A great starting point for anyone curious about queer and trans life, and helpful for those already on their own journeys!

    Since that time, books such as Richard Plant's The Pink Triangle (and Martin Sherman's play Bent) have illuminated this nearly lost history. Heinz Heger's first-person account, The Men with the Pink Triangle, was one of the first books on the topic and remains one of the most important. In 1939, Heger, a Viennese university student, was arrested and sentenced to prison for being a "degenerate." Within weeks he was transported to Sachsenhausen, a concentration camp in East Germany, and forced to wear a pink triangle to show that his crime was homosexuality. He remained there, under horrific conditions, until the end of the war in 1945. The power of The Men with the Pink Triangle comes from Heger's sparse prose and his ability to recall--and communicate--the smallest resonant details. The pain and squalor of everyday camp life--the constant filth, the continuous presence of death, and the unimaginable cruelty of those in command--are all here. But Heger's story would be unbearable were it not for the simple courage he and others used to survive and, having survived, that he bore witness. This book is harrowing but necessary reading for everyone concerned about gay history, human rights, or social justice. --Michael Bronski

    Judith Halberstam proposes “low theory” as a mode of thinking and writing that operates at many different levels at once. Low theory is derived from eccentric archives. It runs the risk of not being taken seriously. It entails a willingness to fail and to lose one’s way, to pursue difficult questions about complicity, and to find counterintuitive forms of resistance. Tacking back and forth between high theory and low theory, high culture and low culture, Halberstam looks for the unexpected and subversive in popular culture, avant-garde performance, and queer art. She pays particular attention to animated children’s films, revealing narratives filled with unexpected encounters between the childish, the transformative, and the queer. Failure sometimes offers more creative, cooperative, and surprising ways of being in the world, even as it forces us to face the dark side of life, love, and libido.

    It is a journey through a life filled with hurt, pain, drugs, mental illness, verbal, physical and sexual abuse. It is an up close and personal look at the impact our words and actions have on others. It uncovers what most never want exposed. It sheds light on those who are living their life in darkness. And, it gives anyone dealing with loved ones in darkness a different perspective. Despite her trials and tribulations, TiTi has managed to make a positive difference in her life, and the lives of others. She is determined to succeed. The truth is - she always has been.

    In this groundbreaking anthology, more than seventy women and men from all walks of life describe their lives as bisexuals in prose, poetry, art, and essays

    Combining historical research and oral history with his own personal experience, Espinoza examines the political and cultural forces behind this radical pastime. From Greek antiquity to the notorious Molly houses of 18th century England, the raucous 1970s to the algorithms of Grindr, Oscar Wilde to George Michael, cruising remains at once a reclamation of public space and the creation of its own unique locale—one in which men of all races and classes interact, even in the shadow of repressive governments. In Uganda and Russia, we meet activists for whom cruising can be a matter of life and death; while in the West he shows how cruising circumvents the inequalities and abuses of power that plague heterosexual encounters. Ultimately, Espinoza illustrates how cruising functions as a powerful rebuke to patriarchy and capitalism—unless you are cruising the department store restroom, of course.

    The authors unpack queer criminal archetypes--like "gleeful gay killers," "lethal lesbians," "disease spreaders," and "deceptive gender benders"--to illustrate the punishment of queer expression, regardless of whether a crime was ever committed. Tracing stories from the streets to the bench to behind prison bars, the authors prove that the policing of sex and gender both bolsters and reinforces racial and gender inequalities. A groundbreaking work that turns a "queer eye" on the criminal legal system, Queer (In)Justice illuminates and challenges the many ways in which queer lives are criminalized, policed, and punished.

