Gay Bar: Why We Went Out
{{Short description|Book by Jeremy Atherton Lin}}{{Infobox book
| image = Gay Bar Why We Went Out.jpg
| author = Jeremy Atherton Lin
| pub_date = 2021
| caption = First edition
| genre = Creative Nonfiction
}}
{{Italic title}}
Gay Bar: Why We Went Out is a 2021 creative nonfiction book by essayist Jeremy Atherton Lin published by Little, Brown in North America and Granta in the United Kingdom. It is a response to LGBT venue closures {{Cite web|url=https://www.vogue.com/article/best-books-2021|title=The Best Books to Read in 2021|date=December 25, 2020|website=Vogue}}{{Cite news |last=Schaub |first=Michael |date=2021-02-11 |title='Gay Bar' Tracks The Wave Of A Whole Culture — And One Life |work=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2021/02/11/966752896/gay-bar-tracks-the-wave-of-a-whole-culture-and-one-life |access-date=2022-05-18}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.thecut.com/2021/04/gay-bar-jeremy-atherton-lin.html|title=How Will We Remember Gay Bars?|first=Maggie|last=Lange|date=April 2, 2021|website=The Cut}} written in the idiom of cultural memoir.{{Cite web |date=2021-02-18 |title=Gay Bar by Jeremy Atherton Lin – a going out memoir |url=http://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/feb/18/gay-bar-by-jeremy-atherton-lin-a-going-out-memoir |access-date=2022-05-18 |website=The Guardian}}{{Cite news |last=Ryan |first=Hugh |date=2021-02-09 |title=A Memoir About Queer Identity, Told One Gay Bar at a Time |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/09/books/review/gay-bar-jeremy-atherton-lin.html |access-date=2022-05-18}}
Gay Bar was listed among the Times Critics' Top Books of the Year in The New York Times.{{Cite news |date=2021-12-15 |title=Times Critics' Top Books of 2021 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/15/books/critics-top-books-2021.html |access-date=2022-05-18}} It received the National Book Critics Circle Award for Autobiography.{{Cite web |title=The National Book Critics Circle Award |url=https://www.bookcritics.org/awards/ |access-date=2022-05-18 |website=National Book Critics Circle}} It was shortlisted for the Randy Shilts Award.{{Cite web |title=The Randy Shilts Award for Gay Nonfiction |url=https://publishingtriangle.org/awards/randy-shilts-gay-nonfiction/ |access-date=2022-05-18 |website=The Publishing Triangle}} In French translation, it won the 2024 Prix du Roman Gay Discovery.{{Cite web |title=Prix du Roman Gay 2024 |url=https://www.gaypride.fr/prix-du-roman-gay-2024/ |access-date=2024-12-24 |website=Pride.fr}}{{Cite web |title=Palmarès du PRIX DU ROMAN GAY 2024 |url=http://www.editionsdufrigo.com/2024/10/palmares-du-prix-du-roman-gay-2024.html |access-date=2024-11-07 |website=Les Editions du Frigo}}
Atherton Lin created a show for NTS Radio based on the book.{{Cite web|title=Jeremy Atherton Lin - Gay Bar 7th February 2021 |url=https://www.nts.live/shows/guests/episodes/jeremy-atherton-lin-gay-bar-7th-february-2021 |access-date=2022-05-18 |website=NTS Radio}}