The Men from the Boys

by William J. Mann

Book Overview

This classic novel by bestselling author William J. Mann features a gay man trying to come to terms with sex, friendship, aging, and falling--and staying--in love This stunning slice of gay life at... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0452278562
• ISBN13: 9780452278561
• Release Date: June 1998
• Publisher: Plume Books
• Length: 342 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.6" x 7.8"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

stuck on a plane, couldn't stop reading

grabbed this while in an airport (san francisco) and needed something to read. didn't expect to be so thought provoked.i read a great deal, so i'm not sure why this one hit me, but it did. william mann has managed to capture that painful time when a relationship is neither here nor there, neither broken nor working, neither fulfilling nor empty - and it needs to pick a direction. the two characters - neither of whom are particularly enjoyable - have enough aspects, that you will identify with at least one.the story is told from jeff's point of view and flashes back and forth in time. the juxtapositioning of past and present is an interesting effect and mann avoids having it become tedious. it's an interesting effect.teh relationship and it's problems brought many thoughts to mind and i found myself often travelling on introspective tangents. i also found myself speaking out loud to several of the characters. fairly embarassing on a crowded flight.worth the time and effort. an extremely commendable first effort.

This book gets popped to the top shelf

The only gay novel I have yet read that even compares to "Men From the Boys" is Forman Brown's "A Better Angel" (written & published originally in 1933). Nothing compares to Wm. Mann's searching novel. I have rarely read anything better, and I have never read anything sadder. Yes, the character is self-absorbed, but his own blindness makes him that much more interesting to watch as he develops in maturity and even wisdom.In "Creed for the Third Millenium", when Colleen McCullough's character is told to 'write a book', I almost threw down the novel in disgust. Writing a book will NEVER save the world. When Wm. Mann's character struggles to write his book, it's his attempt to save his soul, the perfect forum for this kind of venture. The book is full of moments like this one, as each character in turn struggles to find his way through his life and its challenges.Structurally, this novel was phenomenal. The way the back-and-forth of time and space spins around left me SPINNING. Masterfully done, a great story with lively characters, this is one book I'm glad I had passed on to me, and I recommend this to anyone interested in man's struggle to find his own soul.

This is a "must" read

Even though I had bought the book sometime ago and set it aside, I finally located it...To say I was blown away would be an understatement. There are very few books that I deliberately read slowly so that I won't finish it too quickly, but this is one. I thought the structure of the book worked very well for the author's purposes; it certainly didn't interrupt the flow for me. And the content: characters that I cared about and thoroughly understood. Possibly it spoke to me so completely because I had had a similar experience some (quite a few!) years ago. The devlopment of the hero from a boy to a man is a remarkabletale; in any event, I can't recommend this book too strongly!

What a delightful surprise!

Finally a book that speaks to me and my life... completely unpretensious and honest. If you're not part of the 30something urban gay subculture you might not "get" it - but if you are, it's soul-searing and funny, snd sexy and heartbreaking. Hey, our lives are as important as anyone else's, and we've deserved a book that looks at us. A book like this is overdue. Thanks!!!

You have to be crazy not to love this book

I ordered this book and let it sit on my desk for 6 months before a friend saw it and starting gushing about how it was one of the "best books I've ever read." All I can say is "Damn". This book is phenomenal. Perfectly captures the intricacies of relationships between men. Dating women and dating men are just different beasts. The deals with the devil that we make to keep things going are haunting. Do we face the worst in us (lust / cheating) with honest and deal with it through trust and openness, and when we do, do we still lose. Breathtaking writing -- found myself consciously slowing down to revel in the subtle genius of the author. Makes me glad to live in a world where artists at the peaks can be shared with millions. Share this book with others if you love them. What a gift to give.