Pins (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"(PINS) deals realistically with Joey's coming out to his family and dealing with the court, the media, guilt, school and his relationship with Dink. PINS has a lot going for it, not the least of which include a likable protagonist and raging teenage hormones. It's not so much a coming out story, but it is a great gay coming of age story that deserves a space on your bookshelf." -- Drew Wilson, Out Front Colorado

"A heartfelt and touching story, unwaveringly authentic and compelling. His characters wrestle with each other, vividly, and also with larger issues of sexuality, faith and family." -- Michael Lowenthal The Same Embrace, Gay Men at the Millennium Editor, Flesh and the Word, Editor

"A presciently written novel of athletics in small town America, a grippingly real account and a chilling reminder of how far we still have to travel." -- Felice Picano Like People in History, The Lure, Ambidextrous

"In few cultural arenas is the thorny boundary between machismo and homophobia/philia crossed save in the most stereotyped fashion, Jim Provenzano's smart 'Sports Complex' column in the Bay Area Reporter being one notable journalistic exception." -- Dennis Harvey San Francisco Bay Guardian

PINS is a fast-paced and compelling tale focusing on wrestling in Provenzano's words, "the last bastion for boys who cannot stop playing around." -- The Record Courier, Dec. 16, 1999

PINSq, stands for 'Person In Need of Supervision.' It's also jock talk, a catchphrase of high school wrestling, the team sport that has Provenzano's teenage boys watching their weight like fashion models. By the end of the book, "pins" means, more grimly, the pins through a young trauma victim's neck, holding it straight.

Holding adolescent bodies together is one of the subtler motifs that play across Provenzano's coming-of-age drama.

Wrestling's the ultimate gay sport. But queer love is complicated, especially for 15-year-old jocks. Not until Joey and Dink's involvement in the beating death of the wrestling team's designated "faggot" can the two boys touch each other in a way that highlights love rather than competition.

Provenzano has a swift and flexible style that cuts against sentiment and reveals, in moments of grace, something like true feeling. He's also funny. He has an ear for teenage banter, and he's tartly lyrical about Jersey towns, Italian families and homemade mix tapes with titles like GRAPPLE and AURGH. Most urgent, he shows how gay bashing is still an outlet for kids who grew up in the so-called gay '90s. -- John Weir, The Advocate, Dec. 6, 1999

Inspired by real incidents of gay bashing in New York in 1992, PINS is a brilliant piece of fiction. The plot is very complex with many layers, each well-developed and passionately expressed. The depiction of the wrestling team and the pecking order of that culture is only one of them.

Dino is the real hero, as he fights hard to protect his first-born son from harm. The layer of Joseph's family life is real and sensitive. There are caricatures of coaches, jocks, reporters, and nosy neighborsall realistic to a fault.

The writing style is fresh and adds to the reader's experience; set up in three parts, with the protagonist's name changing in each part: Joey, Joseph, Joe. Provenzano is clever. In part two, for example, the twentieth chapter, "20/20" is actually a powerful critique of the media.

Readers will be proud of Joey Nicci, of his father Dino and even of Dink. No sensitive reader will make it to the end without giggling, anxiety, joy and tears. You'll be grateful to Jim Provenzano for sharing his novel with us. -- Eric Resnick, Gay People's Chronicle, Dec. 23, 1999

Jim Provenzano's debut novel finds love in an unlikely corner. PINS records a fumbling, tentative passion between 15-year-old Joey "Neech" Nicci and Donald "Dink" Khors, teammates on a wrestling squad in suburban New Jersey. PINS manages to break new ground by exploring the clannish, conflicted homoeroticism of wrestling culture.

Provenzano clearly loves their obsessive, sweaty world. Joey knows he's found a home within the practice room's "warm padded cell, moist, guy-scented, soft on the floor, walls, the last bastion for boys who cannot stop playing around." But his place on the wrestling circuit is far from comfortable or secure. Joey finds himself forced to take part in homophobic attacks on his team's weakest member. The hypocrisy demanded of Joey ultimately lead to devastating consequences.

