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OUTWORDS BOOKS, GIFTS AND COFFEE
Outwords Books Celebrates ‘Christmas in July’ and a Summer Reading List BY PAUL MASTERSON
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ilwaukee’s Outwords Books, Gifts and Coffee (2710 N. Murray St.) is one of a scant dozen surviving LGBTQ-dedicated bookstores in the entire country and it’s about to celebrate its 29th anniversary. Proprietor Carl Szatmary, Cream City’s purveyor of fine LGBTQ literature, queer gifts and rainbow accessoires, recently announced the shop’s “Christmas in July” sale that takes place this month beginning on Thursday, June 8 and continuing to June 10. On Saturday, June 9, Outwords offers holiday-themed refreshments and entertainment. The event comes as a result of a health crisis Szatmary experienced last December. Homebound due to health issues over the holidays, he relied on volunteers to keep the store running but they were only able to open a few days a week. “We have a lot of product left so we decided to do a fun, Christmas-themed event for our anniversary. It’s a long time to be open and we’ve been through it with a fire, a flood and other issues. People made the effort to keep us open and were really terrific,” Szatmary said.
SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE The occasion offers not only an opportunity to celebrate one of Milwaukee’s longest existing LGBTQ businesses but also to
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Photo by Michael Burmesch.
stock up on books for your summer reading pleasure. To that end Szatmary gave me a list of current LGBTQ titles covering a something-for-everyone spectrum of genres and subjects to choose from. Starting with the perfect escape, Timothy Janovsky’s lighthearted rom-com Never Been Kissed finds protagonist Wren set on experiencing his first kiss before his 21st birthday and determined to make that a reality from his pool of crushes. It’s a perfect read for fans of Casey McQuiston’s Red, White and Royal Blue. Speaking of whom, Szatmary recommends that author’s latest, I Kissed Sarah Wheeler, a lesbian coming of age novel set in a small Alabama town. In another romance, Brian O’Connell’s Just by Looking at Him, protagonist Eliot, who endures cerebral palsy, searches for “the one,” and seemingly finds him in Gus, his indulgent boyfriend. Yet, Eliot can’t stop cheating. Nghi Vo’s lesbian historical fiction novel Siren Queen tells the story of young aspiring actress Luli Wei, an industry outsider determined to be on the big screen no matter the cost. Andrew Holleran’s Kingdom of Sand (his first novel in 16 years) is an elegy to sex and a candid exploration of loneliness and the insatiable need for human connection.
