Gay Books To Match Your Gay Haircut (Because You Are Gay)
Written by Bex Frankeberger
This is my second blog post in a row that has something to do with hair. I like to think it’s because I have style, but really I think I just love hair. To quote Fleabag, it’s everything. Below are gay books to match your gay haircut. Pride is all year long if you’ve got a shag.
Mullet - Rot Party, Bex Frankeberger
Shameless self-promotion!! My collection of one-sentence translations of Antigone falls under the mullet category because that is my current hairstyle. These short translations and playbill collages are some of the most fun I’ve ever had writing. For fans of Anne Carson, sisters, ancient Greece, and me.
Shag - What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours, Helen Oyeyemi
This remarkable book was recommended to me by a fellow bookseller who, at the time, rocked a shag. Like a shag, these short stories are jagged, edgy, and utterly unforgettable. I think of this collection often and recommend it whenever I can. Shoutout to the Corner Bookstore in UES for originally binding me to this singular, wonderful, cobblestone of a book.
Bandana - Dyke (geology), Sabrina Imbler
No, bandanas are not hairstyles, but they’re such a part of the vibe. Walking around with Dyke (geology), which is about queers and volcanoes, is akin to wearing a bandana: it codes you as a cool, underground (read: hot) queer. And we wouldn’t want it any other way.
Baseball Cap - Either/Or, Elif Batuman
Another accessory, but such an important one. Batuman’s 2022 follow-up to her debut novel, The Idiot, confirms that not only is our number one girl Selin queer, but so is Batuman! Baseball caps, in my experience, play a huge role in coming out stories. First, you buy one, because you gotta impress your new crush, and then suddenly you have fifteen suspended from your doorframe via carabiners. At least four of these are from exes. At least two of these will get lost at Riis.
Beret - Giovanni’s Room, James Baldwin
Admittedly, I’m not 100% sure wearing a beret is gay, but the two people I know who wear berets (and wear them well, I might add), are the absolute loveliest bisexuals around. Giovanni’s Room gets the beret label because: Paris! Berets are classic, influential, and brave, which are three descriptions that don’t even begin to cover the megafauna of this book.
Pixie Cut - The Dream of a Common Language, Adrienne Rich
It is quite possible I have gifted this book to more queers than other piece of literature. Recently, one of my beret-wearing friends told me that the first time I lent it to her, she couldn’t get into it. After coming out, she read it again, and is now equally obsessed. Three cheers to Adrienne Rich and her beautiful pixie cut.
Any Use of Gel - Darryl, Jackie Ess
The most important thing to know before you read this book is that Jackie Ess is not a White Orgoenian cuck. The second most important thing to know is that this is a sticky, chemical, effusive book which has provided me some of my most uproarious laughter to date. Whenever I see someone use hair gel really well I think, how do they do it? Whenever I read Darryl, I ask Ess the same thing.
Chop - Monstrilio, Gerardo Samano Cordova
This book is listed under “chop” because there is a lot of, uh, chopping going on. Chomping might be the better verb. Masticating is good too. Long live gremlin Monstrilio! A bisexual horror icon for the ages.
90s Heart-throb - Paul takes the form of a mortal girl, Andrea Lawlor
It would not be a pride post without this iconic trans narrative. It is such a 1990s book that I didn’t realize until a few days ago it was first published in 2017. In this world, trans people are magic, and the time for sex is always. My favorite review is from the NYT, which says it is unquotable in a family newspaper, which is very funny, because there are a lot of things that NYT writes that are unquotable for me. But that is a different post!
