As we are in the same week as Coming Out Day, I figured it would be great timing to mention that my friend Jimmy and I have formed an LGBT-themed book club for Jacksonville. We are… The Reading Rainbows! Credit for the name goes to Jimmy and Nash. Look up “Reading Rainbows” on Facebook.
I have been thinking about an LGBT-themed book club for a while. A few years ago, I went through a bout of apathy and thought I could be happier anywhere but Jacksonville. I started looking at cities on my bucket list, and found that one of the things they all had in common was a variety of opportunities for the LGBT community. There are certain things that will be tougher to change, but I could feasibly bring some of the aspects of those other cities to Jacksonville. And one of the things I liked in those cities were that they had several options for LGBT-identified people who didn’t like going to bars or clubs. They had gay coffee shops, bookstores, community centers and… LGBT-themed reading groups.
As Jacksonville’s gay community has grown, many of those things are starting here, too. Inspired by the efforts of others here, I thought the time was right to suggest the book club and see if there would be any interest. There has been, and I’m hoping to generate more. If you know of anyone in Jacksonville who might be interested in something like this, let them know and have them contact me. The more the merrier. This is an open group. Look up “Reading Rainbows” on Facebook.
Our first book is Alan Downs’ “The Velvet Rage: Overcoming the Pain of Growing Up Gay in a Straight Man’s World.” On an episode of Oprah after the book came out, Downs defined velvet rage as “the anger that develops inside when you have something inside yourself that you have to hide: a core secret.”
From the beginning of the book:
“…We have among the highest rates of depression and suicide, not to mention sexually transmitted diseases. As a group, we tend to be more emotionally expressive than other men, and yet our relationships are far shorter on average than those of straight men. We have more expendable income, more expensive houses, more fashionable cars, clothes, furniture than just about any other cultural group. But are we truly happier?”
This is a book that was recommended by other gay book clubs. We’ll be discussing this Saturday, Nov. 6. For more information, look us up on Facebook, send me an e-mail or leave a comment.