By Jan Wahl—
Every neighborhood should have a bookstore or a library within easy reach. In college, I lived at Castro and 22nd and would hang out at A Different Light bookstore down the street. It’s now Fabulosa Books, and it is still very cool.
Owner Alvin Orloff makes sure it is well-stocked with queer memoirs, obscure literary gems, books for kids, coffee table art books, and more. Since I am a book nerd, I was thrilled to talk to the Assistant General Manager, Dylan Lalanne-Perkins. She started by telling me about a runaway hit at the bookstore: a gay hockey romance called Heated Rivalry (which inspired the HBO Max series) by Rachel Reid. It’s part of a series of books combining sports and romance. Dylan said that gays, lesbians, and allies enjoy this series equally. Another popular choice is Deep House: The Gayest Love Story Ever Told, a memoir of gay music and marriage history by Jeremy Atherton Lin.
I asked Dylan about one of my favorite authors, Oscar Wilde, and was excited to learn that there is a new biography called After Oscar: The Legacy of a Scandal by Merlin Holland. I will be ordering that from their online service (https://www.fabulosabooks.com/) or by calling them (415-658-7015).
I love to buy books as gifts, including coffee table art books. Since I’ve been trying to get the Rainbow Honor Walk to highlight two amazing women who lived as out-of-the-closet lesbians, I asked about classic Hollywood director Dorothy Arzner and the diaries of Anne Lister, often called the first modern lesbian. It’s wonderful to have a resource such as Fabulosa Books, and they have a book club that meets every week, too!
Right now, I am joyfully digging into a book about Madeline Kahn—Madeline Kahn: Being the Music, A Life—by William V. Madison. This detailed biography answers my big question: What was Madeline thinking when she did the “I’m Tired” musical number from Blazing Saddles? At the same time, I’m reading City of Dreams: The Making and Remaking of Universal Pictures by Bernard F. Dick. Like I said, I’m a real book nerd.
One of my favorites is the Hollywood Scandal Almanac: 12 Months of Sinister, Salacious, and Senseless History by Jerry Roberts. From Bugsy Siegel’s killing to Tyrone Power’s on-set duel that killed him, every day brings some new crazy Hollywood story. Once in a while, I veer into the cold winds of Alaska and study the Gold Rush, if it’s juicy enough for me. Right now, I’ve got Klondike Fever: The Life and Death of the Last Great Gold Rush by Pierre Berton. My favorite look at this period is Lael Morgan’s Good Time Girls of Alaska.
Books open the world to all of us. How else could I go back to the 1800s and shake hands with Anne Lister, get to know the great Oscar Wilde, or understand how a major movie studio works? Books give it all to us.
Jan Wahl is a Hollywood historian and film critic on various broadcast outlets. She has two Emmys and many awards for her longtime work on behalf of film buffs and the LGBTQ community.
Off the Wahl
Published on July 17, 2026
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