Perhaps let me explain the plot first. There is an adolescent boy, the unnamed narrator. The book recounts his various sexual experiences, ranging from a younger 12-year-old friend (the narrator was 15), a bunch of older men that he gives oral sex to, including neighbourhood characters as well as some teachers. And there's also the dynamic between the narrator and his parents, as well as his education in a boarding school. And yes, there's also this thread about the adolescent narrator trying to get rid of his homosexuality, because after all, back then, homosexuality is thought not to be normal, so one tries to find ways how to cure it.
I suppose I cannot help but reflect on my adolescence. And of course I have a different experience, and perhaps due to this difference, I have a bit of a hard time sympathising with the novel. Yes, as an adolescent, I thought about sex, and my sexuality was one part of me, it was a factor I had to consider as I was growing up. But I still cannot shake off the idea that this book had too much of it. I was wondering, where were the other aspects of adolescence? Why was it too focused on sex and sexual activity in this book? As a 40-something gay and out reader, I cannot help but think that being gay is more than just about sex, and this book somehow has a very imbalanced view of it.
Then again, there's plenty of topics in life one can write about, and our narrator doesn't have to express their thoughts in all of it, just for diversity's sake. I simply can just vary the types of books I read. But seriously though, being gay is more than just about who one fucks. Being gay is also about the various trials and tribulations one faces as a member of a minority, and depending on the society one finds oneself in, the level of this varies. I suppose our narrator in this book is just too young to realise what the world has in store for him, given that he's gay. I suppose our narrator is just too busy trying to find outlets to his sexual tension.
I give this book 3 out of 5 stars. As I said, I am on the fence on this one.
See my other book reviews here.
