Lesbian Images in Young Adult Fiction

By Terry Bullen

Almost every public library has a separate section marked "teens" or "young adults." The "YA" department, as it is commonly called, has been created to fill the gap between the children's room and the adult collection. It is designed for persons usually between the ages of 12 and 16, that often turbulent period we call adolescence.

As a YA librarian, I review hundreds of new books each month to decide on what to purchase. Recently, a book crossed my desk dealing with a lesbian love affair. Although we have a great deal of non-fiction material on homosexuality, it is refreshing to find a novel on this topic. I proceeded to investigate further to see what our collection had in terms of lesbian fiction for the YA reader.

I found six titles-six titles in a library system that has thousands of YA fiction books on its shelves. Well, six is better than none, I thought, and proceeded to read them. The following summaries will give you an idea of what authors today are saying to the YA reader about lesbians and lesbianism. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but is probably typical in quantity and quality of what can be found in other public libraries.

Breaking Up, Norma Klein, 1981.

Norma Klein, a self-professed feminist, usually writes for the pre-teen group but has a couple of adult novels to her credit. This story is about a 15-year-old girl and her 18-year-old brother. Their parents are divorced, and they live with their mother in New York. While visiting their father in California, he informs them he is suing for custody because he does not like the mother's relationship with a woman friend. The mother is a lesbian. Although the author gives few details about their relationship, it is clear that it has been going on for some time.

The daughter confronts her mother, who explains that it is true. Confused by this discovery, the daughter decides she needs time to think it over. Her brother's attitude is commendable; he tells her he has known their mother is a lesbian for a long time, but decided it was their mother's business.

The conclusion of the story is heartening. The daughter tells her father she intends to stay with her mother because she is happy and she knows her mother is happier than she has ever been. There are no recriminations, no guilt, no hysteria, no homophobia (except on the father's part) and no loss of love between daughter and mother. Certainly this is not a major work about lesbianism, but it is a good start.

Call Me Margo, Judith St. George, 1981.

Judith St. George is a noted children's author. The protagonist of the story is 15-year-old Margo, who is suffering the loneliness of attending a new, all-girl private school. Her one outstanding talent is tennis, so she joins the tennis team. The other girls treat her coldly. Only the tennis coach befriends her, which makes her teammates, and one girl in particular, jealous.

When Margo's roommate walks in on her being consoled by the coach, she is informed that "everyone knows the coach is a lesbian." For fear of peer disapproval, Margo decides to terminate her friendship with the only person who has shown her any warmth. The coach responds to Margo's rejection by telling her not to worry-although she had initially considered a "relationship" between them, she had rejected the idea.

Hearing a 30-year-old woman talk about having an affair with a 15-year-old kid smacks of the stereotype

of gay teacher seduction to me. But even more objectionable is the overriding message that lesbians are not people to have as, friends.

Crush, Jane Futcher, 1981.

This story is also set in an all-girl private school. Jinx is a senior who develops an obsessive crush on the more sexually mature and sophisticated Lexie (note the choice of name). Lexie drops hints about lesbian relationships and entices Jinx to bed, where they share a few furtive embraces. In turn, Jinx writes Lexie love letters and wonders briefly about being homosexual. She dismisses the idea as ridiculous, but unfortunately her love letters wind up in the hands of the headmaster. Lexie, it turns out, is the one who turned them in. Jinx gets expelled, but not Lexie, for she proclaims her innocence and denies all feelings for Jinx.

Again, the reader is left with the negative image of lesbians as deceitful and unreliable friends. Come Out Smiling, Elizabeth Levy, 1981.

Unfortunately, the book does not reflect the title. Jenny, age 14, is in her last stay at summer camp. For years, she has had a "crush" on the riding counselor, Peggy. This year Peggy has an assistant, Ann. One morning, Jenny sees Peggy and Ann kissing and concludes they are lesbians. She is shocked, and decides she no longer likes Peggy, based totally, it appears, on Peggy's lesbianism.

