Qui Miaojin's unapologetically lesbian sensibility has had a profound and lasting influence on LGBTQ literature in Taiwan. @nyrbooks' updated translation of her cult classic, NOTES OF A CROCODILE, beautifully illustrates the importance of this remarkable yet little-known voice in Taiwanese literature. • "Two very different people, mutual attraction. And for what reason? It's hard to believe, this something that exists beyond the imagination of the chess game known as the human condition. It's based on the gender binary, which stems from the duality of yin and yang, or some unspeakable evil. But humanity says it's a biological construct: penis vs. vagina, chest hair vs. breasts, beard vs. long hair. Penis + chest hair + beard = masculine; vagina + breasts + long hair = feminine. Male plugs into female like key into lock, and as a product of that coupling, babies get punched out. This product is the only object that can fill a square on the chessboard. All that is neither masculine nor feminine becomes sexless and is cast into the freezing-cold waters outside the line of demarcation, into an even wider demarcated zone. Man's greatest suffering is born of mistreatment by his fellow man." • Translated from the Chinese by Bonnie Huie. 🇹🇼 #translatedtuesday #unabooksprideallyear #quimiaojin #notesofacrocodile (at Unabridged Bookstore)