Covering everything from first relationships, to tension between gay and straight friends, to conceptual lesbianism, to the lesbian phenomenon of being attracted only to straight women, this collection of essays by both famous and not-so-famous authors is a great read. The book does have a few duds, but the excellent writing of Grace Paley, Martha Southgate, and Elizabeth Wurtzel, to name only a few, definitely makes up for it. All the authors write honestly and openly about women, friendship, relationships, and lesbianism. It is refreshing to see a book that pulls its authors from such varied backgrounds (including different sexual orientations). Some essays make you nod your head in agreement, thinking, "I know exactly what she means, I've always felt that way," and others make you think about things from a new angle: "I'd never even thought of that before"--which is something that ultimately promotes understanding. I'd recommend this book to ANY woman.

This book was incredible. I would recommend it to any women, straight, gay or bi. It puts things into perspective, that you didn't even know were out of perspective. I love this book!!!

I would buy any book that has an essay by sarah schulman in it! However, this book is worth it for many other reasons. Beautifuly written essays, stories, and excerpts from books make Surface Tension a good book to read. I found it moving, thought provoking, and fullfilling. I was not disappointed. All the authors had very different ways at looking at the same thing. One essay (The FeMale Gaze) mentions the popular folkrock band, the Indigo Girls.

This is a great book for women, gay or straight! I couldn't put it down, you won't be disappointed!