Benjamin Law is a Brisbane-based writer and a frequent contributor to Frankie, The Monthly, Qweekend and Good Weekend. He has written for over 50 Australian and international publications (including The Australian Financial Review, The Big Issue, Smith Journal, Sunday Life, Crikey and Travel and Leisure: South East Asia) and has been anthologized in The Best Australian Essaystwice. His debut book The Family Law
(2010) was shortlisted for Book of the Year at the Australian Book Industry Awards
‰Û÷Of all the continents, Asia is the gayest. Deep down, you‰۪ve probably had your suspicions all along, and I‰۪m here to tell you those suspicions are correct.‰۪ So begins Gaysia, Benjamin Law‰۪s wildly witty investigation of gay life in the biggest continent.
We follow him as he takes an in-depth look at resorts for gay nudists in Bali; transexualism and three formal genders in Thailand; China‰۪s underground gay resistance; Japan and ‰Û÷the most breathtakingly messed-up porn‰۪; religious fundamentalists of all persuasions keen on ‰Û÷curing‰۪ homosexuality in Malaysia; sex workers and the spread of HIV in Myanmar; and the decriminalisation of homosexuality, gay pride parades and encounters with gay royalty and a popular spiritual guru in India.
Hilarious, perceptive, and poignant, Gaysia is a refreshing look at an aspect of Asia that has gone ignored too long.
