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Paul Yonnet on Gide

From Zone de mort, Stock, 2017 (not translated) : This book of correspondence ends with an excerpt from Paul Valéry’s Notebook 24. In it, he noted down a conversation he had just had with André Gide, in 1925. Gide, who was … Continue reading

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An Art-Filled Weekend in Chicago 

Despite the ridiculous name change (Painting His World) – to make it more “inclusive” according to the Chicago curator Gloria Groom, I enjoyed the Caillebotte exhibition at the Art Institute (Painting Men). The focus and commentary beside the works remain … Continue reading

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Cabinet secret

St Sebastian, Guido Reni, c. 1615, Musei di Strada Nuova, Genoa D’où la possibilité qui t’est donnée de te constituer dans chaque musée que tu visites ton cabinet secret personnel, accessible à tous, mais où nul à part toi et … Continue reading

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Random Links

La marche des fiertés 2025 par Willam Marx (Le Monde). He’s Here, He’s Queer, He’s the Future King of England, a new Off Broadway play (New York Times).

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Straight Acting: Queer Shakespeare

From the introduction (Prologue) of Straight Acting: The Hidden Queer Lives of William Shakespeare, Will Tosh, Seal Press, 2024, the best book I have read on this topic: I don’t see the need to look for incontrovertible signs that Shakespeare the … Continue reading

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Yiyin Li remembers Edmund White

A friendship of voracious readers: https://yalereview.org/article/yiyun-li-edmund-white-tribute:

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Gaydar in À la recherche du temps perdu

Baron de Charlus attends his first Verdurin dinner party at La Raspelière with Morel and he misinterprets Dr. Cottard’s gaze as some kind of sexual advance: « Pour M. de Charlus, qui pensait peut-être aux dangers (bien imaginaires) que la présence … Continue reading

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Edmund White on gay literature

In his last book, The Loves of my Life (Bloomsbury, 2025), Edmund White writes these comments which I found interesting : « The Pupil is one of the best gay short stories ever written, unless it’s Conrad’s The Secret Sharer – and he wasn’t even gay! » « Now … Continue reading

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Mario Vargas Llosa, 1936-2025

In his appraisal in the New York Times Dwight Garner overlooks El sueño del celta (2010), which, among the novels I have read, is my favorite. Interweaving Roger Casement’s last days in prison with flashbacks from his life, Vargas Llosa presents us with a … Continue reading

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Of course, we must talk about Kafka! 

Of course, we must talk about Kafka! The year coming to an end marks the centenary of his death, on June 3 1924, at the age of 40. Author of a multifaceted body of work, the Czech writer has been … Continue reading

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