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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
A beautiful novella that squeezed my heart in various places. The queer places, the Jewish places, the "loving a San Francisco that no longer exists" places. I want to say this is somehow sparse and lush at the same time, which should be impossible but is perfectly apt for the subject material.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Like being asked to dance by a wonderful stranger and getting a kiss on the forehead before they wander off into the night.
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
*incoherent lesbian panic* This book. Y’all. I discovered Klages through her short story “Time Gupsy”—also beautiful and sapphic af—and I am in love. 1. gorgeous goddam cover 2. prose that will slay you where you sit 3. GIRLS. Just so many sapphic GIRLS. In 1940s San Francisco. Our history is so painful, but lord deliver me into the clutches of it if Klages is writing it.
rep: multiple sapphic women (historical, so lack of personal identifiers); lots of gender presentation discussion
rep: multiple sapphic women (historical, so lack of personal identifiers); lots of gender presentation discussion
Someone recommended Ellen Klages' Passing Strange to me a few months ago when I was asking people to recommend comforting books, and I thought of it when I was looking for something to read earlier this week as this is definitely a time of year for comforting reading.
Having bought it months ago and not looked at the synopsis again before I started reading it, I was expecting it to be fantasy and was surprised to discover that it's mostly not; there are some fantastical elements but they're not really explored or integrated with the main story and mostly just seem to be there to provide the plot resolution and the framing story. I also hadn't realised how short it was; a novella, rather than a novel, which meant that there wasn't much time to develop the large cast of characters. However, I thought that overall it was a delightful look at the lives of queer women in San Francisco in the 1940s and felt as though it was drenched in California sunshine, which was really not at all unwelcome in a particularly cold week in an English December.
Having bought it months ago and not looked at the synopsis again before I started reading it, I was expecting it to be fantasy and was surprised to discover that it's mostly not; there are some fantastical elements but they're not really explored or integrated with the main story and mostly just seem to be there to provide the plot resolution and the framing story. I also hadn't realised how short it was; a novella, rather than a novel, which meant that there wasn't much time to develop the large cast of characters. However, I thought that overall it was a delightful look at the lives of queer women in San Francisco in the 1940s and felt as though it was drenched in California sunshine, which was really not at all unwelcome in a particularly cold week in an English December.
This book was adooorable. I just wish it had been longer; the magic aspect seemed like an afterthought but it was cool and worth exploring. Still--1940s lesbian romance in San Francisco? Shut up and take my money. (Or, well, take my interlibrary loan request)
Counting this as read, but I DNF-ed at around 75%. I tried so hard to finish it, I really did. I had incredibly high hopes for this super gay historical fiction, but I can't make myself finish it. I keep trying, and I keep failing. It's incredibly boring and slow.
I don't know why Klages chose for Emily and Haskel to be the main characters in a book marketed as SF-F. First of all, the magical elements don't even belong to them, and second, their story is much more suited for a slow portrait of wlw in the 1940's.
I see this book hitting with a certain audience, but you definitely have to adjust your expectations for what it really is: slow romance (to clarify, not slow-burn — they're together for most of the book, so it's more of their romantic life than will they/won't they).
I don't know why Klages chose for Emily and Haskel to be the main characters in a book marketed as SF-F. First of all, the magical elements don't even belong to them, and second, their story is much more suited for a slow portrait of wlw in the 1940's.
I see this book hitting with a certain audience, but you definitely have to adjust your expectations for what it really is: slow romance (to clarify, not slow-burn — they're together for most of the book, so it's more of their romantic life than will they/won't they).
Trigger warning: Suicide
Passing Strange is an enchanting tale of queer women and their love in 1940 San Francisco.
This novella begins in the modern day, with an elderly woman named Helen retrieving a piece of artwork she had secreted away in an abandoned building. We soon find that the drawing is the almost legendary final piece of the famed pulp artist Haskel. But what’s the story behind this artwork? The narrative then skips back to the year 1940 and a circle of friends revolving around the lesbian club Mona.
While Passing Strange is clear on its inclusion of magic, the fantasy elements are subdued enough that it could be argued as magical realism instead of historical fantasy. There’s a little bit of magic in the very beginning to let you know the rules of the story, but it then largely disappears from the narrative until the end. I’m not sure how I feel about Passing Strange‘s handling of fantastic elements. By only using magic at the very end, it made it feel more like a deus ex machina than an organic part of the story.
I don’t think I have ever read a historical fantasy novel focused on the queer community. Historical fantasy that included queer characters? Sure. But they’d usually only be one or two supporting characters, not the majority of the cast. And even those supporting characters are usually male. This was definitely the first time I’ve read anything historical focusing on queer women.
