Moby Dyke

April 24, 2023
Effing Dykes blogger Burton debuts with a witty cross-country tour of lesbian bars. Eager to reconnect with the queer community after Covid-19 lockdowns, Burton set out in 2021 on a pilgrimage with her trans husband, Davin, to visit the 20 self-identifying lesbian bars (down from 206 in 1987) left in the U.S. (more have since opened). Highlights include Burton’s first visit to a drag show since the onset of the pandemic, at the Back Door in Bloomington, Ind.; singing the queer anthem “Goodbye Earl” with dozens of other patrons at the Lipstick Lounge in Nashville, Tenn.; and competing in dildo races at the Pearl Bar in Houston, Tex. Along the way, Burton makes friends, studies lesbian behavior (“My god do we love a spot where we can lean while we stare at each other without engaging”), and discusses reasons for the closure of “dyke bars,” including gentrification, the pandemic, and the growing acceptance of the queer community in mainstream culture. In response, the remaining nightspots have become more inclusive of other segments of the LGBTQ community and added indoor slides, Instagram-friendly patios, and other attractions. Throughout, Burton’s keen observations and sense of humor are on full display. It adds up to an infectious celebration of the joy and resilience of queer spaces.

May 1, 2023
The saga of a queer blogger traveling the nation in search of lesbian bars. In the past couple decades, lesbian bars and clubs have become an endangered species. While gay bars have flourished, lesbian and queer women's establishments are fewer and farther between. Burton, the creator of the popular blog Effing Dykes, recalls how vital these bars were to her in her younger days and how she has yearned for a chance to seek out other circles of queer folk, especially after the pandemic lockdown. The author writes with a bloglike familiarity, often employing stream-of-consciousness prose. Her overenthusiastic and quippy tone paints the book more as a memoir or think piece than a sociological case study. Readers expecting a data-filled, academic record will be disappointed. The book is more of a travel diary, with the author recounting funny anecdotes and personal revelations throughout. "Just me and my thoughts, heading to a lesbian bar near you!" she writes at the beginning of a journey filled with rental-car fiascos, tangents about karaoke, and other travel mishaps. Each chapter tells the tale of a different bar, sprinkled with comments from owners and customers about how the bar stayed open and how it has adapted for survival over the years. Apprehensive about approaching strangers, Burton sometimes forgoes the interview portion and focuses on her personal enjoyment in the club or bar. As a self-identifying femme lesbian, she writes about feeling excluded or presumed straight by others in the queer community. She investigates that emotional journey throughout her expedition alongside her larger quest for lesbian bars. Certain LGBTQ+ terms are explained concisely for those who may not be familiar with them. Using lots of capital letters, exclamation points, italics, and pop-culture references to get points across, the author presents a lighthearted, honest narrative about her messy adventure. Fans of travel memoirs and Burton's zealous personality will delight in this white-whale hunt.

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June 1, 2023
The endearing prologue to Burton's first book narrates her middle-aged joy at getting her dream assignment: a chronicle of visits to 19 of the remaining lesbian bars in the U.S. Leaning neither historical nor academic, Burton's project includes much personal reflection, with travel logistics anecdotes, relational dynamics with partner Davin, and life stories all contributing to the main point: what it feels like, for Burton, to be in lesbian and queer safe spaces. She finds the bars themselves have in common things like red paint and twinkly lights, as well as a lesbian-centric ideology that's inclusive for all. A standout chapter on Seattle's Wildrose sees Burton revisiting a bar from her youth and contrasting a night where she felt like an outsider with the following night, when she felt meaningfully connected. Theories abound here, from Burton's opinions on queer culture to bar patrons' thoughts on the diminishing number of lesbian bars (though the epilogue reports new ones are opening!). Easy to read and personal, Burton's story will make any reader want to follow in her footsteps.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.