The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name: Short Stories

Book Overview

2018 DBW Awards Winner – Best Book Short Stories
2018 DBW Awards Finalist – Best Book Social Issues
2018 IAN Book Of The Year Awards Winner – Outstanding Fiction LGBTQ
Killer Nashville 2018 Silver Falchion Award – Finalist – Best Short Story
2018 Global Ebook Awards Silver Medal Winner – Fiction – Gay/Lesbian/LGBT category
2018 Purple Dragonfly Book Awards – 2nd Place Winner – LGBT (E-Book)
2018 Purple Dragonfly Book Awards – Honorable Mention – Family Matters (E-Book)
2018 Montaigne Medal Finalist (Eric Hoffer Book Award)
2018 Shelf Unbound Competition for Best Independently Published Book – Notable Indie
2018 Independent Press Award – Distinguished favorite in LGBTQ Fiction
2018 San Francisco Book Festival – Winner in category Gay
2018 International Book Awards – Finalist in Fiction – LGBTQ category
2018 Book Excellence Award – Finalist in LGBTQ Fiction
2018 American Fiction Award – Finalist in LGBTQ
2018 Book Viral Millennium Book Awards – Long listed
2017 The Wishing Shelf Book Awards – Red Ribbon Winner
2018 North Street Prize – Semi-Finalist

About the book

The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name by Fiza Pathan is a collection of twenty-one original short stories, each centered on some aspect of the social, cultural, psychological, and emotional issues facing the LGBTQIA community in the world today. False prejudice has blighted much of society’s sensitivity to what is necessarily a human rights issue. Ignorance has compounded it. What if you, as a parent or a family member, are faced with this “coming out” issue? Are you aware what each term in this acronym LGBTQIA really means? Are you aware of the emotional and psychological damage you do to your loved one when you fail to understand, or worse, reject his or her perspective of love, sex, and acceptance?

Understanding the implications of the above, the author, after months of research, has crafted these stories based on actual conditions existing in different countries of the world. You will meet Rocky in “(A)sexual Story,” the psychiatrist Dr. Timothy in “Fix It,” and Jasmine and Randy in “Human Work of Art.” You will learn about DSD—Dysfunction Sexual Disorder in “Isher,” why Bangkok is called the “Kathoey Paradise,” shudder at the public repression of gays by ISIS in Raqqa and the dichotomy that exists in Iran. You will revel at the miracle you witness in “Topanga,” cry for Sameera in “The Girl’s Bathroom,” and become educated by “The Gay Truth.”

And in all these stories and many more you will learn that every human being suffers like you do and rejoices as you do and deserves the right to choose how he or she should live their life, however different we perceive them to be.

Reviews

“Not only fascinating, but a very important book with a very important message. A Red Ribbon winner and highly recommended.” —The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
“The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name . . . examines the diversity of global LGBTQ communities and their common challenges . . . [This]incredibly varied collection of 21 stories covers the gamut of LGBTQ issues and the hurdles individuals face. . . highlights the somewhat lesser-known topics of asexuality and intersex identities . . . tackles one of the most volatile topics for not just LGBTQ communities, but also the entire world . . . This volume’s exhaustive approach to elevating queer issues remains commendable.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Each story in The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name resounds a call for the cultural acceptance of LGBTQ+ people . . . A tender and enlightening collection of stories focused on modern sexuality and related through a diverse cast of characters.”—Foreword Clarion Reviews
“THE LOVE THAT DARE NOT SPEAK ITS NAME is, at its core, a series of loving arguments, making a case for the acceptance and support of people as human beings, whatever their sexual orientation or gender identity.”—IndieReader
“Pathan’s stories are notable for their sympathetic characters and strong message of tolerance.”—Blue Ink Review
“A sublime collection of short stories that tug at your heartstrings Fiza Pathan delivers an exquisite work of literature. . . . powerful and poignant.”—Book Viral
“Hopefully, it is books like these that will ultimately enable true recognition and acceptance of this much alienated and shunned community, and eventually enable them to get to a place where being LGBTQIA is regarded just as normal and ordinary as being heterosexual or anything else in the world today. This is a must-read book!”—Readers’ Favorite
“Each story in this collection is cleverly constructed to force the reader to think about LGBTQ issues from a different perspective. The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name by Fiza Pathan is a powerful book that everyone should read, regardless of what community they identify with.”—Authors Talk About It
“In The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name, Pathan expertly writes of suppression and love on such a deep level the reader may feel they are learning about her own life. The intimacy of language pulls the reader in page by page, diving in to 21 emotionally rich stories bringing to life social hardships the LGBT community face every day. . . . The Love That Dare Not Speak its Name is not only for people struggling with their sexuality but people old and young that can easily connect to each and every story.”—Killer Nashville 2018 Silver Falchion Award Nominee Review