Welcome to Litsy!

Set in Chile during a politically turbulent time. Following a gay man who is used by revolutionary forces and who falls for one of the members is a sad &meditative read. It is very short about 170 pages but you feel for the Queen throughout, the author uses both She/He pronouns for our main character, she is a vivid character. We also follow the nasty president & his annoying wife through this time you will want them to bet him by the end also.

Imbued with a certain pathos from beginning to end. The writing is beautiful, the story nicely paced and peopled by vivid characters.

I was struck by how meager the expectations were of life, from life. This is most notable from our main character, the Queen of the Corner, but really I got a sense that no one expected much from their lives, not even Chile's dictator Pinochet.

Great choice from the book club.

#doublespin
#bookspinbingo

“As she got off the bus..she heard the soldier‘s order for the men to go here and the women to go over there, she didn‘t know what to do, and just as she was getting totally flustered and all in a tizzy, she sensed the emergence of her emergency drag queen.”

#emergencydragqueen

Excerpt From
My Tender Matador
Pedro Lemebel & Katherine Silver

July #Bookspin List is assembled. Added a couple placeholders for whatever I find on my mom‘s bookshelves while I am house/dog sitting for her. Another placeholder for a draft of a story written by a friend.

Queer life in Chile during the end of Pinochet‘s regime. The Queen lives a quiet life in Santiago, embroiders fancy tablecloths and falls for a handsome young rebel, who may have feelings back. An unconventional romance, but very moving. The birthday party scene was really something.

A poetically written book about a period of history in Chile I did not know a lot about. Fiction but semi autobiographical.

I'm reading "Ho paura torero"