Across the Page: Books of Discovery

In many ways, all three of this month's books are about discovery: Passing for Black, Linda Villarosa's debut novel about a young woman coming out; Live Through This, an anthology of stories about the precarious relationship between creativity and self-destruction, edited by Sabrina Chapadjiev; and According to Her Contours, lesbian poet Nancy Boutilier's first collection of poetry, published in 1992.

Passing for Black by Linda Villarosa (Dafina Books)

Linda Villarosa's compelling debut novel, Passing for Black, begins with an epigraph from Nella Larsen: "She wished to find out about this hazardous business of 'passing,' this breaking away from all that was familiar and friendly to take one's chances in another environment, not entirely strange, perhaps, but not entirely friendly."

In Passing for Black, Angela Wright is on the brink of discovery. By the looks of it, life couldn't be better — she is engaged to Keith, a professor of African-American history, is relatively close with her family, and has a successful career as a journalist. According to her shrewd best friend, Mae, she couldn't ask for more.

Angela agrees with Mae's assessment, but beneath the surface she struggles with very real insecurities and questions about her life, including her sexuality ("I am not gay-lesbian-bisexual questioning. I am a straight heterosexual American") and issues of race ("Though I had been 'black born black' for almost thirty years, every day I wrestled with the tyranny of striving for authenticity").

Though Angela has spent years working through these questions, it is not until she meets Cait, a white woman and a professor of queer studies at the same university where Keith teaches, that she is forced to try to find some answers.

Passing for Black is filled with realistically flawed characters who either interfere with or contribute to Angela's growth. Angela's mother is able to fight for the rights of African-American transgender men and women, but is unable to see her own daughter's need for an advocate. Likewise, Cait is so blinded by her own struggle for equal rights that she fails to recognize her own prejudices.

Villarosa does not shy away from controversy, and Passing for Black takes an honest look at the concept of "passing" within both the queer and African-American communities — the internal and external influences that make people feel like they need to or should pass, and the impact that this has on the spirit.

Author Linda Villarosa

Passing for Black is a rich exploration of Angela's journey and, ultimately, how she is able to determine her identity for herself — not merely as a reaction to or against the people in her life. It is an engaging, sexy and thought-provoking read.