Customer Reviews

A Few Hints and Clews

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

 

 

Coming of age, and coming out, in a small Southern town. It's been done many times by many authors, but never with such background, depth, detail and emotion as in Taylor's latest novel.



Plain and simple, "A Few Hints And Clews" is the love story of Adam and Tony, told in flashbacks starting at a time way before they met in their mid-20's. They had a very different upbringing, with their parents, grandparents and siblings, through their life experiences as children, Adam's military stint in VietNam, the evolution of the dating scene during the early days of gay liberation, the uncertainty and fear when the AIDS epidemic was first revealed, having to make the transition from the "do what you feel" 1970's to the responsibilities of monogamy. We get to witness their first fight, their first house, dealing with aging and often difficult parents, financial choices, career pressures and changes, and a terrifying medical diagnosis. Throughout it all, the couple manage to focus on the task of redefining and strengthening their love and devotion to each other, making everything else in their lives ultimately more bearable.



One review mentioned that the novel is somewhat autobiographical with regard to the author and his longtime lover, and it shows in the heartfelt, emotionally-rich telling of the tale. Reads almost like an old Southern gothic novel, but flows smoothly and engages the reader thanks to the talent of the author. Much recommended, five stars out of five.

When I was a child it was fairly common that family events, holidays, and vacations were recorded with noisy hand held movie cameras or slides made - friends and family visited and the slide projector was pulled out and you gave a show with running commentary. As I read "A Few Hints and Clews", it evoked the nostalgic mood of recorded moments related by the narrator Adam, but projected across pages rather than a screen. I enjoyed Mr. Taylor's story chronicling long time partners Adam and Tony over decades. I found it a quick read featuring scenes of personal history apart and together with nothing too heavy to ponder - just something to enjoy like a slide show that isn't overly long. However, I don't want to give the impression that the writing style or story is simplistic or maudlin - rather it's a wonderfully layered story of two ordinary (dare I say normal) people who could be neighbors/friends that you admire for their length of time and commitment together. I recommend it for the beauty of its easy style - the author isn't trying to impress you with overblown prose (unlike my review) or a convoluted implausible story. It's good...okay, I'll stop now.

Loosely based on the author's life and that of his charming and lovable partner, Ted, this is the tale of Adam Hunter and Tony Marchak. The author begins with the "official versions," then makes the reader privy to "recollections of whispers, faint murmurs behind almost closed doors, snatches of conversations no one knew he was overhearing." What emerges from these whispers and conversations is a story of two very different families, each of which is traced back several generations.

Adam, the middle child of three, grows up in Texas with a handsome, gregarious father who has difficulty holding down a job, thus necessitating many moves. His mother is a somewhat frail woman who in childhood had to stay in bed for a year because of "Scarlet Fever, Rheumatic Fever, maybe even Tuberculosis." Nobody knows for sure.

Tony, on the other hand, is the youngest of seven children and grows up on a potato farm on Long Island. His parents are both new immigrants from Russia. What are the relationships Adam and Tony have with each set of parents and how do they change over the years? How do these two young men from such diverse backgrounds meet and subsequently weave their lives together? In his simple and direct style Robert Taylor reveals the answers to these questions.

This book is a page turner and a joy to read.

Eva Greenberg
Oberlin, Ohio

Much has been said of this book by the previous reviewers. I was captured by the writer's marvelous prose from page 1 and found myself glued to the story until the end. The writer has given us a captivating story of being gay through the decades, from fearful self denial to the wild sexual abandonment in the 1970s, to the terror of AIDS and to the contemporay tolerance of gay couples. All this is revealed through Adam's eyes as he finds his one true love in Tony and together live proudly as an openly gay couple overcoming infidelity and heartaches along the way and accepting monogamy as they love each other deeply.
Their ties with their parents is warmly told. It is most heartening to read of parents who quietly accept the couple's relationship even if they do not comprehend it. But this is much more than a gay romance. The couple's family histories, Adam's pain as a Vietnam veteran, Tony's previous marriage which ended tragically, the couple living in their first home among their African American friends, the gradual wedge between Adam's parents and the final 16 pages which have me holding my breathe.. all these are wonderfully expressed and told with such clarity.
Ultimately this story is a celebration of gay love as we rejoice with Adam and Tony living proudly as a gay couple. Kudos to this amazing writer and if this is a partial autobiography I am most happy for Adam and Tony.