“Getting Past the Stereotypes: Women and Motorcycles in Recent Lesbian Novels”

Although many American women ride motorcycles, their stories seldom appear in cultural references to motorcycling. The two dominant motorcycling images in popular American culture are that of biker gangs, and that of individuals or close friends on road trips. In both cases, women are primarily excluded or relegated to marginal roles. However, in lesbian culture richer stories about women and motorcycling are common. This article looks at how five recent lesbian novels (Shy Girl, with child, Midas Touch, Flaming Iguanas and Hoochie Mama) draw on conventions of male-dominated motorcycle stories, but reinterpret and and subvert them in order to tell stories about women and motorcycling in which the female characters are the central concern.