Out from Under: Sober Dykes and Our Friends

by Jean Swallow (Editor)

Book by

Genres: Queer, Nonfiction, Lesbian, LGBT

239 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1983

Reviews

[Genesee Rickel]

Picked this up for a book club read and never got around to starting it.

[Brigid · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had been slowly making my way through this anthology for...apparently about a year and a half. I was really savoring it, and I'm glad I did! I feel very held across space and time, which is probably the most woo-woo thing I've ever said.

There's a lot of wisdom in here, and a lot of hope. Most of the selections are memoir-style, but there are a few that are short fiction, poetry, or stream-of-consciousness. There's also a section in the middle specifically about codependency if that's up your alley. It feels very 80s but is still pretty relevant.

One thing I really love about this anthology is that each contributing author was asked to write a brief paragraph on what their lesbian community would look like if it were clean and sober. This sounds sort of cheesy, I know. But in my opinion, most of these "what-if" paragraphs were thoughtful and well-written and not cheesy. It's really interesting to compare the authors' visions for the future with my own circle of friends (largely composed of sober queer women).

Anyway I just really love and value this book! Happy Pride!

[Valeria Luna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book quickly became something special to me. I felt a sense of kinship reading the personal essays of such strong, resilient queer women who pulled themselves out of addiction. The section of interviews detailing the sociopolitical overlap with sobriety was also neat.

[Jonah · Rating 5 out of 5]

💜💜💜

[Claire Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is what Bill wishes he had.

[Laurah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I dig Jean Swallow's fiction and I loved the idea of this book. Jean very obviously put an incredible amount of work and love into this project. The submissions were powerful and all of the writing was great.

[Roni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book may have helped save my life. Words can't fully explain the feeling of warmth and comfort I get when I crack open any page of this book and read lesbian alcoholics/addicts in recovery retelling their struggles in and before sobriety. What a gift, and still just as relevant and helpful today.