Reading Passing Strange led me towards some historical information I was entirely unaware of. For instance, I had no idea that there were lesbian clubs back in the 30’s and 40’s. I also didn’t know about the Three-Piece Rule – a law where to avoid being arrested for cross-dressing, a woman had to wear at least three items of “female” clothing. Passing Strange led me down several different Google rabbit holes while I researched things I read about in the story.
Passing Strange beautifully captured its time period. The descriptions of the World Fair were gorgeous, and the novella as a whole felt very atmospheric and visual. FYI, Passing Strange doesn’t flinch away from portraying some of the period homophobia and racism.
The key focus of Passing Strange is the relationship between Emily and Haskell. I don’t think romance tends to work well in shorter formats such as novellas – you need time to build up the relationship. However, I think Passing Strange did as well as could be expected. The only thing that felt at all strange was how Emily and Haskell were willing to spend the rests of their lives together after knowing each other for what… a week? I also found some of the supporting characters difficult to keep track of as they received a lot less focus.
If you’re looking for a historical story focusing on queer women, I certainly recommend Passing Strange.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
I received an ARC of Passing Strange from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Passing Strange is an enchanting tale of queer women and their love in 1940 San Francisco.
This novella begins in the modern day, with an elderly woman named Helen retrieving a piece of artwork she had secreted away in an abandoned building. We soon find that the drawing is the almost legendary final piece of the famed pulp artist Haskel. But what’s the story behind this artwork? The narrative then skips back to the year 1940 and a circle of friends revolving around the lesbian club Mona.
While Passing Strange is clear on its inclusion of magic, the fantasy elements are subdued enough that it could be argued as magical realism instead of historical fantasy. There’s a little bit of magic in the very beginning to let you know the rules of the story, but it then largely disappears from the narrative until the end. I’m not sure how I feel about Passing Strange‘s handling of fantastic elements. By only using magic at the very end, it made it feel more like a deus ex machina than an organic part of the story.
I don’t think I have ever read a historical fantasy novel focused on the queer community. Historical fantasy that included queer characters? Sure. But they’d usually only be one or two supporting characters, not the majority of the cast. And even those supporting characters are usually male. This was definitely the first time I’ve read anything historical focusing on queer women.
Reading Passing Strange led me towards some historical information I was entirely unaware of. For instance, I had no idea that there were lesbian clubs back in the 30’s and 40’s. I also didn’t know about the Three-Piece Rule – a law where to avoid being arrested for cross-dressing, a woman had to wear at least three items of “female” clothing. Passing Strange led me down several different Google rabbit holes while I researched things I read about in the story.
Passing Strange beautifully captured its time period. The descriptions of the World Fair were gorgeous, and the novella as a whole felt very atmospheric and visual. FYI, Passing Strange doesn’t flinch away from portraying some of the period homophobia and racism.
The key focus of Passing Strange is the relationship between Emily and Haskell. I don’t think romance tends to work well in shorter formats such as novellas – you need time to build up the relationship. However, I think Passing Strange did as well as could be expected. The only thing that felt at all strange was how Emily and Haskell were willing to spend the rests of their lives together after knowing each other for what… a week? I also found some of the supporting characters difficult to keep track of as they received a lot less focus.
If you’re looking for a historical story focusing on queer women, I certainly recommend Passing Strange.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
I received an ARC of Passing Strange from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
4.5 stars
I really, really enjoyed this novella. Really the only reason it's not getting a full 5 stars is that I wished there was more magic. That and I wished it was longer. I really loved Haskel and Emily and wanted to spend more time with them. It does get some extra credit for being one of the few stories about queer women that doesn't end in tragedy. The writing was very good and the author managed to truly bring the settings to life. It helps that I live just outside of San Francisco and know it pretty well so I didn't have much trouble picturing where the story took place. Really glad I read this so soon after buying it instead of doing what I always do with freshly bought books and leaving it on my shelf for 6 years before even thinking about reading it.
I really, really enjoyed this novella. Really the only reason it's not getting a full 5 stars is that I wished there was more magic. That and I wished it was longer. I really loved Haskel and Emily and wanted to spend more time with them. It does get some extra credit for being one of the few stories about queer women that doesn't end in tragedy. The writing was very good and the author managed to truly bring the settings to life. It helps that I live just outside of San Francisco and know it pretty well so I didn't have much trouble picturing where the story took place. Really glad I read this so soon after buying it instead of doing what I always do with freshly bought books and leaving it on my shelf for 6 years before even thinking about reading it.