Family, by Kat.

I have worked at The Feminist Bookshop for three years now. I have loved every moment of it, the ups and the downs. Some days I can not imagine doing anything else with the rest of my life. Today is one of those days.

There are some customers I will never forget. Two women came in today with their son. The little boy was just gorgeous and having a fabulous time looking through our books. He asked me with perfect manners to get a book down for him. While the son and one Mum happily browsed children’s books in the corner the other mother came and sat at the front desk to talk to me. Her partner has a terminal illness and she wanted some books for their son to explain the journey the family will soon be on. I could not give them exactly the right book (because it hasn’t been written) but I could give them a range of appropriate and useful books.

I am sitting here now with tears in my eyes. There are some customers I will never forget. These two women had a fierce strength about them, a dignity and absolute love for their son. In a world that doesn’t believe same sex couples should even have children two women put their son first and walked into the bookshop to find resources to help him understand and grieve. That takes a lot of courage, first to accept that you/your partner is dying and then to prepare your family for the heartache that is to come. I sit here with tears in my eyes for complete strangers. I can not imagine what this family will go through but I know that The Feminist Bookshop has just made their journey a tiny bit easier. Books have the power to start conversations that are too hard to start alone, the power to affirm experiences that are alien, the power to let you know that you aren’t alone and that the hardest stuff will pass.

Some days I can not imagine doing anything else with the rest of my life. Today is one of those days.

Book review

The Carhullan Army by Sarah Hall.

Well written feminist dyke drama about government control, women and violence. Set in England after a global warming disaster, a corrupt government rules using religion, martial law and the invasive, brutal control of women’s reproductive systems. Sister escapes the ghetto in search of a separatist farm called Carhullan. Like most of the women she finds companionship, resilience and intimate love in a community run by a strong butch lesbian. By juxtaposing the women’s community with mainstream society the book asks if women would do it differently if they held the societal positions of power.

I found myself slowly drawn into this book instead of my attention being forcefully grabbed and held. The story worked it’s way into my consciousness until I found I could not stop thinking about Sister and her companions. A deceptively good read.