JUNE: In One Person by John Irving

A compelling novel of desire, secrecy, and sexual identity, In One Person is a story of unfulfilled love—tormented, funny, and affecting—and an impassioned embrace of our sexual differences. Billy, the bisexual narrator and main character of In One Person, tells the tragicomic story (lasting more than half a century) of his life as a “sexual suspect,” a phrase first used by John Irving in 1978 in his landmark novel of “terminal cases,” The World According to Garp. His most political novel since The Cider House Rules and A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving’s In One Person is a poignant tribute to Billy’s friends and lovers—a theatrical cast of characters who defy category and convention. Not least, In One Person is an intimate and unforgettable portrait of the solitariness of a bisexual man who is dedicated to making himself “worthwhile.”

Published by: Simon & Schuster

Year of Publication: 2012

Number of Pages: 450

    

MAY: Dreaming in Color by Cameron Dane

Can a house possess a soul and want two men to fall in love? The sight of the red door saves Colin Baxter in his dream, but very quickly a man appears and the dream becomes something of raw sexual need with a person Colin can’t identify. He just knows the man needs him, and Colin aches to heal his lover…even if the man doesn’t really exist. Marek Donovan just wants to be left alone to lick his wounds and recover from a terrible loss. The rundown house in Fiji suits his minimal needs just fine. He doesn’t want to face the world again, and on a small, secluded island figures he’s safe from everyone and everything. Particularly guilt from his past. Dreams of this nameless man and his house plague Colin for two years, but he’s come to care about his phantom lover so deeply he doesn’t want them to end. Then Colin visits Fiji and comes face-to-face with the house from his visions, prompting him to believe these dreams just might be his destiny. Colin knocks on the door, determined to find answers. He doesn’t expect the man who answers to be someone he already knows. -- CONTENT NOTE: This is an erotic romance novel and contains explicit scenes of male/male loving, as well as a flashback containing violence.

(I made a promise that this month's book would not be coming-of-age, so here you go...)

Published By: CreateSpace

Year of Publication: 2011

Number of Pages: 346

APRIL: Kamikaze Boys by Jay Bell

If the world is against you, don’t give up. Find yourself a kindred spirit. Then you can start fighting back.

They say Connor, the one with the crazy eyes and creepy scar, tried to kill his old man. Lately he’s been seen hanging out with David, the gay guy who always eats lunch alone. They make an odd pair, the loser and the psychopath, and bad things happen to people who mess with them. Not that Connor and David are looking for trouble. Even when taking on the world, they seem more interested in each other than fighting.

Kamikaze Boys is a story about breaking the chains that bind you and using them to beat down anyone that gets in your way. Better yet, it’s about holding hands with the guy you love while doing so.

Published by: CreateSpace
Year of Publication: 2012
Number of pages: 278

MARCH: Out of the Pocket by Bill Konigsberg

Star quarterback Bobby Framingham, one of the most talented high school football players in California, knows he’s different from his teammates. They’re like brothers, but they don’t know one essential thing: Bobby is gay. Can he still be one of the guys and be honest about who he is? When he’s outed against his will by a student reporter, Bobby must find a way to earn back his teammates’ trust and accept that his path to success might be more public, and more difficult, than he’d hoped. An affecting novel about identity that also delivers great sportswriting.

Published by: Dutton Juvenile
Year of Publication: 2008
Number of pages: 272

FEBRUARY: Gulliver Travels by Justin Luke Zirilli

Heartbroken and hungry for a new start, Gulliver Leverenz flees his family, friends, and bastard of an ex-boyfriend in Los Angeles, with his sights set on New York City – a place he’s only ever heard of. With no money, no job, and no direction, Gully lands in NYC’s hottest gayborhood, Hell’s Kitchen, living with his only friend — fraternity brother and current rising gay nightlife star, Todd DiTempto. From Midtown to Fire Island and everywhere in between, Gulliver sinks fast into the chaotic life of sex, booze, and boys. Just barely scraping by in the city that never sleeps (alone, at least), Gully quickly discovers that this strange, concrete jungle has some major surprises in store. Luckily he has some tricks up his sleeve, and he isn’t afraid to use his claws.

Published by: BoiParty Books
Year of Publication: 2011
Number of pages: 296

JANUARY: Prove It by Chris Owen

 

Warren and Silas meet for the first time at the age of five. It doesn’t go well. When they reach junior high they have a truce in place and Tal, a new guy in their class, acts as a catalyst, bringing them together as best friends. Together all through high school they survive school plays, Tal’s girlfriends, Silas’ boyfriend, and Warren’s endless studying. College is more of the same, until Silas and Tal coax Warren out of the closet. For Warren nothing changes, but for Silas the world has unexpectedly changed forever. He had no idea he was in love with his best friend at all, and when he finally tells Warren the reaction is another surprise. Prove it. Warren knows all about Silas, knows the tricks, the games, the very best and the very worst about him, and Warren loves him back. But Warren also knows that if they’re going to be together it’s got to be forever, and he can’t just risk everything for what might be another one of Silas’ whims. Silas has to prove he loves Warren, and he wants to do just that. But how do you win the heart of someone who knows you better than anyone else?

Published by: Torquere Press
Year of Publication: 2011
Number of pages: 186

DECEMBER: The Unborn Spouse Situation by Matt Rauscher

 

Augie Schoenberg is twenty-two, an aspiring filmmaker at a school without a film school, and desperately single. He’s just moved into the Harley Hutt, the wildest party house on campus, and has fallen hard for his roommate Victor Radhakrishna, a campus political activist who is, for Augie, “a practical demi-god: a crusader for justice in skateboarding shoes.” The problem is, Augie is the only gay one in the house – or so he thinks. This darkly comic novel of sex, betrayal, and cultural clashes follows Augie’s search for love: from the cornfields of Illinois, to the gay beach and underground clubs of Chicago, and finally to the ecstasy-fueled nightlife of London, where Victor’s secret threatens to keep the two apart forever.

Published by: Lethe Press
Year of Publication: 2010
Number of pages: 236