Alta is twenty three years old, and she lives in San Francisco. She’s
only ever had one serious relationship, with Shy, her next door neighbor,
who left town suddenly and with no explanation when Alta was seventeen.
The two girls had been best friends since they were very young, and their
romantic relationship lasted three or four years. Since Shy left, Alta
has made her life in youthful lesbian world of San Francisco — now she
prides herself on being able to get any woman she likes into bed, and then
say goodbye the next morning. Although her own body is unpierced, she does
have tattoos, (the Virgin of Guadalupe on one arm, and Cat Woman on the
other) and she works as a body piercer. She knows the impression she makes
as she rides around the city on her motorcycle. Six years after, she is
over her relationship with Shy, and she is now happy with her life.

Then her mother calls, and tells her that Shy’s mother has been rushed
to hospital and is unconscious — shouldn’t Alta let Shy know what has
happened? Returning to her old home means dredging up many memories for
Alta, and it only gets more complicated when Shy eventually comes back
to town, (pregnant!), to see her dying mother.

Shy’s mother was an unhappy reclusive woman, often drunk, but she was
also extremely kind to Alta after Shy left town. Alta wonders about the life
of the woman dying in the hospital, and starts to ask the two women who
knew the old lady when she was a girl. Eventually, the truth of the past
starts to unfold.

Elizabeth Stark’s novel is a quick, enjoyable read, with a quick pace
and plenty of sensual episodes. It features some of the dyke-life of San
Francisco, with parties, bars, cafes, and of course a tattoo parlor. The
characters are well drawn, and the reader gets a strong sense of the relationship
between Alta and Shy as it was and as it is now. Although this is easily
classified as a “lesbian novel,” it makes no claims to be definitive of
a certain kind of experience; the characters are full enough to stand up
on their own, as people dealing with life. It is more than just the story
of the relationship between Shy and Alta or a depiction of a lesbian community.
It shows how Alta struggles to come to terms with her own past and with
history, and as such, it’s an ambitious and successful work.

© 2001 Christian Perring. First Serial Rights.

Christian Perring,
Ph.D., is Chair of the Philosophy Department at Dowling College,
Long Island. He is editor of Metapsychology Online Review.
His main research is on philosophical issues in psychiatry.
He is especially interested in exploring how philosophers can
play a greater role in public life. He is available to give talks
on many philosophical or controversial issues in mental health.

Categories: Fiction, Sexuality

Tags: Gay, Lesbian and Bisexuality Resources