporary- sometimes contemporary gay literature can be a little too I Made You a Cookie But I Eated It vibes but this was so visceral and enriching and wow. Highly recommend
May 10, 2024
i thought, wow is this the first incel novel??? before finding out that this was the internetâs general consensus lol. each character is so gross and will probably trigger my fight or flight irl but it also reads like someone having some kind of obvious cry for help online but you canât look away because it makes such delicious gossip. like u feel guilty for liking it but you keep consuming their crisis as content anyways.Â
somehow it has the same vibes as rf kuangâs yellowface, but i couldnât quite put my finger WHY, but if yellowface satirises the politics of race, rejection satirises the politics of sex. anyway again i thought this was an original thought then found a reddit thread literally comparing the two.Â
its so chronically online and so smutty, so the recommendation did NOT come from me (but u should definitely read it)
I mean look at these hilarious lines
Mar 15, 2025
Top Recs from @lauren-oyler
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These are the most French perfumes you can possibly imagine: niche and completely over-the-top in terms of scent, price, and packaging (sorry, flacons). They have a collection of perfumes inspired by paintings, which are printed on the bottle. For other scents, you can replace the capâwhich I think must always come with a tassel around the neckâwith a small classical bust, which I believe is also theoretically aligned with the perfumeâs notes. This costs an additional 100+ euros or something, so I did not do it on my bottle of Invasion Barbare, which I bought only partly for the name. It makes you smell like George Clooney and stays on for about 20 hours.
Jun 6, 2024
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Made from âimmature pine conesââgreat phraseâthis is just what it sounds like. I encountered it for the first time in Tbilisi, and it seems like itâs sort of hard to find outside the region (as far as Iâve tried), but itâs worth it. Iâd never thought about immature pine cones before, but theyâre delightful in texture and size.
Jun 6, 2024
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Even if youâre not a huge fan of lap swimming, indoor pools are often really special examples of national architectureâmy favorites are from the first half of the twentieth centuryâand itâs surprisingly interesting to observe the pool etiquette of different cultures. Italians, while somewhat impatient and in-your-face on land, are incredibly courteous and respectful of relative speed in the water; theyâre gracious and accommodating if you need to pass them. In Milan I always make a point to go to Piscina Cozzi, which had a huge Maurizio Cattelan mural on the back wall featuring a tacky Ophelia in red lipstick. It was there in October of last year, but I think theyâve since taken it down, which is a shame, but apparently he swims there, too.
Jun 6, 2024