The First Gay American Novel: A Forgotten Book by Sarah Orne Jewett
What was the first gay American novel? The popularity of James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room, Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City, and Hanya Yanagihara’s recent sensation A Little Life indicate the deep personal connection people feel with LGBT fiction.
In this talk, Professor Don James McLaughlin of the University of Tulsa will make the case that A Marsh Island (1885), the little-known novel by the Maine-based writer Sarah Orne Jewett (1849-1909), should be considered the first novel in the genre.
Schedule
5:30 p.m. Reception
6:00 p.m. Talk
This program is held in collaboration with the Library Company of Philadelphia.