FEBRUARY: The Trouble Boy by Tom Dolby

 

A Yale-educated gay freelance writer navigates the shark-infested waters of Manhattan hoping to score a screenplay deal and a loyal boyfriend in this hip and sexy if predictable debut novel. The son of an upper-crust clothing designer, young Toby Griffin is plagued with acne and depression, but gets lucky when he’s hired to be a nightclub reviewer for a struggling Web site and quickly becomes a “nightlife contender,” impressing new friends Jamie, Donovan, Brett, David and Alejandro. Though the social scene is all about hooking up, Toby does manage a dinner date or two, but most end disastrously, including one with an egotistical former Real World cast member and another with a sleazy Polo store clerk. When both the Web site and an exciting proposal to co-write a memoir by transsexual performer Lola Copacabana fizzle out, Toby begins work for hotshot producer Cameron Cole. A premiere party with lots of cocaine and booze sets the stage for a deadly Lizzie and a coverup that tests Toby’s allegiance to his glitzy cohorts. As the media spotlight shines on Toby, he begins to lose interest in his tour of hot nightspots filled with cool Mr. Wrongs. Will our almost-charming hero ever find someone worthy? There are few surprises here, but Dolby’s writing is smooth and his flashy scene-setting spot-on. (Publisher’s Weekly)

Published by Kensington
Year of Publication: 2005
Number of Pages: 272 pages

JANUARY: Leave Myself Behind by Bart Yates

 

Noah York is a closeted gay teenager with a foul mouth, a critical disposition, and plenty of material for his tirades. After his father dies, Noah’s mother, a temperamental poet, takes a teaching job in a small New Hampshire town, far from Chicago and the only world Noah has known. While Noah gets along reasonably with his mother, the crumbling house they try to renovate quickly reveals dark secrets, via dusty Mason jars they discover interred between walls. The jars contain scraps of letters, poems, and journal entries, and eventually reconstruct a history of pain and violence that drives a sudden wedge between Noah and his mother. Fortunately, Noah finds an unexpected ally in J. D., a teenager down the street who has family troubles of his own. Rape and other physical violence, alcoholism, and incest–the novel describes these abuses in a brutal, matter-of-fact way that may leave some readers uncomfortable. Most of the time, however, Yates effectively captures the honest, sometimes silly, often tender interactions between his fragile characters. James Klise
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Published by Kensington
Year of Publication: 2003
Number of Pages: 256 pages

DECEMBER: Band Fags! by Frank Anthony Polito

“Ever since I first heard that Lionel Richie and Diana Ross song, `Endless Love,’ all I’ve wanted is to find The One. Someone to love. Who will love me back.”

September, 1982. John Cougar’s “Jack and Diane” is on endless radio rotation, and Dallas and Dynasty rule the ratings. Jack Paterno is a straight-A student living in the Detroit suburb of Hazel Park, with his own Atari 5200, a Beta VCR, and everything a seventh-grader could ask for. The only thing he has in common with foul-mouthed Brad Dayton, who lives on the gritty south side near 8 Mile, is that both are in Varsity Band. Or maybe that’s not the only thing. Because Jack is discovering that while hanging around with girls in elementary school was perfectly acceptable, having lots of girl friends (as opposed to girlfriends) now is getting him and Brad labeled as Band Fags. And Jack is no fag. Is he?

As Jack and Brad make their way through junior high and then through Hazel Park High School, their friendship grows deeper and more complicated. From stealing furtive glances at Playgirl to discussing which celebrities might be like that, from navigating school cliques to dealing with crushes on girls and guys alike, Jack is trying to figure out who and what he is. He wants to find real, endless love, but he also wants to be popular and “normal.” But, as Brad points out, this is real life–not a John Hughes movie. And sooner or later, Jack will have to choose.

Filled with biting wit and pitch-perfect observations, Band Fags is an exhilarating novel about lust and love, about the friendships that define and sometimes confine us, and about coming of age and coming to terms with the end of innocence and the beginning of something terrifying, thrilling, and completely unpredictable.

Published by Kensington
Year of Publication: 2008
Number of Pages: 352 pages

NOVEMBER: The Screwed-Up Life of Charlie the Second by Drew Ferguson

Tall, gangly and big-eared, Charles James Stewart, Jr., aka Charlie the Second, could be a poster boy for teenaged geeks. All of his efforts to fit in at school have failed, but what’s freaking him out most is that while his hormones are racing and his peers are pairing off, he remains alone with his fantasies.

But all of this changes when a new guy at school begins to liven things up on the soccer team—and in Charlie’s life. For the first time, Charlie will learn how it feels to be a star, at least off the field. But he’ll discover that even cool guys have problems as he embarks on a deliciously sexy, risk-filled journey from which there is no turning back… (from drewferguson.com)

Published by Kensington
Year of Publication: 2008
Number of Pages: 320 pages

OCTOBER: The Tine Star by J.L. Langley

 

When James Killian comes out to his father, he finds himself banished from his home and fired from his job. His savior comes in the unlikely form of Ethan Whitehall, his older brother’s best friend. Ethan has always had a soft spot where Jamie Killian was concerned, and he will do whatever it takes to keep his new lover safe. PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This book contains explicit homoerotic sex that some readers may find offensive. (honk)

*I know this is an “adult” book, but the story is pretty sweet still…  

Published by Loose Id, LLC
Year of Publication: 2006
Number of Pages: 300 pages

SEPTEMBER: Blind Items: A Novel by Matthew Rettenmund

In this hilarious romp through gay New York, author Matthew Rettenmund once again delivers with acerbic wit, dead-on dialogue, and perfect pop culture references. This time, a lonely magazine editor has fallen for a TV star hunk, who, unfortunately, must remain firmly in the closet or risk his career. Which will win out, true love or shallow fame? Rettenmund answers the question with verve and attitude, in this wonderful second novel of love and loss in modern Manhattan.

Published by Macmillan
Year of Publication: 2000
Number of Pages: 288 pages

AUGUST: Closet Case by Robert Rodi

Chicago ad man Lionel Frank is a hilariously unlikely hero who tries to hide his homosexuality from coworkers and clients. Devoting his days to working among homophobic he-men on accounts like All-Pro Power tools, he spends his nights dialing 1-900-BOY-TOYZ. But when the office lesbian catches him ogling a male stripper at a notorious gay dance club, it’s open season on Lionel’s reputation. From then on, with every attempt to present himself as happily hetro, Lionel only stumbles even more outrageously into the throes of gay lust.

Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
Publication date: July 1994

Number of pages: 330