Paul Mendez

The first part with Norman in the 1950s pulled me into the story, and its abrupt ending made me curious to see how the immediate story played out—but the book doesn't go into it until right at the end when Jesse, the protagonist of the rest of the book, reconnects with the relatives he hadn't even known he had at the end. In the meantime, there's Jesse coming to London to live as a gay man and escaping the shunning of the Jehovah's Witness community he's grown up in, Jesse who's settled and found his footing, with friends and a relationship, but shaken by the aftermath of the EU referendum and an acquiantance's suggestion he's related to an artist who died of AIDS in the early 1990s, and I found it all captivating.… (meer)

The first section in the book in Jamaican vernacular can take a bit of figuring out, but I enjoyed this novel that deals with immigrants/expats torn between trying to fit in and trying to survive in a sometimes hostile country (UK). Because of the emotion and the intensity of the writing, I would surmise that this is an autobiographical fiction. It struck me as something of a mix of Brian Washington's _LOT_ and Garth Greenwell's _What Belongs To You_ - but by all means its own book; unique, provoking. Some might be put off by unrestrained descriptions of sexual encounters, but these definitely add verisimilitude and add to the impact. At times Mendez's writing borders on the overly didactic, but ultimately the diatribes ring true and inform us. This book has brought up a lot for me in terms of people I have known over the years - so very moving overall.… (meer)