Vulgarian Rhapsody, Alvin Orloff
Vulgarian Rhapsody, Alvin Orloff
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

Vulgarian Rhapsody

Author: Alvin Orloff

Narrator: Shawn K. Jain

Unabridged: 4 hr 39 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 02/20/2024

Categories: Fiction, Lgbtq+, Absurdist


Synopsis

Harris, San Francisco's most annoying gay barfly, doesn't mean to be bitchy, passive aggressive, or insulting. But he's so bedazzled by his own critical brilliance he feels morally obliged to share his scathing opinions with the world at any and every opportunity. This irritates no one more than his roommate, Maxine, an avant-garde transsexual cabaret singer. When she overhears him badmouthing her on the phone she flies into a rage and expels him from their apartment. This crisis couldn't come at a worse time. The year is 1999 and the "dot com" boom has rendered cheap housing nonexistent, and Harris, who works as a part-time telemarketer, is—as usual—low on funds. Will he be able to convince one of his eccentric, semi-dysfunctional friends with a rent-controlled apartment to let him move in?

Vulgarian Rhapsody immerses listeners in a fading bohemia of queer dive bars, drag clubs, and countercultural cafes. The book's narrator (a longtime frenemy of Harris who's every bit as snarky and annoying as he is) tells the story with sadistic relish and an ironist's eye for the absurd. Anyone feeling sickly from too many uplifting stories of personal empowerment, precious coming-of-age tales, or sugarcoated romances will find the perfect antidote in this hilariously acidic comedy of manners.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Sam

Delightful, hilarious, yet incredibly incisive and astute. I bought this book within my first hour in San Francisco at Dog Eared Books, only to learn it was written by a local legend and employee of the next bookstore on my list to visit that day, Fabulosa Books. While at first, I found it to be mer......more

Goodreads review by Chazzi

I received this through LibraryThing Early Readers. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the title intrigued me. This is the tale of Harris, a complex person with many facets. He can be seen around town day or night in department stores sampling colognes, high-end haberdasheries critiquing clothing, dive......more

Goodreads review by sammy

3.5/5 fun and funny! an ode to the queer & quaint world of san francisco’s gay bohemia in its dying days; a meditation on bad art, good taste, & class non-struggle that cloaks its melancholy with humor; a quick, bitchy, and delightful read......more

Goodreads review by Michael

Always fun to read about San Francisco, and this captured a history and perspective I haven’t read before - a little bit like Tales of the City, but edgier. Not the strongest writing/plot, but there were some lines that legitimately made me laugh out loud. It sort of feels like this was written as a......more