The Life & Times of Butch Dykes: Portraits of Artists, Leaders, and Dreamers Who Changed the World

Aquino’s quirky, scrapbook-style collection features snapshot narratives of well-known butch lesbians both living and dead. Most are or were working in creative fields, and particular attention is paid to women of color. The opening chapter on Audre Lorde starts the volume off strong with nine different portraits and numerous powerful quotes from her writing. Writer Judith Butler, photographer Claude Cahun, model Jenny Shimizu, and musician Chavela Vargas are also granted in-depth treatments. However, not all of the selections are as cohesive; the chapter highlighting Brazilian pop singers, for example, reads like a gossipy magazine. While some of these figures eventually came out as lesbians, others actively denied queer labels. This raises the question: who gets to decide if someone is butch? The casual art style is simple but effective, with black-and-white figures highlighted by pink and maroon mid-tones pasted into full pages or tucked beside sprawling hand-lettered text—though this intimate diary effect is somewhat disrupted by the clashing digital fonts used for titles. Readers are likely to quibble with Aquino’s idiosyncratic selection and offhand commentary, but her admiration for her subjects shines through in this celebratory volume. [em](Nov.) [/em]