Unlimited Embrace: A Canon of Gay Fiction, 1945-1995

While gay male literary criticism abounds, much of it is based in the academy and uses the critical perceptions of postmodernism and queer theory to elucidate both popular and literary work. In this context, Reed Woodhouse's Unlimited Embrace shines out like a beacon. Covering work from the 1950s (James Baldwin's Giovanni's Room and the short stories of Tennessee Williams) to contemporary novels such as Dennis Cooper's Frisk and Dale Peck's Martin and John, Woodhouse attempts to create a cohesive tapestry out of diverse, imaginative styles, attitudes, and intentions. Such a project is fraught with difficulty, and Woodhouse is careful not to misrepresent or misread specific works to make them fit his theories. The best part of Unlimited Embrace is the author's own exuberance, excitement, and enmity to individual works. Like the film critic Pauline Kael--known for her sharp intelligence and even sharper tongue--Woodhouse is unafraid to venture opinions when he knows they are idiosyncratic or even contrary to "accepted" opinion. Whether praising Dennis Cooper's transgressive narratives over David Leavitt's assimilationist novels, or preferring Samuel Delany's perversely brilliant The Mad Man over Stephen McCauley's popular The Object of My Affection, Woodhouse makes his cases with flair and panache and will delight and infuriate even the most stolid lover of literature. --Michael Bronski