Tina in the Back Seat: Stories

This collection of 13 short stories was published posthumously, following Raweley's death from AIDS in 1998. Six of the stories were previously published in various journals (Story, Harper's, etc.). All are set in California, and a number of them feature gay characters and touch upon AIDS (however, in nine of the stories, the protagonists are women). "The Bible of Insects" tells of middle-aged Inez, who marries elderly rich men and provides them with comfort and love until they die, leaving her their fortunes. It's an interesting portrait, showing both her sensitivity and harsh realism, but it's not clear why she would keep on the golddigger track so long. "Baby Liz" is an odd snippet about a midget Liz Taylor impersonator and her new next door neighbour friend. "The Tiger's Tooth" takes us into the addictive world of high-stakes Pai-Go, via Gloria Wong, who risks everything for her weekly thrill. It's not a particularly remarkable story except that one rarely reads of women gamblers, or of Pai-Go. "The Closest Thing to God" is a touching story of Iris, a middle-aged butch lesbian hoping to find love in her local bar. It's a gentle reminder that in every realm of society, there exist unobtainable beauties. "Mother of Pearl" is somewhat less interesting, detailing a tryst between a middle-aged white homosexual and a young stud Chicano boxer. "Saigon" is another enigmatic story, this time about the friendship between a young homosexual and a gruff Vietnam veteran. "Vaudeville" and "Iguana Boy" are somewhat weak stories of mostly interior monologue, one by a woman lawyer, the other an elderly woman. "At the Four Seasons" seems slightly out of place, consisting of an overheard conversation between two hit men at a hotel bar. "Tim" is told from the perspective of the ghost of a little boy observing his own funeral and his mother's mourning. "The Spells of an Ordinary Twilight" is another story about mourning and grief, this time from a mother's perspective. The final two stories are about women seeking to live life to the utmost. "A Rumour of Prayer" is about a woman who picks up teenage boys on the beach for one night stands so she can live on in their memories, and "Tina in the Back Seat" is about a young woman who lives from day to day, trading sex for shelter. In the end, while the writing is generally top-notch, there is a sense of time running out that pervades the collection. One gets the feeling many of the stories were written knowing death approached.