Throughout April, bookstores, libraries, publishers and arts organisations across London are holding workshops, readings, debates and other book-related events as part of Get London Reading 2008 - a biennial campaign run by the London based charity Booktrust. Its aim is to encourage Londoners not only to make more time for reading, but also to appreciate and celebrate the rich literary culture of the city in which they live.

Certainly, a notable part of the capital's literary landscape is Gay's the Word in Bloomsbury, Central London - the oldest, largest and most comprehensive gay and lesbian bookstore in the UK. More than just a bookstore, the shop not only stocks a vast and unique range of gay-themed fiction and non-fiction from around the world, it also serves as a valuable community resource.

Last year, Gay's the Word faced the threat of closure due to rising rents and falling sales. Thankfully it was saved by successful campaigning and community support. Now in its 29th year of operation, Gay's the Word remains one of the most significant symbols of London's gay culture.

We spoke to assistant manager Uli Lenart about the store's significance to the London community and their involvement in last year's Get London Reading campaign. We also learnt more about how the shop survived closure and what 2008 holds for the country's oldest and largest gay and lesbian bookshop!

The Get London Reading 2008 campaign is now underway. If you were to encourage readers to discover more about gay London through its writers and their writings, what authors and works would make the top of the list?
Gay's the Word was heavily involved in last year's Get London Reading campaign and it serves as a fantastic reminder to Londoners that they live in one of the most inspiring cities in the world. From the classic modernist writers like Virginia Woolf to contemporary authors like Jake Arnott and Sarah Waters, there are plenty of great works that take inspiration from our capital.

Two brilliant books are Peter Ackroyd's London: The Biography and Queer London by Matt Houlbrook, a brilliant book that unearths the secret history of gay life in London since 1918 -  both books will completely revolutionize your understanding of the city.
 
Gay’s the Word is known for being more than just a bookshop. According to your website, you very much see yourselves as the friendly and non-judgmental safe-space of the gay scene. Could you explain a bit more about that please?
Basically it is about the fact that our ethic - the thing that drives us - is about a whole lot more than just selling books, although that too is obviously crucial in terms of our survival. We also function as an advice shop, referring people to agencies and groups that can help them. We also have the freedom to really spend time with people who are in need of support and advice.

For example, if a teenager comes in and wants help with coming out books, I often spend a good half an hour chatting with them, talking about my experience and how confusion and being a little scared is normal. I've had numerous teens (and adults too) crying on my shoulder. We make them a cup of tea, listen and hopefully provide them with access to information and the right book to help them on their journey.

I am totally confident when I say that every kid who takes the brave step to walk into Gay's the Word - often the first gay venue they've ever visited - will always walk out feeling like they've had the opportunity to share something they needed to. They leave feeling less alone and more hopeful. You tell me of another bookshop or website where that genuine kindness for others is so central to what they do.

"I am totally confident when I say that every kid who takes the brave step to walk into Gay's the Word - often the first gay venue they've ever visited - will always walk out feeling like they've had the opportunity to share something they needed to. They leave feeling less alone and more hopeful."

How has Gay’s the Word evolved since it was established in 1979?
Gay's the Word almost never opened because the local authority didn't want to grant us a lease, assuming that gay bookshop equalled sex shop. When we finally did open our doors, due in part to the intervention of Ken Livingstone at the time, we had shutters on the door and people used to throw things at the shop front as well as spraying homophobic graffiti. In 1984 we were raided by government officials and taken to the high court on the grounds of importing indecent material: we're talking about books by Christopher Isherwood and Tennessee Williams here!

Today we have nothing covering our windows, we leave the front door open and have a laugh with straight customers when they come in to buy civil partnership cards for their mates. The social reality for gays and lesbians has changed a lot over the last 30 years and Gay's the Word both effected that change and is effected by it.
 
Can you please tell us about the range of books you stock?
We stock the most comprehensive range of queer books in the country and one of the best collections in the whole world. Our books cover all genres you'd find in a regular bookshop - they're just a little gayer.
 
What are some of the more popular ranges?
Both lesbian and gay fiction sell really well, as does history. We've got a great range of underground retro gay graphic art and our cards are some of the funniest in London.
 
Can you give us some examples of the more unusual or obscure titles that have come through the bookshop over the years?
You'd have to travel a long way to find another shop that stocked both The Lazy Crossdresser and Sinners and Citizens: Bestiality and Homosexuality in Sweden 1880-1950. 
 
