...in a paragraph...
A treasure trove of new books to read during Pride Month [in print as These new books capture the range and diversity of LGBTQ life; The Gaysians by Mike Curato]
"Gaysians," which is "Flamer" author Mike Curato's first graphic novel for adults, doesn't shy away from violence, racism and transphobia, outside the community or within it. The colors of the trans flag give the book its dominant palette, working especially well for its many nightclub scenes. The story, about a group of young Asian Americans living in Seattle in 2003, is most powerful when Curato unleashes his more expressionistic side to capture different characters' traumatic flashbacks and glimpses of historical tragedy. But this darkness is offset by the story's cozy, reassuring focus on friendship and found family. Some may find Curato leaning too heavily on sentimentality — his "gaysians" give themselves the cutesy name "The Boy Luck Club," riffing on Amy Tan's novel "The Joy Luck Club," and speak mostly in catty clichés, as if auditioning for "Drag Race." For me, this mawkish tendency stunted the book's emotional range.
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