general

• quick summary - a brief overview of queer women's history spanning from ancient greece to modern times.
• key themes - wlw history, queer culture, feminism, patriarchy, sexism.

interests

• what i found interesting - I liked how I was introduced to so many queer women that I had no idea about! it is always comforting to know lesbians were always around and dealing with the same things you are in 2024.
• what i learned - I felt like I learned so much and so little with this book lol the high number of names and personal histories only made me incapable of remembering even one. I found super interesting how men justified lesbianism as having a "male soul" and how intertwined that seems to be with transgenderism—I would love to read more about queer women and clothing choices. I also really enjoyed learning about the interwar period and the multiple lesbian bars, and the 1970s scene in nyc too.
• fav quote - "an inalienable right to be gay"

further reading

• follow-up context research - so many names I have to look up now...give me my kobo where I wrote them all down.

rating

• 3/5 - the reviews did not lie, this was a bit disappointing. it felt too much and too little at the same time. I feel like I only read it to get out of my reading slump, and it is perfect for that. the history is so superficial that it makes it quite an easy read. the author tried to come off as funny but her jokes weren't funny really (more like crass). people were complaining about the lack of trans women and transphobia but I did not get that vibe from the book at all. I think it is a "good" first book to be introduced to wlw history, but you definitely need to do some research yourself aftwards. I enjoyed the last chapter and the talk of building a lesbian identity and what that means—I think we're still figuring that one out.