A review by diifacto
Before the Parade: A History of Halifax's Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Communities, 1972-1984 by Nova Scotia), Rebecca Rose (Halifax

informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

3.0

Not too much to say here; I picked this up as research for an essay I'm writing, but would've enjoyed reading it outside of an academic setting as well! Since, I'll admit, I'm not someone who enjoys non-fiction all that much (even if it's a topic I'm really interested in) the shorter length of Before The Parade definitely helped. The formatting (font, photo placement/use, chapter length, language used) was simple and smart, which was also an asset. I appreciated the information provided around an indigenous perspective of relation with LGBT2S+—while far from complete, it is a perspective I rarely see discussed. I also appreciated the focus on queer women's movements. The only thing I will say I disliked was that in some places it felt Rose was using too many quotes in place of her own words; there were pages made up nearly exclusively of quotes, where Rose might've been able to paraphrase for the sake of fluidity. Otherwise, I enjoyed reading Before The Parade, especially living in Halifax myself.