Music From Another World

"Tammy and Sharon and their growing friendship are believable and sympathetically rendered, and readers will root for them as they struggle to decide which is harder: staying in the closet or coming out."

Publishers Weekly

Music From Another World

It’s summer 1977 and closeted lesbian Tammy Larson can’t be herself anywhere. Not at her strict Christian high school, not at her conservative Orange County church and certainly not at home, where her ultrareligious aunt relentlessly organizes antigay political campaigns. Tammy’s only outlet is writing secret letters in her diary to gay civil rights activist Harvey Milk…until she’s matched with a real-life pen pal who changes everything.

Sharon Hawkins bonds with Tammy over punk music and carefully shared secrets, and soon their letters become the one place she can be honest. The rest of her life in San Francisco is full of lies. The kind she tells for others—like helping her gay brother hide the truth from their mom—and the kind she tells herself. But as antigay fervor in America reaches a frightening new pitch, Sharon and Tammy must rely on their long-distance friendship to discover their deeply personal truths, what they’ll stand for…and who they’ll rise against.

A master of award-winning queer historical fiction, New York Times bestselling author Robin Talley once again brings to life with heart and vivid detail an emotionally captivating story about the lives of two teen girls living in an age when just being yourself was an incredible act of bravery.

Music From Another World is out now in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

Praise for Music From Another World

(Warning: Full reviews contain spoilers.)

The author expertly brings to life the pre-AIDS world of San Francisco’s gay neighborhoods, the vitality of the nascent gay rights movement (including welcome details about the often overlooked lesbian community), and the punk rock scene. The book’s strengths include good pacing, a respectful acknowledgment of bisexuality, and satisfying personal and political denouements.

Kirkus Reviews

Talley’s detailed research is evident, and the book is historically accurate without feeling stuffy. Recommended for all teen collections.

School Library Journal

Tammy and Sharon and their growing friendship are believable and sympathetically rendered, and readers will root for them as they struggle to decide which is harder: staying in the closet or coming out.

Publishers Weekly

Set in 1977, the novel does a fine job of capturing the LGBTQ milieu of the time, the difficulties of coming out, and, especially, the politics that drove early efforts at gay rights.

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