The Smiley Smile Message Board

Hi, per mod advice, I am posting about this here. So my name is Jeanne Thornton, and I published a book this year through Soho Press called Summer Fun. It's about a trans woman named Gala who lives in the desert in New Mexico, and who's writing very long and intense fan letters to a musician named B--. B-- is the musical impresario of a band called The Get Happies, who vanished from the public eye after failing to release an album called "Summer Fun" in the mid-1960s. The book is told entirely in fan letters, some of which tell the story of Gala's life in the present tense, the rest of which tell the story of B--'s life and musical career in a suspicious amount of detail.

Here's the Goodreads page, with a pic of the cover: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52034695-summer-fun (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52034695-summer-fun)

I know it's a little self-promoy to post about a book I wrote here. But I think it's likely that the book has some relevance to this group, in the same way Paul Quarrington's Whale Music does, and that folks here may be interested? I will lay my cards on the table as a huge fan of the Beach Boys, and though the story goes off in a very distinct direction from the actual band's, I tried to weave in as much deep Beach Boys ephemera as I could fit for anyone who wants to look for it. (I also did thank the forum in the acknowledgements just for being a place to go to steep in the deeper mysteries of this band and its world, even well before I was writing the book.)

Would be interested to know any thoughts folks have, especially if you've somehow read it already! And thank you to everyone here now and over the years for creating this space--I have loved it. <3

...and I managed to post this to the wrong "General Discussion" board...my apologies!

Looks fascinating, on many counts. I'm not much of a book person but I might just get this one -- one of my best friends is a trans woman and one-time SMiLE scholar (see lower link in my signature).

Oh wow, this SMiLE essay your friend wrote looks AMAZING and relevant--am really looking forward to diving in; thank you for directing my attention to it!

You're welcome! She's moved on since then but it's an awesome achievement and doesn't deserve to slip from view.

Thank you for posting, Jeanne! This looks like a book I'd really enjoy, especially the references and tie-ins to the music of that era, and I will be getting a copy to read for sure.

Ordered! I'll be collecting it from a local shop sometime in the last week of October.

Well, Jeanne, I've possessed a copy of your book for three months now. If I turn my head 100 degrees to the left, I can see it on the shelf. ;)

But, I shall wait until the summer before I dive in. It will make a wonderful holiday read. ::)