Customer Reviews

Walt Loves the Bearcat

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This is one strange book. That is not to say that it is not good; it is good. Just very strange. Marcus (a/k/a Bear, a/k/a Bearcat) fantasizes for 21 years about his relationship with a quarterback whose picture he finds in a football program. He finally tracks down the guy and in the space of one day proceeds to relate all of the details of the 21 years of fantasies. This is no small accomplishment in that it takes 721 pages to relate. Along the way the author, Randy Boyd, throws in references to himself ("...a handsome author") and to his other books. Frankly, I wish that Boyd had just played it straight (you should pardon the expression) and simply told the story of the life of Walter and Marcus without the fantasy aspect because it is a terrific story. Walter is supremely likable as the NFL superstar and the dialogue between him and Bear is enchanting. The football details, indeed all of the sports details, are perfectly authentic and add much to the story. The humor, including such characters as Hail Larry and the interchangable Wendy Jiu or Lisa Wu, contributes much to the enjoyment of the book. The ending is totally predictable, but then again it's not because the rest of the plotting is so wacky that you don't know what's going to happen. Although a little bit of editing would have helped, this much is true: the relationship between Walter and the Bearcat is endearing and uplifting. Always and forever.