Thanks so much for this. What a gift to have had that book in your life at that time. I am realizing I can’t remember the first gay relationship I encountered in a book, but I’m pretty sure it was well after college, perhaps after the first time a friend of mind came out to me. Fast forward to the 2010’s and our own daughter came out to us. She later told me Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe was one of her favorite books, so I read it. It’s lovely and poignant and I’m glad she trusted me to share it with. We need all the empathy we can get these days.
Louise, Thanks for sharing your story. I'm so glad your daughter had the experience of reading Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the World. I put that book on my contemporary Mexican American Literature reading list, and my students that have chosen it for the independent book projects have loved it. It's lovely to hear another reminder of the power of literature.
Thanks so much for this. What a gift to have had that book in your life at that time. I am realizing I can’t remember the first gay relationship I encountered in a book, but I’m pretty sure it was well after college, perhaps after the first time a friend of mind came out to me. Fast forward to the 2010’s and our own daughter came out to us. She later told me Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe was one of her favorite books, so I read it. It’s lovely and poignant and I’m glad she trusted me to share it with. We need all the empathy we can get these days.
Louise, Thanks for sharing your story. I'm so glad your daughter had the experience of reading Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the World. I put that book on my contemporary Mexican American Literature reading list, and my students that have chosen it for the independent book projects have loved it. It's lovely to hear another reminder of the power of literature.
Thanks, Sarah! One of my favorite novels on book censorship is THE DAY THEY CAME TO ARREST THE BOOK by Nat Hentoff.
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll have to check Hentoff's book out.