Gaysia: Adventures in the Queer East

Benjamin Law considers himself pretty lucky to live in Australia: he can hold his boyfriend’s hand in public and lobby his politicians to recognise same-sex marriage. As the child of migrants, though, he also wonders how different life might have been had he grown up elsewhere. So off he sets to meet his fellow Gaysians. Law takes his investigative duties seriously, baring all in Balinese gay nudist resorts, and taking Indian yoga classes designed to cure his homosexuality. The characters he meets - from Tokyo’s celebrity drag queens to HIV-positive Burmese sex workers, from Malaysian ex-gay Christian fundamentalists to Thai ladyboy beauty contestants - all teach him something new about being queer in Asia. At once hilarious and moving, Gaysia traces a fascinating quest by a leading Australian writer. ‘Gaysia is like a Louis Theroux documentary in book form’ - Books+Publishing ‘Benjamin Law is funny and honest and handsome - Gaysia is a delightful, occasionally confronting adventure’ - Josh Thomas ‘a terrific read ... gonzo anthropology and great storytelling’ - John Safran ‘one of the most surprising and entertaining voices in Australian non-fiction writing ... Gaysia is a book of powerful, enlightening stories on a fraught topic, told with care, empathy, grace and good humour’ - The Australian About the author: Benjamin Law is the author of The Family Law and a frequent contributor to frankie magazine, the Monthly, Good Weekend and QWeekend. His work has been published in the Big Issue, Crikey, Griffith Review and The Best Australian Essays. He has appeared on Sunrise, Q&A, The First Tuesday Bookclub and Randling.