Ann Bannon

This review was written for The Lesbrary.

Laura goes off to college and meets Beth. Beth inspires in her a frenzied, frightening passion, which she can barely contain. Beth, in her loneliness, is drawn to Laura’s worship of her. They start an affair. Until Beth meets Charlie, and finally falls in love.

This is basically the plot of Ann Bannon’s Odd Girl Out and on this cursory, superficial level, I sort of enjoyed it. It’s not the best written story I have ever read, and in particular, I found the narrative head hopping from one character to the next jarring. However, as a pulp novel, it satisfies. There are a lot of trembling arms and heaving sighs, a lot of exclamatory statements and women on the brink of overwhelming desires.

As a modern day reader, I didn’t much like it. Laura, for being the star of the scandalous lesbian plot, fairly disappears from the book for the last half. When she is present, her character is presented as an underwhelming girl-child, always crying or about to cry. Beth’s motivations for wandering in and out of a lesbian romance are explained in the most facile psych 101 terms (she wasn’t loved enough as a child!). Charlie is an odd combination of tender and caveman, having his way in the name of Good & Manly Decision-making whenever the plot requires it.

As a modern day lesbian, I liked it even less. I will say, that for something produced in pulp literature world of the late 1950s, Odd Girl Out is less judgemental and less condemning than I expected. There is no happy queer ending, but on the other hand, Laura is able to achieve a sort of self-acceptance that is presented in an admirable light. Beth and Charlie definitely win the narrative race to heteronormative success, but Bannon carves out a small space for Laura too, and I appreciated that.… (more)

I found three of the Bannon novels next to one another on the "new" shelf at the library and snapped them up. Was that unfair? Perhaps, but I'll try to return them quickly.

I wasn't expecting much from Beebo Brinker before I read it, which contributed to how much I enjoyed it. I was trying to keep my expectations low for this as well (because---shockingly---I am totally fascinated with Beebo and I knew she was a more minor character), and was again surprised.

Sam keeps making fun of me for reading pulps, and I keep telling her that she needs to read them so she can at least understand exactly what she's mocking. I don't even know what I like about them, exactly. They make no bones about being trashy; they have an aura of cheapness and they are rushed and convenient and ridiculous in places. And yet I get very involved with the characters and completely wrapped up in their world.

I was kind of surprised by the heavy-duty issues (apart from homosexuality, of course) that got brought up.

The characters' attitude toward sex is surprisingly up to date, but their attitudes toward many other things are not. I think that's another reason I like these books: they remind me how much I don't have to face in my daily life, and how much has changed in such a short time. (Would I work as an elevator operator just to be able to wear pants?) While I am becoming reasonably confident in dressing as I prefer for work, attitudes towards (and protections for) transgender people are still for the most part stuck in the fifties. Things are starting to change, but here's hoping it takes less time.

Ooh, ooh, and now I know why a butchy friend has a dachshund named Nix!!… (more)