Let’s get off on the right foot: this is a rave review.
Nick Benton’s newly updated third edition of Extraordinary Hearts (BCI Books, Falls Church) is an ambitious, provocative, and deeply personal work that deserves a wide readership. While readers may disagree with some of its arguments—and Benton occasionally presses his case with unmistakable polemical zeal—the book is a significant contribution to the ongoing conversation about LGBTQ history, culture, and the forces that have shaped civilization.
Best known as the publisher and editor of the Falls Church News-Press since 1991, Benton brings to this volume the perspective of a seasoned journalist, social observer, and lifelong advocate. The third edition revisits and expands essays written over many years, presenting a comprehensive statement of his philosophy concerning what he calls the “gay sensibility” and its enduring influence from classical Greece to the modern era.
The book’s subtitle, Reclaiming Gay Sensibility’s Central Role in the Progress of Civilization, signals the breadth of Benton’s ambitions. His argument ranges across philosophy, literature, politics, religion, and history, connecting figures as diverse as Socrates, Plato, Walt Whitman, Oscar Wilde, Tennessee Williams, and E.M. Forster. Whether readers ultimately embrace all of his conclusions or not, Benton consistently challenges conventional assumptions and invites serious engagement.
One of the book’s central themes is the distinction Benton draws between two competing visions of love. On one side is a higher, civic-minded ideal rooted in justice, creativity, compassion, and the advancement of society. On the other is a more narrowly individualistic pursuit of pleasure detached from a broader ethical purpose. This framework provides the intellectual backbone for much of the book and gives coherence to its wide-ranging historical discussions.
Among the most compelling sections is Benton’s treatment of E.M. Forster. He recalls Forster’s celebrated injunction in Howards End to “Only connect,” linking it to the author’s later essay “What I Believe” and its vision of “an aristocracy of the sensitive, the considerate and the plucky.” Benton argues that Forster’s appeal was never simply about romance or physical intimacy but about bridging the divide between intellect and emotion, private fulfillment and public responsibility.
If the book has a weakness, it is that its sweeping historical claims occasionally move faster than some readers may wish. There are moments when Benton states broad conclusions with greater confidence than the available evidence may persuade every skeptical reader to accept. Yet even where one questions his conclusions, the arguments are thoughtful, passionately presented, and intellectually engaging.
That is ultimately the achievement of Extraordinary Hearts. It is not content merely to recount LGBTQ history; it seeks to reinterpret it and to place it at the center of the larger story of human progress. Whether one agrees with every aspect of Benton’s thesis or not, the book rewards careful reading and reflection. It is an important work by one of Northern Virginia’s most distinctive journalistic voices, and one well worth adding to the conversation.
