READING IS FUNDAMENTAL

The Lambda Literary Awards are this upcoming Monday June 4^th, in New York City and the incomparable drag-superstar Lady Bunny is DJing the afterparty. (The awards are sold out but there are still tickets available for the afterparty, which you can purchase here.)

We are really looking forward to seeing Lady Bunny work her magic to get a room full of bibliophiles out on the dance floor. That being said, we thought this would be a good opportunity to have a little book chat with the drag star.

Just what books line her stacks?

Our brief conversation follows:

What is your favorite book and why?

I’m ashamed to admit that I’m part of the 1/2 of American duds who don’t read one book per year. Internet-induced ADD, our soundbite-oriented culture and my hectic schedule don’t help the situation. I do salivate whenever I see lefty heroes like Naomi Klein or Robert Reich on the news with a new book out, but I’m always afraid they’ll be over my head. Do I still have the DJ gig, though?

As a child I was obsessed with all of the Oz series and anything about witchcraft, probably searching for an escape hatch from the dull suburbia of Chattanooga, Tennessee where I grew up. In my twenties, I discovered Patrick Dennis’s Little Meand First Lady. Of course, his Auntie Mame is much better known, but these two were much loonier. Little Me is the story of an insanely gorgeous wannabe star with zero talent, who always misinterprets her lot in life yet somehow wins in every predicament. First Lady is a completely giddy romp with the photos of the nut Peggy Cass (from 60s game show “To Tell The Truth.”) When I find a book I love, I re-read it many times. Or at least I used to!

A more recent book that blew my mind was Larry Kramer’s The Tragedy Of Today’s Gays. The truth hurts, but Larry isn’t afraid to tell it.

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