[stylist] thank you all plus clarification

[Bridgit Kuenning-Pollpeter]

Vejas,

Most people, up until very recently, did deny being gay, even to themselves,
but especially during the Victorian era. Queen Victoria very famously said
there was no such thing as a lesbian, and pretty much world-wide, it was
technically illegal to quote on quote be gay. However, some people hid it as
best as they could while engaging in homosexual activity (sorry if I'm
saying this wrong) while others did in deed bok at the rules and lived
openly gay. Does the author actually state her friend was gay, that she told
the author she was gay? Or is it something the author assumed? Love can
exist on many levels, and to tell a best friend they love them is not a mark
of homosexuality. I also have not read the book, so I'm speculating here.

You critique nonfiction pretty much the same way you critique fiction.
Address stylistic choices like point of view, voice, structure-- does the
author use a lyrical voice? Do they rely on scenic development? Or do they
report scenes and stick to an internal dialogue? What kind of diction to
they use? Style kind of encompasses everything about the writing. And as I
said later, try to find direct quotes from the book to help illustrate your
points.

Sorry if this is not clear as I'm writing at 2 in the morning while trying
to finish packing for a trip, grin.

Happy Easter, whatever that means to people, smile.

Bridgit

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Vejas
Vasiliauskas via stylist
Sent: Thursday, April 02, 2015 2:29 PM
To: stylist at nfbnet.org
Subject: [stylist] thank you all plus clarification

Hi All,
Thank so much for these of you who read this book review and comwithed.  To
answer a few questions:
Yes, the site source is in MLA format.
The reason I thought it was strange about the girl who was gay in Victorian
England being so open was because I thought most people always hid it and
always played happy families by being in a heterosexual relationship.  Thank
you so much for educating me on this, Bridgit; I'll probably just get rid of
this part.
Yes, I agree that it can't really be her fault about the cultural aspect
because she mostly grew up in America and in an English community in
Portugal, so this is what she knows.  I guess writing about that in the
review makes it unfair.  It would be like if I wanted a chicken sandwich but
went to In and Out and judged it for not having the sandwiches.
Could I just ask what you mean by "style?" What about her writing should I
be commenting on exactly? I know that in fiction books you can criticise the
plot but you can't do that with memoirs.
Thanks,
Vejas

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