Customer Reviews

My Best Man

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

The setup is great--a gay male must find a wife to obtain his inheritance. Amity is a great character in fiction--bawdy, outrageous, gorgeous, amoral, compliant,sexy, uninhibited, and adventurous--a perfect wife, unless she discovers one of her own most attractive elements--a hidden streak of morality. This is a masterful comic novel that you will leave you anticipating the movie--who will play Amity?

If you are looking for serious character development and deep thought-provoking plots and themes, then this is probably not the book for you. However, if you come home from a hard day at work and just don't want to turn on the television; you'd rather read some light, fun, laugh-out-loud soap opera-like comedy. Then, Andy Schell's first novel, My Best Man, is the book for you. So many other reviewers have demanded stronger supporting characters and detail from Schell, but maybe they have overlooked the different kinds of reading that are out there. There are lots of great gay authors out there who give you drama, theme, history, detail, etc. But there are also great authors, like Schell, who have done an excellent job of keeping those pages turning with what makes us laugh. And we all like to laugh from time to time. So, looking for a light read for the beach or some "fluff" after a rough day at the office? Schell's book is top of the list. Need drama, plot, or book club discussions? Try Oprah!

Like many of the other reviewers, what first drew me to (though actually kept me from initially buying) My Best Man was the bright, eye-catching cover. The jacket synopsis, however, gave me pause. I wasn't sure I wanted to read yet another vapid Boy-Meets-Girl-But-Really-Wants-Boy book (in the vein of McCauley's The Object of My Affection, et al.). In the end, though, I have to say that I ended up pleasantly surprised by Schell's Best Man.

Schell has crafted a marvelous yarn starring the "No, Really, I AM Gay" Harry and his fag hag with a MAJOR twist, Amity. Their madcap misadventures, including her myriad boyfriends and frequent drug abusage, are dealt with a little too lightly for my tastes but never totally laughed off. Beneath the seemingly innocuous (and at face value farcical) plot device of Harry marrying Amity in order to secure a Dudley Moore in "Arthur"-type fortune lies a surprisingly poignant, love-for-love's sake story.

Although the novel has some truly low points: Amity and Harry have sex (and more than once), thus creating an uncomfortable "Love In Action"-esque moment, Schell ultimately salvages Harry's "true" sexuality and brings back the narrative to the (not so) straight and narrow. In the process Schell also masterfully rehabilitates Amity's character, which too often threatens to become a sluttish dumb blonde caricature.

My Best Man can be read on two levels: as a quick, fluffy, mindless escape, or as a moving exploration on the meaning of true friendship. This duality is, in fact, what makes it succeed.

Andy Schell's variation on a well-worn theme -- the heir can only have the money if he complies with his father's last wish -- is both entertaining and clever. His twist on the story is that the heir, who is gay, must get married or he looses the money to his obnoxious brother who is straight. Just by chance, and right on cue, Harry finds the perfect candidate for a wife, or so he thinks. With that, the story is off and running.

Mr. Schell handles his story-line well, creates believable and very funny characters, and throws in a few red herrings to let the reader know that he knows that they've heard this story before. The many details of the middle America setting has a ring of authenticity as do the scenes when Harry is at work as an airline flight attendant, and the dialogue is, at times, laugh-out-loud funny.

Completely unpretentious, this book provided exactly what Mr. Schell seems to have offered: great entertainment.

I found this book on the shelf, and knew right away that it was the kind of mindless entertainment I was craving. This book will never win major awards for accomplishments in literature, but it's certainly not poorly written, and it's a ton of fun. And really, one look at the cover and you know exactly what you're getting. ;-)

The story, while occasionally a bit uneven, is appealing enough to keep you reading. And while the casual drug use and unsafe sex are kind of appalling in today's climate (despite its 1984 setting, this book reads like a very modern story), you find yourself cheering on the protagonist, self-destructive behavior and all.

I do like to read the odd intellectually uplifting book, but as a rule all I want from a book is to be kept interested and entertained. A happy ending is also a bonus. This book delivers on all counts. It's fairly predictable. It's more than fairly trashy. But you know what? Who cares? If you're looking for a fun, feel-good gay romance, I definitely recommend "My Best Man."

An amazing tour de force by a first novelist. Amity, risen to full flower from trailer park trash, is a fictional character to be treasured. She is an irreverent, upbeat, strong, go anywhere, do anything woman of my dreams. This book is a must read romp of a page-turner.

I have been searching for a book like this since my closet door slammed open 2 yrs ago! Drama,comedy,sex,violence...what more could anyone ask for! It was great! Can't wait for Andy's next book. I highly recommend this to anyone!

what a great book. I saw it in a gay bookstore, picked it up read the first page and began laughing. I haven't laughed this Hard since I read A Fairy Tale! What a gift this guy has; to tell a good story and have us laughing all the way through. We want MORE ANDY MORE! Hard to belive this is is first novel! Where have you been hiding yourself? Now if Hollywood beckons! This would be one hell of a funny movie! What's the name of that goffy acadamey award winning actress who was in Something About Mary? She would make a great Amity! Well done Andy Schell, I wait for the next one with deep longing!

LOL hilarious! I loved this book and laughed my way through it. Smart, fast, funny--a really great read. Warning: if you read this at the beach, you'll forget to look up and miss the sunset. Who is this Andy Schell guy? Is this really his first novel? He's so good I hate him.

This book is really a page-turner, and you can't wait to get to the end to see what happens. You think you know how it's going to turn out, but then you question it, and then you think you know again, but change your mind several more times before you finally find out. My only complaint might be that the ending was summed up too quickly in the last chapter, when the story could have went on for several more chapters. I had the feeling the book had to be cut short for some reason. However, that's my only complaint about this book, because this is the type of story where you can become very involved with the characters and really get to care about them. You can tell the author Andy Schell is a man of the theater. He knows how to write and keep his audience involved.

This story involves Harry Ford who is gay, but needs to find a wife before his next birthday in order to inherit his family's fortune. A stipulation his father made in his will before he died. He wanted to make sure his gay son was out of the will. Enter Amity Stone, who becomes Harry's roommate and savior who will marry him and have a platonic relationship with him to secure the inheritance. But little did Harry know he would meet Nicolo, a hunky Argentinean, who he falls in love with, which creates a real dilemma. What happens from this point on will keep you glued to the book, and guessing the outcome.

A wonderful debut novel and hopefully there will be more stories from Andy Schell to enjoy. I really enjoyed this fast-paced novel.