Passing Strange by Ellen Klages is a remarkably restful piece of quiet fantasy that I can’t recommend enough. Set in the queer quarters of 1940 San Francisco, we follow the budding romance between two women: an artist for the pulps and a singer newly arrived trying to find a place to belong. That’s it. And that’s enough. Events ramble from clubs to the World’s Fair to quiet nights in such a smoothly detailed way that it feels more like experiencing the book than reading it. There’s magic here, but it exists in the corners without unnecessary explanation. It matters less than the characters, the world and the culture that’s slipped through the cracks. Read this!
–Chris Blakeley, Seattle, WA
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