    But while the famous question, "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?" resonated in the halls of Congress, security officials were posing another question at least as frequently, if more discreetly: "Information has come to the attention of the Civil Service Commission that you are a homosexual. What comment do you care to make?"Historian David K. Johnson here relates the frightening, untold story of how, during the Cold War, homosexuals were considered as dangerous a threat to national security as Communists. Charges that the Roosevelt and Truman administrations were havens for homosexuals proved a potent political weapon, sparking a "Lavender Scare" more vehement and long-lasting than McCarthy's Red Scare. Relying on newly declassified documents, years of research in the records of the National Archives and the FBI, and interviews with former civil servants, Johnson recreates the vibrant gay subculture that flourished in New Deal-era Washington and takes us inside the security interrogation rooms where thousands of Americans were questioned about their sex lives. The homosexual purges ended promising careers, ruined lives, and pushed many to suicide. But, as Johnson also shows, the purges brought victims together to protest their treatment, helping launch a new civil rights struggle.The Lavender Scare shatters the myth that homosexuality has only recently become a national political issue, changing the way we think about both the McCarthy era and the origins of the gay rights movement. And perhaps just as importantly, this book is a cautionary tale, reminding us of how acts taken by the government in the name of "national security" during the Cold War resulted in the infringement of the civil liberties of thousands of Americans.

    When she lands in San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood, her roommates introduce her to a whole new world, full of people who identify as queer, who modify their bodies and blur the line between woman and man, who defy everything Nina thought she knew about gender and identity. Despite herself, Nina is drawn to the people she once considered freaks, and before long, she is forging a path that is neither man nor woman, here nor there. This candid and humorous memoir of gender awakening brings readers into the world of the next generation of transgender warriors and tells a classic tale of first love and self-discovery.

    

    military to marriage and adoption, the gay civil rights movement has exploded on the national stage. Eric Marcus takes us back in time to the earliest days of that struggle in a newly revised and thoroughly updated edition of Making History, originally published in 1992. Using the heartfelt stories of more than sixty people, he carries us through the compelling five-decade battle that has changed the fabric of American society.The rich tapestry that emerges from Making Gay History includes the inspiring voices of teenagers and grandparents, journalists and housewives, from the little-known Dr. Evelyn Hooker and Morty Manford to former vice president Al Gore, Ellen DeGeneres, and Abigail Van Buren. Together, these many stories bear witness to a time of astonishing change, as gay and lesbian people have struggled against prejudice and fought for equal rights under the law.“Rich and often moving . . . at times shocking, but often enlightening and inspiring: oral history at its most potent and rewarding.”—Kirkus Reviews

    Ironically, they’d always thought the charismatic Dominant would be the first one to fall—not the last.While helping a friend try a new bakery for her wedding cake, he finds himself drooling—not over the delicious confections, but the sweet baker who’d created them. Although she seems immune to his charms, he’s determined to win her over.The lone survivor of a horrific car accident that claimed the lives of her husband and unborn child, Fancy Maguire’s world was destroyed. Three years later, she’s finally shedding the dark shroud she’d been existing under. When Brody sparks something deep within her she never expected to feel again, will she dare to give love another try?With a killer on the loose and an unknown vandal targeting Fancy’s business, Brody finds plenty of reasons to keep her close. Can he break through the steel barrier she has wrapped around her heart? Or will he lose her before he can convince her to take a second chance on love?Absolving His Sins: Trident SecurityThe huntress has become the hunted, in more ways than one. Jordyn Alvarez works for the United States government—a fact no one in authority will admit. She does Uncle Sam’s dirty work. Some might call her an agent, but few know her real title—assassin.Trained by one of the best black operatives in the world, she wants nothing more than to add him to the long list of people she’s sent straight to hell; but she doesn’t dare get close to him ever again. If she did, she couldn’t be sure her body wouldn’t betray her once more and she’d wind up in bed with him. But with her cover blown, she may not have a choice.Who is he? He’s a ghost. A man with one name—Carter.Double Down & Dirty: Doms of The CovenantGrayson and Remington Mann—fraternal twins, the CEOs of Black Diamond Records, and Dominants in the BDSM lifestyle who enjoy sharing the same woman.Abigail Turner—the Mann brothers’ personal secretary and an innocent woman who’s off limits . . . or is she?Gray and Remi have been craving the woman they see every day at the office, but their strict policy of not dating employees puts a huge crimp in things. That is, until they discover Abigail has a naughty little secret. Now, there’s nothing holding the men back as they set out to show her how they can both love her and she can love them in return.Come meet the Doms of The Covenant and the submissives who bring them to their knees.Option Number Three: Trident SecurityWhat happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas . . . or does it?Dominant Mitch Sawyer has been lusting after submissive Tori Frejya since she first stepped into the private BDSM club he owns with his cousins. But he’d waited too long to approach her, and she now belongs to someone else, while he watches from afar. When Tori asks him for a favor that involves going to Vegas with her and her Dominant switch, Tyler Ellis, Mitch can’t refuse.After a night with Tori and Tyler, which goes way out of his comfort zone, Mitch is left confused and unsure for the first time in his life. He now faces three options—but will he have the courage to choose the one he never knew he wanted?***The Trident Security series contains elements of the BDSM lifestyle, sensual romance, nail-biting suspense, and happily-ever-afters.

