Family Dancing Author:David Leavitt One of the most highly praised short-story collections ever published, David Leavitt's 1985 debut, Family Dancing, launched his career with great fanfare. A finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the PEN/Faulkner Award, the book was widely celebrated for its nine masterfully crafted stories about contemporary families confro... more »nting real-life conflicts, bartering for love and understanding in often startling but recognizable scenarios.
These are families in which parents get divorced, mothers are members of the Coalition of Parents of Lesbians and Gays, sons bring home their gay lovers, and daughters believe they are aliens sent to observe the weird ways of their Earthling households. For example, in the title story a gayson's graduation party turns into a frenzy of oddly painful and tender emotions when old jealousies are aired, and a ritual dance of acceptance ensues.« less