Regulars Recommend: Shameless Gay Existential Escapism
Received this recommendation in an email entitled "shameless gay existential escapism" and was like "this is the only kind of email I ever want to receive."
[Regulars Recommend is a new VUBE series in which we ask our most beautiful and talented regulars to recommend us some of their favorite books!]
SHAMELESS GAY EXISTENTIAL ESCAPISM: Regulars Recommend with Theo Zucker
Hello, everyone! I am so honored and excited to be recommending some books for you, courtesy of the wonderful Uncharted Books! I’ve always loved the fantasy/sci-fi genre, but it hasn’t been until this year (and especially this quarantine) that I have truly embraced my love for the genre of Existential Escapism.
As much as I love Harry Potter, it is not included in this genre. This genre is for people who want to be transported to another world, learn about the unyielding nature of the universe, and then CRY. Many of the books that I’m recommending feature queer characters or are written by queer authors. If they don’t have these things, then they fit heavily into either the “existential” or “escapism” categories. All these books are for when you want to read something that asks you to really steep in language, worldbuilding, and the implications of existence. Except for Airborn. That one is just fun.
Airborn by Kenneth Oppel
The first thing you should know about this book is that I performed the first chapter as my forensics speech piece in high school and got all the way to the finals of the state competition. Another thing you should know is that it is a ROMP. It requires very little emotional energy, but is still engaging and intriguing, so if that’s what you’re looking for these days, this one’s for you!
In an alternate world where zeppelins are the main form of air travel, a cabin boy named Matt Cruse has to outwit the pirates who have taken over the airship. There is also a character named Kate de Vries who befriends Matt in her search for mysterious flying cats who live in the sky! It’s a prime example of high-flying adventure. If you enjoy Disney’s (criminally underrated) Treasure Planet, you will love Airborn!
His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman
My first quarantine read was an intense one: The Amber Spyglass, the final book in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy. Though I do not understand how Pullman managed to pull one over on his publisher and call these YA books (they are beyond the scope and maturity level of any YA book I have ever encountered), I am glad that he did! If you are unfamiliar with this series, it begins with The Golden Compass, in which we meet young Lyra Belaqua, a ward living in an Oxford, England much like our own. However, her world is full of daemons, animal companions that are basically the personification of a person’s conscience and soul. When children, including Lyra’s best friend, start disappearing from her town, she travels into the magical realm of the North to try to find them.
I cannot recommend these books enough. They have a history of being censored by churches and schools for their depiction of an antagonistic entity called The Church. And, to be clear, The Church absolutely represents what you think it does. However, reading these books as an adult, I realized that the only thing that Pullman truly demonizes is religious fanaticism and abuse of power. Someday I will do a TED talk on how these books succeed in completely re-framing the Christian religion in a way that I find palatable. As someone who is not Christian, this series was the single best argument for Christianity I have ever read. However, it’s not an allegory that hits you over the head (*ahem* Chronicles of Narnia *ahem*). It simply demonstrates the pitfalls of religious extremism and shows how we must all strive to act in a way that is loving and good and kind.
A text I sent recently about The Amber Spyglass reads, “When I closed the third book, my worldview had shifted, in a way that feels permanent.” Furthermore, the focus of the books is not this allegory at all. They are full of magic, adventure, and true friendship, as any good YA book should be. If you’re looking for fairly heady books that really delve into the nature of life, love, faith, etc., these are for you!
The Kingdoms of Elfin by Sylvia Townsend Warner
This is the only book on this list that I have not read. However, I think I can speak for both of us when I say that Mattie and I are both very excited for me to read it. The author is a queer writer from the 70s, and this book appears to be pure fantasy escapism. It’s a series of stories that take place in, you guessed it, the Kingdoms of Elfin. It strikes me as pretty Lord of the Rings aesthetically, but without the heavy linguistic and historical backdrop. Fourteen of its sixteen tales were originally published in The New Yorker, and the book has since been lauded as a modern classic of fantasy writing. It strikes me as a pleasant, not-too-serious read, and I look forward to delving into it soon!
