Customer Reviews

Ambidextrous: A Memoir in the Form of a Novel

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Well, if graphic depictions of underage preteen intercourse, glue-sniffing and incestual voyerism are your cup of tea, then this is the book for you!

"Ambidextrous" bills itself as being about the secret lives of children. Not really so much of a secret, as just forgotten by people once they get to be adults. Most of what happens in this book will seem familiar to many readers, especially those are other than straight.

The book is apparently semi-autobiographical, and tells the story of a young boy's early sex and social life. It details how the main character loses his virginity at the age of eleven, and starts having sex with other boys not long after. There's a lot that happens in this book, but really it's the sex stuff that tends to be most memorable.

Admitedly, as I write this, it's been about twelve years since I read the book though obviously it stayed with me. I plan to read it again soon, at which point I may or may not change this review. For now, take it for what it's worth.

Overall the book is well-written and entertaining, but if you're someone likely to be put-off by the idea of kids having sex, then this is likely not the book for you. Otherwise, hey...

*UPDATE!*

So about two minutes ago I finished re-reading the book for the first time in a long while. It's a bit more than I remember it being. Yes, the sex scenes are what stuck in my mind, but now I've also began to see it as the story of a young writer first starting to learn what he wanted to do with his life.

My life is quite similar to the main character's, despite the 30+ years that seperate us. I, too, was sexually active at a fairly young age (though not quite as early and not quite as far as he got). Like him, I also took an interest in Greek mythology (though I didn't read Homer until much later and I never have read "The Illiad" despite having a copy at home). And, like him, I've gone on to be a writer. I can understand the protaganist's annoyance and frustration at having a story rejected because I've been through that myself.

This book also offers a much more detailed slice of 1950's life than I recall from my first reading, though again, it was about twelve years ago. Even though my childhood happened 30 years after his, there's still a lot that I recognize, and I'm assuming the same is true for kids who are eleven or twelve now.

Ultimately I liked this book much better on my more recent reading and even more highly recommend it than before (even if I'm not sure about the grammar in that sentence).