    Jen has been coaching her readers on all sex-related matters through her articles in Penthouse and posts on Nerve, an online magazine. A self-proclaimed authority on the subject of sex (and specifically BDSM), Jen spent her early twenties working as a professional submissive at a swanky Manhattan dungeon before becoming a sex surrogate for a renowned therapist.In BDSM 101, Jen shares rare insight into this oftentimes misunderstood world. Practical instructions are given on:Safety and communicationBondage, spanking, floggingFetishes, humiliation, dirty talkAnd more!Included are steamy, sometimes ridiculous anecdotes from Jen’s past, interviews with her wacky artist friends, and basic illustrations. According to the author, “This book is what would happen if Marquis de Sade, Andy Warhol, and Dorothy Parker got together and made a nymphomaniac Bride of Frankenstein.”Useful, entertaining, and written with rare candor, BDSM 101 is a book that can offer spark to the fires of love in any relationship.

    While there are plenty of other books out there that explain how to give a spanking or tie a half-hitch, Playing Well With Others is the first book that explains kink *culture* -- the munches, parties, leather bars, conferences, workshops, fetish nights, exploratoriums and all the other gatherings of kinksters that turn BDSM and leather from a bedroom predilection to a lifestyle and a community.You'll learn to:* Examine your own motivations, needs, wants and desires* Ease your way into established communities* Understand etiquette in different adventurous sex communities* Familiarize yourself with the many types of events available to you* Care for your relationships as you explore new territory* Negotiate for play and aftercare* Go back to the "world at large" without ruffling feathers* ...and, of course, answer the all-important question: What do you wear?!The team of Harrington and Williams offers 30-plus years of experience in diverse kink communities: top, bottom and switch; gay, bi and straight; female, male and trans; white and POC. Both former titleholders and international educators, they are an unbeatable pair of "sexual sherpas" with an inimitable voice and a great deal of wisdom.Playing Well With Others is an unprecedented and essential guidebook for anyone who wants to explore or understand the "community" aspect of the kink lifestyle.

    Submissive training isn’t just a “good idea” when it comes to creating a BDSM relationship. It is essential. "Submissive Training: 23 Things You Must Know On How To Be A Submissive" is designed to help you know what to expect when you go through training with a new Dom. Every couple is unique and every Dom may have different ways of teaching you the systems of service he prefers. However, these are the basics all trained subs and slaves learn and employ in daily life. Rushing into a relationship or service contract with a Dom without training puts the future of your time together at risk. All of the arguments, resistance, misunderstandings and hurt feelings that go with a new submissive’s experiences can be eradicated by a period designated for learning, listening, trial and error. Even if you have been with a previous Dom you will need to go through an abbreviated training time to ensure your patterns and understandings match one another. Training is a way to "get in the same rhythm” and find the perfect groove. If you are a Dom, this guide is the perfect gift to give to your new sub. If you are a sub, this guide will teach you how to go through your submissive training. As you go through these things on the journey to become the woman you were made to be, you will be tested but you will also be proud, joyful and, perhaps for the first time in your life, you will be at peace.