We understand that the bookshop gets some famous customers. Any stand-outs?
We have more than our fair share of celebrities, famous authors and artists pass through our doors. Discretion, however, forbids us picking any favourites - but they know who they are! 
 
We understand that 2007 was a challenging year for Gay’s the Word; after the bookshop faced closure due to rising rents and the effect of internet book buying, it was saved by successful campaigning. Could you tell us more about that please?
It's tough being an independent bookstore; they are closing down all over the place and not just the indies - some of the big chains are in trouble too. Gay's the Word was never in business because we wanted to make a six-figure profit - we just wanted gay men and lesbians to have access to books, information and inspiration at a time long before anybody else saw the potential commercial value of chasing the 'pink pound'. So we've never really had financial reserves to fall back on.

We had been getting progressively quieter and quieter and, as the last surviving dedicated LGBT bookshop in the UK, we were wondering if our job was done and our time was up. We didn't feel this was the case but we wanted to find out if the wider community felt the same. So we formulated a press release about what was happening and set out what we thought we needed to do to survive and develop and how people could support us, specifically a shelf sponsorship initiative that we called 'Cash for Honours.'

That message went all over the World, hit the broadsheets and local press and the good-will and offers of support that flooded in just overwhelmed us. We asked the question, 'Do you still need Gay's the Word?' The World said a resounding 'yes.'
 
David Leavitt has inferred that gay books and bookshops are a relic of the past and no longer relevant or needed by the gay community. Indeed, last year The Independent partly attributed the bookshop’s closure threat to ‘the sense that its purpose had already been served’. What do you say to this?
I'd say that there is some truth in it and that, actually, it’s a wonderful thing! In a way, when Gay's the Word found itself in trouble it was because it had become a victim of its own success. Gay people had become more accepted and gay books, ideas and balanced representations of gay people had become generally accessible within mainstream society. That's great! However, there is a difference between progress in terms of equality and the need for dedicated gay spaces.

If all is now equal and we now live in this liberated utopia where we no longer need to classify things as 'general' or 'gay' then by the logic you are referencing there should be no need for dedicated gay saunas, or bars, or magazines, or radio stations for that matter. We can all see how what applies in theory doesn't necessarily follow in practice.

Beyond this, many general gay bookstores have really badly stocked gay sections. You want a book on Modern Art, you go to the Tate bookshop; you want one on Lesbian Nuns, you come to us. There is no difference. We just both happen to specialise in our subject areas.

"Gay literature puts our experience, our hopes, our fears, our heartaches and our triumphs at the centre of the narrative, not tucked away in some token minor character. Reading then means something; it effects you and becomes something powerful."

How important is it for the London community to support gay literature?
I think people should read what they damn well they want to. We're not saying that gay people must read gay books. We're not the gay literature police! We are simply saying two things: firstly that there are a disproportionately high proportion of gay men and lesbians who are talented writers and artists - that we as a group are filled with visionaries and thinkers and dreamers and creators and that we should celebrate that fact. Secondly, that when people say they don't like reading it is usually because they aren't reading literature that they can relate to. If you are constantly being force-fed the stories of people you totally have no empathy for, then it is no surprise if you don't want to read more about them.

Gay literature puts our experience, our hopes, our fears, our heartaches and our triumphs at the centre of the narrative, not tucked away in some token minor character. Reading then means something; it effects you and becomes something powerful.

How can the community support Gay’s the Word in 2008?
Next time you find yourself bored, take yourself along to Gay's the Word and we guarantee you that once we've learned a little about you and your tastes we'll find you just the right book to fascinate and enthral you. That's how you can support us and make yourself happier at the same time. Not a bad deal.

Beyond this people can still sponsor shelves and dedicate them to friends or loved ones - this makes a great civil partnership gift. You can also do things like donate your unwanted gay books to our second-hand section next time you are having a clear out.

What’s next for Gay’s the Word?
Well it has been quite a roller-coaster of a 12 months since we launched the campaign. We have come through our crisis incredibly well and are now in discussion with some designers to get a really great website created. We are hoping that our weekly column book review in Boyz continues to be as popular as it has been and we look forward to welcoming lots of new and old customers into the store.

Most importantly we will continue to have a laugh and enjoy working in such a brilliant and important store.
 
What else would you like to say?
Reading is for poofs!

For more information about Gays the Word, visit freespace.virgin.net/gays.theword, and go to www.getlondonreading.co.uk to find out more about events taking place for Get London Reading 2008.