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juliepfammatter's review
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
heathcliffesleftkidney's review
5.0
Beautiful, stream-of-conscious, captured a very particular sort of daze
bill369's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
First ever gay short story to be published. Interesting writing style missing exclamation and question marks. groups of words are separated by three dots. I must admit, the descriptions were poetic and beautiful.
Snippet 1
Alex walked and the click of his heels sounded…and had an echo…sound being tossed back and forth…back and forth…someone was approaching…and their echoes mingled . . .and gave the sound of castanets…Alex liked the sound of the approaching man’s footsteps…he walked music also…he knew the beauty of the narrow blue…Alex knew that by the way their echoes mingled…he wished he would speak…but strangers don’t speak at four o’clock in the morning…at least if they did he couldn’t imagine what would be said…
Snippet 2
and Alex awoke…Beauty’s hair tickled his nose …Beauty was smiling in his sleep…half his face stained flush color by the sun…the other half in shadow…blue shadow…his eyelashes casting cobwebby blue shadows on his cheek…his lips were so beautiful…quizzical…Alex wondered why he always thought of that passage from Wilde’s Salome…when he looked at Beauty’s lips…I would kiss your lips…he would like to kiss Beauty’s lips…Alex flushed warm…with shame…or was it shame…he reached across Beauty for a cigarette…
Snippet 3
Beauty’s hair touched his forehead now…he could feel his breath on his nostrils and lips…Beauty’s breath came short…breathe normally Beauty…breathe normally…Beauty’s lips touched his… pressed hard…cool…opened slightly…Alex opened his eyes…into Beauty’s…parted his lips…Dulce…Beauty’s breath was hot and short…Alex ran his hand through Beauty’s hair…Beauty’s lips pressed hard against his teeth…Alex trembled…could feel Beauty’s body…close against his…hot…tense…white…and soft…soft…soft……..
story free online: https://lostgayfiction.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/smoke-lilies-and-jade-by-richard-bruce-nugent/
Snippet 1
Alex walked and the click of his heels sounded…and had an echo…sound being tossed back and forth…back and forth…someone was approaching…and their echoes mingled . . .and gave the sound of castanets…Alex liked the sound of the approaching man’s footsteps…he walked music also…he knew the beauty of the narrow blue…Alex knew that by the way their echoes mingled…he wished he would speak…but strangers don’t speak at four o’clock in the morning…at least if they did he couldn’t imagine what would be said…
Snippet 2
and Alex awoke…Beauty’s hair tickled his nose …Beauty was smiling in his sleep…half his face stained flush color by the sun…the other half in shadow…blue shadow…his eyelashes casting cobwebby blue shadows on his cheek…his lips were so beautiful…quizzical…Alex wondered why he always thought of that passage from Wilde’s Salome…when he looked at Beauty’s lips…I would kiss your lips…he would like to kiss Beauty’s lips…Alex flushed warm…with shame…or was it shame…he reached across Beauty for a cigarette…
Snippet 3
Beauty’s hair touched his forehead now…he could feel his breath on his nostrils and lips…Beauty’s breath came short…breathe normally Beauty…breathe normally…Beauty’s lips touched his… pressed hard…cool…opened slightly…Alex opened his eyes…into Beauty’s…parted his lips…Dulce…Beauty’s breath was hot and short…Alex ran his hand through Beauty’s hair…Beauty’s lips pressed hard against his teeth…Alex trembled…could feel Beauty’s body…close against his…hot…tense…white…and soft…soft…soft……..
story free online: https://lostgayfiction.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/smoke-lilies-and-jade-by-richard-bruce-nugent/
peachnpoison's review
5.0
beautiful description of queer desire in the harlem renaissance love love love it and the writing style is beautiful
spacestationtrustfund's review
3.0
The first (known) work by an African-American writer to explicitly discuss homosexuality.
delz's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
Smoke, Lilies and Jade is told through a first person POV. Alex is dreamily meandering through bits of his life, from the death of his father to a sexual encounter with Adrien/Beauty. While Alex is with Adrien he reminisces about Melva and he dreams of the man and woman in red lilies and black poppies. In between he attends parties with other famous black artists of the time. The author created beautiful prose, in this early LGBT+ literature.
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