Hearing Us Out: Voices from the Gay and Lesbian Community

Lesbian adoptive parents, a gay Presbyterian minister, a lesbian police officer, a drag queen and a gay man with AIDS are among the 15 individuals who speak here, in first-person narratives adapted by Sutton from interviews. Their stories touch on homophobia, coming out, creating community, self-acceptance and spirituality; generally positive, they show the progress made by the gay and lesbian community over the years. Others, like that of an Irishman who fears losing his green card if his sexuality is revealed and that of an AIDS educator working with young people, point out struggles yet to be overcome. In his introduction, Sutton explains that he focused primarily on adults (only three interviewees are of high-school age) to show lesbian and gay teens ``that life goes on past junior-high humiliation and high-school ostracism,'' but the profiles likely to interest the target audience most will probably be those about their peers. And while he states that ``my community is bigger than where I live,'' Sutton does not venture beyond his own base in Chicago, somewhat limiting the scope of his otherwise effective book. Ages 12-up. (Nov.)