The Tipsybibliophile

2.75 Stars

So this story for me was one part sweet and refreshing, one part disturbing, and one part "What the fuuuuuck?" Does it mean I don't recommend it? No, I actually think there are parts that are really good, but this book either needed to be 100 pages longer or the plot needed to be simpler, because when things got complicated it went from curious and a bit over the top to just plain WEIRD, and not in the best way.

So Tracy McCarthy is 17 yr old boy in Brooklyn. He is gay and loves to wear ladies clothes and a little make up, he's waify and pretty and just wants to be loved and to HAVE SEX sooooo soooo badly. This summer will be the summer that he finally gets it. No more waiting.

On a trip to beach he discovers that sex (anonymous seedy sex mind you) is a lot easier to get than he thought. After an encounter in the public restroom with a sexy Puerto Rican man named Angel, he gets an opportunity to finally gets what he wants.

The sex in this part of the book was a bit off putting, but it was the 70,s and frankly that type of thing happened. Where would a boy like Tracy be able to get sex if not like that? So even if it was a bit unappealing to read, it was still believable.

Following the restroom experience, Tracy armed with an address goes in search of Angel in Spanish Harlem, he finds the building and a whole lot more than what he bargained for. Angel lives with his dad Robinson and his brother William. Robinson seems to appreciate Tracy's femininity and William, well William is not nearly as beautiful as Angel, but Tracy and him develop a physical connection that Tracy did not expect.

Things go wrong however and Tracy ends up in a dangerous scary situation, he manages to escape, but barely, then it's all over quickly...and things kind of move along to four months later where he reconnects with William.

Here's the thing. This book goes from a lighthearted "summer of discovery" kind of feel to some seriously heavy stuff. The shift was abrupt, and then it happens again in like the last 10% of the book when we go back to happy go lucky, "the world if full off possibilities" tone.

Angel and Robinson turned out to be seriously fucked up characters and William who actually was a nice man with a horrible family situation was someone that I would have loved to know more, but never got to. Tracy however was a fabulous character and his honesty in his desires and wants was really great to read. Overall I'd still say give it a shot...This book has it strange moments, and also really good ones.