June is LGBT Pride Month! It was first officially recognized by President Bill Clinton in 1999, the month of June was chosen to commemorate the Stonewall Riots, a pivotal moment in American LGBT History.
This month we would like to highlight the life and works of Bertha Harris. Bertha Harris was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina in 1936. She studied at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and moved to New York City in the 1960s, but her work has often been inspired by her experiences in the South.
Harris’ writing is defined by her inventive and experimental narrative styles. Her first novel, Catching Saradove, is the most rooted in convention. The novel is set in New York City and North Carolina, and is semi-autobiographical, exploring the themes of feminism and other social movements that permeated the 1960s. Her most ambitious work, however, is considered to be the novel Lover. Lover is a postmodernist work that rejects narrative for an experimental style. It has themes of radical lesbian philosophy and features characters both fictional and historical.
Those interested in lesbian and feminist fiction will find her works revealing and engaging. She is very highly regarded by critics and her work resonates with contemporary and modern feminists alike. Harris died in 2005, at the time she had been working on her fourth novel, a comedy entitled Mi Contra Fa. Although this novel was unfortunately never published, you can find Harris’ other works at your local bookstore or library. Celebrate Pride Month by supporting the work of local LGBT authors, and learning about their experiences through their writing.