While PINS does occasionally have the earnest feel of advocacy journalism, it stops short of becoming a public service announcement about gay teens and self-esteem. Provenzano avoids solemnity by tilting gently at the tacky clutter of adolescence. In the end, Joey's no saint; he's just a decent kid who loves his friend and who gets aroused watching "Who's the Boss?" reruns. -- John Perry, San Francisco Chronicle, Jan 14, 2000

With PINS, Provenzano tackles the homophobia in athletics. -- Mansfield News Journal, Dec. 12, 1999

Product Description

Acclaimed sports columnist and fiction writer Jim Provenzano's novel PINS tells the story of bigotry in athletics, and one very short boy who stands up to it.

Set in Little Falls, New Jersey in 1993, PINS weaves the classic story of a Catholic saint into a compelling modern life -and near-death- account of Joey Nicci, a fifteen-year-old Italian-American wrestler.

After befriending Donald "Dink" Kohrs, Joey and his new posse get involved in pranks and partying that eventually get out of control, resulting in the death of a maligned fellow teammate.

The ensuing legal battle and media frenzy alter Joey's life and his self- perception as a gay teenager while shattering his fragile love for fellow teammate Dink. Like his patron saint, his battle against his own teammates forces him to suffer for his beliefs. His survival becomes a literary miracle.

A compelling story of a loving yet confused family, coaches and teachers struggling with multiple issues of violence and homophobia amid the clan-like world of teenage athletes, PINS brings together elements now frighteningly common in the media; bullying jocks, assaults on weaker students, faculty and families unwittingly allowing such behavior.

Called "prescient" and "heartfelt" by two of today's leading writers, PINS layers symbols from the worlds of animals and religion, yet while achieving a unique literary style, it remains accessible to the group for whom it speaks - gay teenagers.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Myrmidude Press; 1st edition (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 096723820X
• ISBN-13: 978-0967238203
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #610,098 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Completely amazing, November 8, 2000

By	Mark A. MacDougal (Surfside Beach, SC USA) - See all my reviews

I urge you to buy this book. I can't tell you how much I regret letting it linger on my "wish list" for so long. Mr. Provenzano's novel is nothing short of amazing. The writer's ability to describe the main character, Joseph, and his surroundings and feelings are brilliant. I found this story so moving that as I approached the ending I faced it with the same despair one feels knowing that their best friend would be moving away - forever. I miss Joseph and his family everyday since finishing the book. This is a real treasure of a book that I have urged all of my friends to read. If you enjoyed K.M. Sondlein's delightful, "The World of Normal Boys", then you will fall hard for "PINS".

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars simply moving, May 1, 2000

By A Customer

i read about this novel in the magazine XY and went out in bought it not knowing very much about it at all. Pins was my first gay novel and im not sure if that is whats influncing my opinion of it, but i thought this book was amasing. as a highschooler who is active in school sports, i found this totally moving and touching. i completely connected with the characters and have been in many of joe's situations so i know how it feels. this novel comforted me and moved me in such a way that i started a gay straight alliance at my school and i couldnt be happier, all of my friend have read this book now and they are all better people for it. if you couldnt tell by this point....i highly reccomend this novel.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An incredibly gripping story of family and love, March 1, 2000

By	rick d. (NYC) - See all my reviews

PINS is an incredibly well written story about a young man who is forced to grow emotionally strong in a very short period of time. The themes of masculinity, strength, family, and religion all are addressed in this story of an Italian American high school wrestler. The writing is amazingly vivid, forcing you along with Joseph Nicci and his family & friends. Jim Provenzano writes with unbelievable depth about issues facing many young men without giving easy answers. This book should be read by young athletes, parents of athletes, and others who would relate to this internal struggle of family, religion, and that burning first love.