What the title says basically! I'm writing a script for a short film about a teen girl coming to terms with her queerness during this period and need something relevant to either aids itself, the time period, san francisco/bay area during this time, or just overall details about the 90s gay culture itself. thanks so much!
by crashingeagle10
20 Comments
Christodora by Tim Murphy
Not sure if you are open to fiction, but Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl takes place in the 90’s, part of it takes place in SF I believe, and it touches on the AIDS epidemic. It’s queer fiction with smut and magical realism elements. It really transported me to the 90’s. A fav for sure.
Obviously “And the Band Played on” is the preeminent book on the topic. Not sure if it lines up with your time period but the amount of info is staggering.
I think In One Person by John Irving might fit but it’s been while since I read it.
Borrowed Time, Angels in America series or The Normal Heart
My Own Country by Abraham Verghese
The great believers by Rebecca makai
Jack Lowery
It Was Vulgar and It Was Beautiful: How AIDS Activists Used Art to Fight a Pandemic
How about Tell the Wolves Im Home by Carol Rifka Brunt?
Let The Record Show by Sarah Schulman
Disco Witches of Fire Island by Blair Fell
The heart’s invisible furies
It’s takes place in London rather than SF, but [Love from the Pink Palace: Memories of Love, Loss and Cabaret through the AIDS Crisis](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59801971-love-from-the-pink-palace) is really good.
For expanded context, “Transgender History” by Susan Stryker has a lot of info about the Bay Area and the AIDS crisis.
How to Survive a Plague by David France.
How to Write an Autobiographical Novel: Essays by Alexander Chee
Like A Love Story is a YA novel about queer teens in the 1980s in New York.
The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne. It’s set in Ireland but does include sections in the US during the AIDS crisis. A fantastic book
Not books but the series Angels in America (an adaptation of the play of the same name, set in NYC during the late 80s) and It’s a Sin (early 90s, though set in London so perhaps some cultural differences) both deal with the experiences of the queer community during the AIDs crisis and are absolutely fantastic watching. It’s a Sin is particularly emotive and absolutely harrowing at points, especially in depicting the extent of the stigma and prejudice they endured.
The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels
Angels in America