SAHC: Joy of Reading

Im looking for a copy of The Front Runner by Patricia Nell Warren. This is such a seminal piece of literature for me. i think i was in college when it hit the bookstands. and because i didnt have cash then, i asked my friend to buy it. but i read it first. i fisnished it in a few hours. i couldnt put it down. i can still remember the tears welling up around the saddest part of the novel.



i discovered the joy of reading early. i was going through our encyclopedia britannica (every home had one then!). focusing on dogs, dinosaurs and human anatomy. then i started young detective stories. none other than that titian-haired sleuth nancy drew! i read a few hardy boys books, too. even alfred hitchcock had a series of books with three young investigators.






i got this from my dad, who loved reading, too. funny how the taste in books was the outward manifestation of my own growing sense of self and sexuality. after graduating from the juvenile detective, i naturally turned to the adult novels (and started tackling the thicker books!)

i remember reading, almost guiltily, 'the other side of midnight' by sidney sheldon. boy, was that racy! explicit! some sexual images remain stuck in my mind. (the use of ice cubes while giving head!).

i wouldnt call myself a voracious reader, though. i'd read what my dad or my sisters would have on hand. through the years, that has included horror novels (amityville horror, stephen king novels), espionage thrillers (robert ludlum's bourne series), some classics (of mice and men, lord of the flies, a tolstoy one i can't remember now). then some philosophy ones and essays (anthony de mello is a favorite) and finally of course, the gay novels.

discovering that literature genre coincided with my gay evolution. there was consenting adult (that precipitated my coming out to my parents), the fancy dancer (also by p nell warren), tblbitw (the best little boy in the world). (as i was getting into relationships) but gay novels here in the phils. were few and far between then. so id content myself with what was available or what i could borrow from friends.

then life happened. worklife. and i began reading less and less. save for magazines and the dailies. a colleague made me read david sedaris. i enjoyed that. and 'the god of small things' by arundhati roy (?). that was powerful. kite runner was so emotional. i finished that while vacationing alone.

i have rediscovered the joy of reading. i've decided to clear the backlog. and that backlog suddenly increased with the e-books ive filched! hehe and really, i have pc to thank for. he remains an avid reader. and he loves sharing titles he enjoys (like murakami).

however, i havent gotten back to queer literature. now that it is a dime a dozen, i hesitate to get back to it. i need referrals to well-written ones, with good plots. id like to immerse myself again in some beautiful gay story and be enraptured.

any suggestions?

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