Hot and Bothered

Sara Stratton, who holds a Ph.D. in American history from York
University, teaches at Open College and is a member of the
research/program staff at the Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada.

This collection of erotic literature by and for lesbians shows how much
lesbian literature has and hasn’t changed in recent years. With the
rise of attractive and affordable desktop publishing, increased public
acceptance of (or benign indifference to) gay and lesbian issues, and an
increasingly self-assured gay and lesbian community, long gone are the
days of unattractive books produced on the cheap for a niche market.

It is still a niche market, though, and so clunky fiction continues to
be published. There are some clunkers in this collection, both in terms
of awkward writing and boring sex, but for the most part Hot and
Bothered is a welcome addition to the lesbian bedside bookshelf. The
book includes both first-time authors and established names such as
Dorothy Allison, Lucy Jane Bledsoe, Sarah Schulman, Judith Katz, and
Kitty Tsui.