Scan barcode
adam75241's review against another edition
5.0
Fairyland is as heartbreaking as it is wholesome, as honest as it is fantastic, and as soul crushing as it is lively. And I found this book to be more than a memoir, more than another book about gay men and the AIDS epidemic. It is a tribute to freedom, to unconventional parenting, to the bond between child and parent, and to the queer community of the past, present, and future.
elia_z's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
5.0
I picked up this book at the beginning of my stay in. San Francisco, and I've not regret this choice for a single second. Absolutely fascinating memoir supported by a vivid writing. The author's point of view is one I've never seen before on such important parts of (queer) history.
Just finished it and sobbing before I even had breakfast.
Just finished it and sobbing before I even had breakfast.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Car accident
Moderate: Drug use, Grief, Addiction, Homophobia, Terminal illness, and Alcoholism
staceface's review against another edition
medium-paced
4.0
I loved reading this memoir of the author’s life with her father. Getting glimpses into SF during another decade is always fascinating. My heart broke at Alysia’s loss.
tshere's review against another edition
4.0
What a lovely book...and what a treasure trove of material to draw on.
meghan111's review against another edition
4.0
Alysia grew up in the 1970s and 1980s in San Francisco with her gay activist father, mostly in an apartment at the center of Haight Street. After her mother's death in a car crash when she was very young, her father raised her on his own, moving to the city where he was deeply involved in the local poetry scene and also drew comics. In the 1980s, like so many others, he falls ill from AIDS, and eventually Alysia, by then a college student studying in New York and Paris, comes home to him.
I kept drawing comparisons to several other books in my head - a good sign. It reminded me so much of [b:Just Kids|341879|Just Kids|Patti Smith|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1259762407s/341879.jpg|332242] by Patti Smith, a memoir of counterculture, art, and a particular time in a particular city, told by someone as a memoir of their relationship with someone they loved, now deceased.
It also brought to mind [b:Fun Home|38990|Fun Home|Alison Bechdel|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327652831s/38990.jpg|911368] by Alison Bechdel, for the differences illustrated by two daughters of gay men, one closeted, one an activist. And I happened to watch Dallas Buyers Club after finishing this, and the pairing of the two works about the 1980s and the AIDS epidemic and the federal government's response was one that enhanced my understanding and appreciation of both.
Finally, I was reminded of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City series for all the ways San Francisco features in this memoir.
I kept drawing comparisons to several other books in my head - a good sign. It reminded me so much of [b:Just Kids|341879|Just Kids|Patti Smith|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1259762407s/341879.jpg|332242] by Patti Smith, a memoir of counterculture, art, and a particular time in a particular city, told by someone as a memoir of their relationship with someone they loved, now deceased.
It also brought to mind [b:Fun Home|38990|Fun Home|Alison Bechdel|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327652831s/38990.jpg|911368] by Alison Bechdel, for the differences illustrated by two daughters of gay men, one closeted, one an activist. And I happened to watch Dallas Buyers Club after finishing this, and the pairing of the two works about the 1980s and the AIDS epidemic and the federal government's response was one that enhanced my understanding and appreciation of both.
Finally, I was reminded of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City series for all the ways San Francisco features in this memoir.
trayceebee's review
5.0
I'm the same age as the author. I really enjoyed how vividly she described places and clothes and music from the time period she was discussing. These things all had such a deep impact on her as she was growing up, and that meant a lot to me, as those things affected me during my childhood and teen years, as well. I especially loved that she was into the same music as me during her early 20's.
She wrote about her gay father and his eventual demise from AIDS. I do not have gay parents, and I was not a motherless child. I never knew anyone personally who died of AIDS. However, I could still relate to a lot of what she spoke of during that time. In the late 80s and early 90s, AIDS was a huge deal, and if you were on the "wrong" side of it, it could be pretty scary/devastating. I still remember the fear.
Very well written, and as I listened to her reading the audio version, I appreciated that she spoke the French parts so well. I know no French, so she often translated what she was saying.... but regardless, her accent was so beautiful, I appreciated what she was saying even when I didn't understand it!
She wrote about her gay father and his eventual demise from AIDS. I do not have gay parents, and I was not a motherless child. I never knew anyone personally who died of AIDS. However, I could still relate to a lot of what she spoke of during that time. In the late 80s and early 90s, AIDS was a huge deal, and if you were on the "wrong" side of it, it could be pretty scary/devastating. I still remember the fear.
Very well written, and as I listened to her reading the audio version, I appreciated that she spoke the French parts so well. I know no French, so she often translated what she was saying.... but regardless, her accent was so beautiful, I appreciated what she was saying even when I didn't understand it!