When Jenny's parents come to visit, her father, an obnoxious character, exclaims, after seeing Peggy and Ann for only a moment, "Those two are dykes. I can always tell." He then proceeds to tell Jenny the famous Polish lesbian joke (they "fuck" men). The

A.a

book ends with a little prayer to Sacajawea, for whom the camp is named, in which Jenny entreats, "Please don't make me a lesbian.” (Just a note of interest: the camp is run by a 70-year-old woman with the help of her "friend," the camp nurse, also in her 70's.)

Happy Endings Are All Alike, Sandra Scoppettone, 1978.

Although five years old, this book is still popular. Scoppettone has received many Notable Book Awards for her YA books and has a large following, She is a professed lesbian.

The setting is a small town, where Jaret and Peggy, both 17, fall in love. Jaret talks openly with her mother about her affair. Her mother is portrayed as understanding and sympathetic, the consciousnessraised woman. Peggy's mother is dead, so she lives with her sister who, in contrast, is jealous of Peggy's attractiveness and thinks her relationship with Jaret is perverted.

A deranged, psychotic 15-year-old boy who wants to date Jaret follows her and Peggy to the woods and watches them make love. He later catches Jaret alone in the woods and rapes her in one of the most violent and brutal rape scenes I have ever read. Jaret exposes him to her parents. He is arrested, but the town cop implies that a trial will be very unpleasant because the town can't handle lesbianism (but it can handle rape?). Jaret's parents are very supportive, but Peggy leaves her, afraid of exposure herself, and sees a psychiatrist. The story ends before the trial date. Peggy returns to Jaret, proclaiming her love and her desire to stick it out.

Unlike the previous selections, Jaret is portrayed as a strong person, sure of herself, secure in her lesbianism. Also, it is refreshing to see supportive parents and an optimistic outlook for Jaret's and Peggy's relationship. It was disturbing, however, to see the apparent link between Jaret's lesbianism and rape, and the lack of resolution in the rape incident. Is Scoppettone telling us that lesbianism is evil so that evil things can be expected to happen? And if she isn't connecting the two, then why the rape scene at all, especially when the rapist is never brought to trial?

Annie on My Mind, Nancy Garden, 1982.

This is the book which precipitated my search for other YA lesbian fiction. Garden is a noted children's author. This is a love story in every sense of the word. The two women are 17 years old. Liza (again note the name) and Annie meet in an art museum. Their attraction is fierce and mutual, and the reader is quickly swept up in their growing recognition that this is more than just a friendship. The writing is excellent and the relationship handled with sensitivity. The scenes between the two women, as they slowly and hesitantly reveal their feelings, can appeal to readers regardless of their age.

Eventually their relationship is discovered. Befriended by two teachers in Liza's school, who we learn are also lesbians, Liza and Annie use their apartment while they are out of town. A secretary to the principal comes looking for Liza and is outraged to find them together, partially unclad. Liza suffers parental disapproval, endures a disciplinary hearing at her school, and sees her two teachers dismissed. Liza and Annie drift apart and go to different colleges, but are reunited in the end.

Despite the overall quality of this book, I did find fault with minor characterizations. The secretary is portrayed as a very uptight, spinsterish woman. And why would two teachers who have taught in a school for fifteen years accept being fired so easily? Liza's parents are treated superficially, and I never really know what they think. Overall, however, it is nice to see such strong portrayals of the two women and their feelings for each other. This book has recently been nominated for an American Library Association Notable Book Award for 1982.

My survey clearly indicates that there isn't a lot of lesbian fiction for the YA reader. Much of the little there is gives negative and stereotypical messages about lesbians and lesbianism reminiscent of the literature of twenty years ago.

It appears that lesbian-feminist writers have ignored an entire population of readers (or perhaps the publishers have ignored an entire population of writers). Only one of the six authors is an open lesbian, and overall the writing betrays a glaring lack of feminist consciousness. This is particularly tragic when one considers that YA readers are at a very vulnerable and impressionable stage of growth, with questions about sexuality paramount in their minds..

January-February, 1983/What She Wants/Page 11

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