Dune by Frank Herbert
Dune by Frank Herbert. Do you want this book to be on this list? Do I? I’m not sure. I am about 500 pages into Dune right now, which means I am just shy of 2/3rds of the way through. When people ask me how it is, I say “it’s good.” Despite that lukewarm response, this book is definitely a great escapist read. It feels very Star Wars, but not as Fury Road as I’d have liked, you know? Dune follows the story of young Paul Atreides, the son of a duke, whose family uproots themselves from their lush jungle planet and makes a political move to the desert planet Arrakis. However, Arrakis proves to be laced with enemies new and old, and Paul has to grow up much faster than he expected.
Just the other day, I was telling Mattie that I was worried this book would just be “men doing things,” but it’s not! It’s actually not! I mean, it mostly still is. But there are actually characters who are not men who do Badass Things and are not completely sexualized by said men. As far as sci-fi written by white men in the 60s goes, I’d say this one is doing pretty well. On top of the myriad of interesting characters, there is a healthy dose of that good existentialism. Lots of examining the nature of time and destiny. And I love that stuff, so I’m still on board, 500 pages in. I would recommend Dune if you are in this for the long haul (over 800 pages worth), if you love intense worldbuilding, and if you’re willing to be patient with a slow-burn book. Also just if you like Star Wars.
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
This is definitely the least fantastical of these book recs. However, if you have ever talked to me about books for even a moment, I have probably recommended it to you. It is my FAVORITE book. Waters is an established voice in queer literature, and this book does not disappoint. In it, Sue, an adolescent pickpocket, agrees to help her friend steal a rich lady’s fortune. Their plan involves claiming that the Lady is mad and locking her in a sanitarium! It is dramatic! At least, that’s the first half of the book. After that it goes entirely off the rails, and if you do not GASP while you read it over dinner at your kitchen table and then never stop thinking about it until it is finished, I will be shocked.
This book is an incredible demonstration of dramatic irony. It is another slow-burn read, but by the time you reach the climax of the story, you are holding all the pieces of the puzzle. And the fun part is that you are the only person who is! None of the characters fully grasp the whole picture, and so you get to watch, from the safety of your living room, as shit just truly hits the fan. Really the best way I can describe it is if the musical Oliver! and Portrait of a Lady on Fire had a baby and that baby grew up to be a mystery novel.
The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson
Here it is. The book that has maybe hurt me the most out of any book in the world. I am very serious that if you take me up on this recommendation and read this book (which you should), it will cause you pain. It is a brutal, unflinching narrative. That being said, it is the absolute quintessential GAY EXISTENTIAL ESCAPISM. This book is filled with vibrant, queer characters of color. I love them. Dickinson tells the nuanced, harrowing, and exciting story of Baru, a young islander whose country is colonized in her youth. As she grows up, she is taught in a school built by those who have taken over her home. She learns that in order to truly defeat this insidious enemy, she must rise up their ranks from within.
It would feel remiss not to mention that Dickinson has almost nothing in common with the characters he creates. By all accounts, he is a white cis man, and the internet has no mention of any queerness on his part. So, I will let you decide for yourself if you want to read his book. However, my opinion is that I have not read many stories that take more care to respect their characters’ heritages, sexualities, and genders. Dickinson has built an alternate world where he can create these vivid characters without appropriating. In my eyes, he has told their story deftly and respectfully. I recommend this book whole-heartedly to anyone who loves elegant worldbuilding, intense stories of loyalty and betrayal, and sad gay stuff.
My final thought is that this book made me feel the way watching Game of Thrones was supposed to make me feel, and for that experience I am truly grateful.
[If any of these appealed to you, you can order them through our new book order form on our square site! There’s an adorable new printing of Dune for like $10 and Honestly…. it’s been calling my name particularly with the movie in the works.]
Theo Zucker is a queer writer, performer, and all-around creator. She often writes songs on her guitar, writes plays concerning magical realism, and writes tweets about how much she loves cats. Her favorite books and movies are usually fantastical tales that bend reality and question our perceptions. However, she also loves Treasure Planet and Mad Max: Fury Road, so take this bio with a grain of salt.
She is currently working on establishing herself as a freelance editor, so if you have a fiction piece that you’d like edited, check her out on Fiverr.com!
Mattie suggested that Theo say which writer she would personally fist-fight, and Theo’s honest answer to that is Ernest Hemingway, because she doesn’t like that guy. However, as a follow-up, a writer whose face Theo would take in her hands and kiss tenderly is Neil Gaiman*, because he is such a good writer and just seems like a great person.
*This did not age well and Neil’s tender kiss is now pending
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