''Strange Brother'' is a

gay novel Gay literature is a collective term for literature produced by or for the gay community which involves fictional character, characters, Plot (narrative), plot lines, and/or themes portraying male homosexual behavior. Overview and history Becaus ...

written by

Blair Niles Blair Niles (née Mary Blair Rice, 1880–1959) was an American novelist and travel writer. She was a founding member of the Society of Woman Geographers. Early life and expeditions Born Mary Blair Rice, Blair was born on ''The Oaks,'' her pa ...

published in 1931. The story is about a platonic relationship between a heterosexual woman and a gay man and takes place in New York City in the late 1920s and early 1930s. ''Strange Brother'' provides an early and objective documentation of

homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

issues during the

Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the t ...

Plot summary

Mark Thornton, the story's protagonist, moves to New York City in hopes of feeling like less of an outsider. At a nightclub in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

he meets and befriends June Westbrook. One night they witness a man named Nelly being arrested. June encourages Mark to investigate. This leads Mark to attend Nelly's trial, where he is found guilty and sentenced to six months' imprisonment on

Welfare Island Roosevelt Island is an island in New York City's East River, within the borough of Manhattan. It lies between Manhattan Island to the west, and the borough of Queens, on Long Island, to the east. Running from the equivalent of East 46th to 85 ...

for his feminine affections and gestures. Next Mark researches the

crimes against nature The crime against nature or unnatural act has historically been a legal term in English-speaking states identifying forms of sexual behavior not considered natural or decent and are legally punishable offenses. Sexual practices that have histor ...

sections of the penal code. Shaken up by his findings and the events, Mark confesses his own homosexuality to June. Mark and June's friendship continues to grow, and June introduces Mark to a number of friends in her social circle. Various social interactions ensue including a dinner party for a departing professor, a trip to a nightspot featuring a singer called Glory who sings Creole Love Call and attending a drag ball. Despite reading

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among t ...

's poetry collection '' Leaves of Grass'',

Edward Carpenter Edward Carpenter (29 August 1844 – 28 June 1929) was an English utopian socialist, poet, philosopher, anthologist, an early activist for gay rightsWarren Allen Smith: ''Who's Who in Hell, A Handbook and International Directory for Human ...

's series of papers ''Love's Coming of Age'', and

Countee Cullen Countee Cullen (born Countee LeRoy Porter; May 30, 1903 – January 9, 1946) was an American poet, novelist, children's writer, and playwright, particularly well known during the Harlem Renaissance. Early life Childhood Countee LeRoy Porter ...

's poetry, Mark is afraid to

come out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

. Subsequently, Mark is threatened with being outed at work. In response to this threat, Mark commits suicide by shooting himself.

Characters

Tom Burden: An older gay man and platonic friend who urges Mark to develop his drawing talents. Tom leads Mark to realize his homosexuality before he himself travels abroad. Philip Crane (Phil): A handsome, muscular and heterosexual man who studies

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

entomology Entomology () is the science, scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such ...

. Phil is Jane's cousin and companion on whom Mark has a secret crush. Palmer Fleming: June's ex-husband whom she witnesses dancing with a scantily clad young man at a Drag Ball. Harold Grant (Nelly): A 21-year-old, outwardly effeminate African American man and drag queen whose arrest concerns June and Mark. Irwin Hesse: A professor who is a Jewish man from

continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...

. Dr. Hesse experiments with sex differences in animals, focusing on the

endocrine system The endocrine system is a messenger system comprising feedback loops of the hormones released by internal glands of an organism directly into the circulatory system, regulating distant target organs. In vertebrates, the hypothalamus is the neu ...

, polymorphism, and gynandromorphism. Dr. Hesse asserts that sex differences are chemical and " abnormals" make up 2–3% of the general population. Lilly-Marie: A friend of Mark's who is a gay ex-convict. Peggy: A young woman who has a romantic interest in Mark, but marries Phil. Quinn: An older Irish man who is the janitor at Mark's settlement house. Rico: A Sicilian boy and fruit vendor whose stand is outside Mark's settlement house. Evan Rysdale: An artist whom June befriends while summering at Ogunquit, Maine. Glory: A Harlem nightclub singer. Mark Thornton: The protagonist of the story, Mark is a 22-year-old

Midwestern The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

man who has traveled to New York City. He is not outwardly effeminate and teaches drawing at a local settlement house. Seth Vaughn: A young man and distinguished author and lecturer who does not return June Westbrook's affections. June Westbrook: June is a young heterosexual

divorcée Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

who works as a newspaper columnist. She is a central character in the story, being Mark's closest friend. It has been suggested that the Harlem nightclub entertainer in the novel named Glory is based upon the jazz singer

Adelaide Hall Adelaide Louise Hall (20 October 1901 – 7 November 1993) was an American-born UK-based jazz singer and entertainer. Her long career spanned more than 70 years from 1921 until her death and she was a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance. Hal ...

who introduced the song " Creole Love Call" in 1927, but this is probably unlikely as

and

Beatrice Lillie Beatrice Gladys Lillie, Lady Peel (29 May 1894 – 20 January 1989), known as Bea Lillie, was a Canadian-born British actress, singer and comedic performer. She began to perform as a child with her mother and sister. She made her West End debu ...

are the only contemporary entertainers of the time mentioned in the text. This happens when Hall and Lillie are rumoured to be at the Drag Ball.

