There's Something I've Been Meaning to Tell You: An Anthology about Lesbians and Gay Men Coming Out to Their Children

MacPike, an English professor at California State University, tackles the perplexing problems lesbians and gays face in coming out to their children. The first-person accounts she collects bypass typical psychotherapy parlance and intellectual analyses, cutting directly to the art of speaking--and listening--to one's children. The stories, bittersweet, poignant or downright sad, provide a window on the remarkable diversity in the lesbian and gay community. In a preface, MacPike's daughter, Gwynn Sawyer Ostrom, offers her reaction to discovering that her mother is a lesbian. Ostrom's initial fear that she might be expected to become a lesbian and her insecurity about her mother's lover are echoed in the reactions of children in other stories. A few, however, responded nonchalantly; for example, when Stephen Brammeier made his announcement, his boys answered with hugs and ``I love yous''--and a request: ``Could we please turn the TV back on?'' Lesbian and gay parents will find comfort in these pages. (Dec.)