Boys Like Us

By Peter McGehee

Book Overview

Boys Like Us Trilogy, Book 1 - Peter McGehee's debut novel is a rompish, bed-hopping affair - a modern comedy of manners - in which our twentysomething protagonist, Zero MacNoo performs all the rituals - sexual, familial, and grievous - required of urban gay males in the early 1990s. It is a remarkable comedy about life, love, and friendship in the age of AIDS.Zero, an Arkansas expat who has swapped out Little Rock for the cool contemporary tones of Toronto gay life, is perplexed by the curveballs of fate. His best friend has been diagnosed with AIDS; Zero is frantic to organize a circle of support. And when Arkansas also calls, it's to support his mother's second marriage and confrontations with the zany array of crazed Southerners he calls family ensue.Funny, bittersweet, outrageous, and moving, Zero's adventures make up the first part of Boys Like Us trilogy. This new edition is accompanied by introductions from Dr Raymond-Jean Frontain and long-time collaborator Fiji Robinson.

"An utterly delightful book. I enjoyed every word of it!" - Quentin Crisp

"... a gem of a novel. Boys Like Us is funny, sexy, tender, and touching - often in the same sentence." - Larry Duplechan

"As it celebrates the strength and staying power of gay friendships, Peter McGehee's Boys Like Us goes out of its way to show you a good time - and you won't hate yourself in the morning." - New York Native

"Boys Like Us is an affable, enjoyable story ... McGehee has the ability, through an ingratiating style and witty observations, to transform Zero's everyday life into something we care about." - Michael Bronski

"Accomplishes what may seem impossible: a humorous romp in the face of widespread death." - Library Journal

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1951092724
• ISBN13: 9781951092726
• Release Date: September 2022
• Publisher: Requeered Tales
• Length: 206 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

An Enjoyable Tale from the Nicest of Towns

This is one of the first Gay books I read, so you'll forgive a sentimental bias. It's funny, and Toronto is very accurately rendered, a Toronto that's fading into memory.

My favorite gay books

I am putting together a list of gay/lesbian books for teens. This had been among my all-time favorites; when I saw it was still in print, I knew it had to go on the list. Like Weetzie Bat and its sequels, Boys Like Us fits into an American magical realism movement. We lost a leading light in literature with the death of McGehee. Fortunately, Doug Wilson, McGehee's lover, completed the Boys Like Us/Sweetheart series with Labour of Love.

A wonderful and positive gay male voice

The best of McGehee's warm, humorous works, this piece gives an unsentimental and sometimes harrowing look into lives disrupted by AIDS--or, perhaps more to the point, into the lives of men who refuse to let their lives be disrupted by a virus.

Very enjoyable

I found Zero to be extremely likeable, and his group of Toronto friends are familiar, without being stereotypical. The true power of the book lies in McGehee's gift for humor. The Arkansas sequences were particularly funny, filled with some classic Southern eccentrics. The straight characters were more three-dimensional than is often the case in a gay novel. I enjoyed this book, as well as "Sweetheart", the sequel. Readers are fortunate to have these novels as testimonial to McGehee's talent, though we mourn his death.

Buy this book!

This is by far the late Peter McGehee's best book. McGehee managed to put together an outstanding book that examines the lives of several friends, some of whom are HIV positive, some are activists, some are straight, etc. This book is an honest look at everything from gay bars to the AIDS nightmare in less then contemporary Canada. (And the American heartland) Sadly, McGehee has died since this book was written. However, anyone who reads Boys Like Us must not miss Sweetheart, which is the sequel.