Bisexuality

by Angela Bowie

Pocket Essentials is a dynamic series of books that are concise, lively, and easy to read. Packed with facts as well as expert opinions, each book has all the key information you need to know about such popular topics as film, television, cult fiction, history, and more. At the end of the 20th century, popular role models were profiting from the term bisexual, such as Madonna, David Bowie, Mick Jagger, and Anne Heche. But what is bisexuality? This book highlights civilizations where bisexuality flourished—Queen Nzinga of Africa dressed as a warrior in battle, and the Ancient Greeks practised bisexuality—and where it did not—the Conquistadors turned their dogs on the bisexual Incas. There are biographies, showcasing the lives and loves of famous bisexuals like Alexander the Great, Sappho, Casanova, Marquis de Sade, Oscar Wilde, and Virginia Woolf. There is also an examination of bisexuality in film, including the bisexual escapades of actors and writers.

Genres: Nonfiction, Queer, LGBT

96 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2002

About the author

Angela Bowie (born Mary Angela Barnett in 1949 in Cyprus) is an American citizen who has been a covergirl, model, actress, musician, groupie and, most recently, a best-selling author.

Reviews

[T. Smith]

With one of the biggest Pride Weekends upon us, I decided to bone up on my LGBT reading. A natural place to start was with the King and Queen of Bisexuality: Angie and David Bowie! I was surprised to find this to be a very tame little primer of people who were openly bisexual or thought to be bisexual throughout history, not the bisexuality guide or handbook that I was expecting. I think the title should be changed to reflect that. It is a teeny tiny paperback that you can read in 5 minutes. The thing that stood out the most to me is that Angela Bowie (David Bowie's ex-wife) dedicated her "Bisexuality Pocket Essential" book to April Sandmeyer. That seems like a story in itself. Does anyone know why?

[Sam]

I just finished reading this. I had a friend come out a few months ago and I wanted to understand a little more and this helped. It’s quite short but gives interesting backgrounds and histories of famous people.

[Jessica]

Kind of messy, but gave me a big list of movies to watch.

[Melissa Helton]

Since this was published in 2002, and there has been a gender revolution and a redefinition of bisexuality (from "attracted to men and also to women" to "attracted to their own gender and also to other genders"), this book is in need of revision, or needs processed with the understanding that intersex people and non-binary gender identities are not part of the discussion, and the presentation of bisexuality is in a problematic, binary way. Ironically, the language itself can foster bi-erasure when it says a person had a "gay" relationship, etc.. No bi+ person can have a gay relationship because our orientation isn't defined by our partners' genders, and we are bisexual+ in all our relationships.

After that disclaimer, I will say it was interesting to read about historic figures who have been proven or assumed to be bisexual+. Some of the little bios focused mainly on career or life story and very little on the discussion or proof of their orientation so much that after reading several of them I thought we needed more proof to actually put this person on the list. Additionally, the list is pretty sparse after mid 1980s, and there are surprisingly few modern celebrities and public figures being discussed.

If a reader wants an up-to-date discussion of bisexuality+ and historical people who are, I recommend looking elsewhere.

[Sarah]

a strange fever dream that I think is some sort of 2002 time capsule. It taught me something, it horrified me, I loved it, 1 star.

[Winnie]

1.9/5

The author begins by literally getting wrong the definition of the title word: for some reason she equates bisexuality with gender-non-conformity and then the whole thing just goes to hell after that, how couldn't it.

Some interesting trivia factoids, I guess, but come on!