Lost Gay Novels ''Lost Gay Novels'' is a 2003 reference guide written by Anthony Slide that provides commentary on 50 works of gay literature published between 1900 and 1950 that Slide found to be not well-known by late 20th and early 21st-century audiences. ...

: A Reference Guide to Fifty Works from the First Half of the Century by Anthony Slide – Chapter 36, Strange Brother: https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=So8EIVtTFyYC&pg=PT190&lpg=PT190&dq=blair+niles+adelaide+hall&source=bl&ots=ReZehv9gUJ&sig=Xy_744hnN9_S-ko7BdTDHD9S0Ds&hl=en&sa=X&ei=mPGuVIeFJo7U7AaUmICoBQ&ved=0CCUQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=blair%20niles%20adelaide%20hall&f=false

Publication history

''Strange Brother'' has been reprinted a number of times since its initial 1931 Liveright publication in New York, as follows: *

Thomas Werner Laurie Thomas Werner Laurie (1866–1944) was a London publisher of books that were avant-garde in some cases, racy in others. Early life Laurie was born in Edinburgh. His father was a Scot and his mother a German. Career He founded his T. Werner Laur ...

, 1931 (British publication) * Harris Publishing Company, 1949 * Avon Books, 1952 * Arno Press, 1975 *

Gay Men's Press Gay Men's Press was a publisher of books based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1979, the imprint was run until 2000 by its founders, then until 2006 by Millivres Prowler. Overview Launched in 1979 by Aubrey Walter, David Fernbach, and Rich ...

, 1991 * Ayer Company Publishers, 2002

Literary significance and criticism

''Strange Brother'' received mixed reviews upon its publication. Reviewers were not offended by the homosexual theme and noted the situations in the novel were portrayed with tolerance and sympathy rather than approval. The novel was praised for being interesting and informative, but did not receive praise for its execution as an engaging novel that comes to life.

Critical commentary

Henry Gerber, a gay critic wrote in 1934, " 'Strange Brother'' isan ideal anti-homosexual propaganda." Ian Young numbers it among a group of early gay novels that is "cast in the form of a tragic melodrama." George-Michel Sarotte notes the sympathetic nature of the book, but also points out that it "is more of a psychosociological investigation than a novel." He goes on to credit Blair Niles for being one of the first authors to portray a continuum of sexuality, and for promoting tolerance and compassion." According to editor and author

Anthony Slide Anthony Slide (born 7 November 1944) is an English writer who has produced more than seventy books and edited a further 150 on the history of popular entertainment. He wrote a "letter from Hollywood" for the British ''Film Review'' magazine from ...

, ''Strange Brother'' illustrates the "basic assumption that gay characters in literature must come to a tragic end."

Journalistic focus

The book has been praised for its journalistic focus. Ben Duncan's perspective was published in the January 25, 1979 issue of the ''

Gay News ''Gay News'' was a fortnightly newspaper in the United Kingdom founded in June 1972 in a collaboration between former members of the Gay Liberation Front and members of the Campaign for Homosexual Equality (CHE). At the newspaper's height, circul ...

'' newspaper, "The book remains and is welcome now, as a monument of good reporting."

Susan Stryker Susan O'Neal Stryker (born 1961) is an American professor, historian, author, filmmaker, and theorist whose work focuses on gender and human sexuality. She is a professor of Gender and Women's Studies, former director of the Institute for LGBT Stu ...

, a scholar, notes that " lair Nilestreats Manhattan's homosexual subculture much the same way she does any other exotic locale." Again, Slide notes that Niles'

anthropological Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...

approach to documenting homosexuality as well as the

Negro In the English language, ''negro'' is a term historically used to denote persons considered to be of Black African heritage. The word ''negro'' means the color black in both Spanish and in Portuguese, where English took it from. The term can be ...

in ''Strange Brother'' "is fascinating to a modern readership." George-Michel Sarotte calls the work a thorough study of a variety of homosexuals, showcasing both whites and blacks, and a range of homosexual life styles from transvestite to the "well-adjusted male". The homosexual's legal, and societal relationships both in large cities and small towns are covered. Additionally the psychological history from childhood to adulthood is canvassed, including commitments, identifying with homosexual literature, guilt, solitude, sadness, blackmail and suicide.

References

; Notes ; Bibliography * * * * * * * * * {{refend 1931 American novels 1930s LGBT novels Novels with gay themes American LGBT novels Novels set in New York City