In a world where 75 countries criminalise homosexuality and/or enforce LGBTQ+ censorship, the power of LGBTQ+ literature cannot be undersold. It operates as a persuasive tool to open the eyes of the ignorant. In my opinion this subculture of books remains emblematic of the political and social driving force that narrative can be. Good LGBTQ+ fiction is non-didactic, or at most, softly so; letting narrative show, not tell.
However, LGBTQ+ literature can also act as a mirror for those who relate to these experiences; to be represented is a liberating thing. Whoever for, these books make damn good stories; teaching people about themselves, romantic experience, changing personhood, acceptance, and a whole load in between.
Julia Armfield’s Our Wives Under the Sea is a narrative all about vibes, and little about plot. Immensely character driven, it focuses on the relationship between two women. It is a story that plays with time and reality. One is a marine biologist that goes on a deep-sea expedition, the other stays at home. Things go wrong. Each chapter focuses on a different level of the ocean, but also their relationship. Wonderfully poetic, and acerbically accurate to real world relationship dynamics, I love how Armfield uses liquid as an all-encompassing motif to communicate so much about the couple’s relationship. This book may have a soft grip on reality, playing with suggestions of the paranormal and metaphysical, but it sure does tell me a lot about it. Beautifully lyrical in style, touching on love, inquiry, trauma, loss, and nature; this is one of my favourites.
Tomasz Jedrowski’s Swimming in The Dark is a very different kind of story. Decade spanning, covering the life, love and lost love of a man growing up in communist Poland, Jedrowski manages to detail the intricacies of a politically weighted world while remaining true to the main characters story. His writing is grounded in a very real historic landscape. This gives every moment of secrecy, passion and experience a unique persuasive power. Lyrical nostalgia imbues this book with a sense that it is almost real. It reminds me that narratives like these have been relived in many forms, through many romances.
Ultimately, modern books like Our Wives Under the Sea, or Swimming in the Dark show us that these stories might not be conventional, but they and the people within them, are natural and beautiful, filled with nuance, complexity and love.
Photo by Mercedes Mehling on Unsplash.
