Jane Rule (1931–2007)

I just reread this after 20 years. Rule was an underrated author and this is one of her best books - perceptive, generous, intriguing. Diana Crown is an aging lesbian whose partner Constance has Alzheimers and an estranged twin brother (David) and this is the story of them getting to know each other again. It's a story of being trapped by memory - Constance is trapped by the absence of it; David and Diana are trying to escape the memories that are the cause of their estrangement; David's show more children are trapped by the memories of their mother.
I feared the book, which I loved when I first read it, would have dated. It has, but in a good way - homosexuality is treated as a novelty and as a taboo in a way that now seems quaint. Rule does not have a good ear for dialogue but David's internal monologues in particular more than make up for it. I'm glad to have read it again. show less

This is the story of twins, David and Diana who have been estrange for decades because David's wife could not accept Diana's same-sex relationship with Constance. David, now widowed, reconnects with Diana whose long-time partner, Constance, is suffering from memory loss. There is not much action in this book, but I really liked the writing and the way David's and Diana's stories were told. Their reunion brings old memories to the fore, just as Constance struggles to remember what is show more happening in real time -- this contrast explores the role of memory in identity and in relationships. The characters are so real! show less

It’s easy to forget when you’re reading Desert of the Heart, by American-turned Canadian author Jane Rule, that is was actually published in 1964. But it is essential to remember, because it’s astonishing, really, that this kind of lesbian novel was even published (in hardcover no less) at a time when cheap paperback lesbian pulp novels—with appropriately depressing endings—were the only kind of contemporary books available with queer women’s content. It’s not only that the show more novel doesn’t condemn either of the women for their desire, although that is significant; it’s that Desert of the Heart presents a startlingly psychologically complex reading of a lesbian relationship. Rule, who passed away in 2007, should really be heralded as one of the key lesbian writers who paved the way for and began what we currently call queer women’s literature.

Evelyn and Ann are the two lovers at the centre of the story, but that is much too simple a description of their relationship...

See the rest of my review at my website: http://caseythecanadianlesbrarian.wordpress.com/2012/09/20/the-beginning-of-cont... show less

Definitely a better-than-average specimen of the "LGBT classic" - a thoughtful, well-written and not too predictable lesbian romance with lots of interesting period detail about the Nevada gambling industry. As a few others have mentioned, there's also plenty of entertainment value in trying to spot places where the 1985 film actually used part of the book. (Apart from the setting in Reno and the occupations of the two main characters, there isn't much overlap between the two.)