Our nation’s self-appointed guardian of “traditional values” has a skeleton in her book closet.
“Sisters,” Lynne Cheney’s 1981 novel about feminism in the Old West — complete with condoms, prostitution and lesbian love — is being republished for those who missed it the first time around. Next week, Penguin Group USA will reissue the bodice-ripper, which went out of print 10 years ago and also disappeared from the résumé of its staunch Republican author, who happens to be the wife of VP Dick Cheney.
Breaking the news earlier this week, Publishers Weekly said “Sisters” contains “a mix of standard and unusual pulp romance fare: lots of turgid prose, heaving bosoms, female characters who are proto-feminists and practice safe sex with multiple partners — and a juicy lesbian subplot.” Among those ordering copies is Left Bank Books in St. Louis, which told PW it would donate 10 percent of proceeds to the scholarship fund of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s annual Creating Change Conference. “What better way to foster educational opportunities for the younger generation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people than to raise money through the sale of Lynne’s lost-life chapter?” said Kris Kleindienst, co-owner of Left Bank.
Coincidentally, one year ago today was “Make Fun of the Cheneys Day.” My, how time flies.
