A deeply felt first novel of childhood and adolescence
LOS ANGELES—November 29, 2019—ReQueered Tales is proud to announce our thirteenth release, available worldwide as a Kindle, Kobo, Nook and Apple e-book is “THE GENIUS OF DESIRE” by Brian Bouldrey.
“The Genius of Desire touches on oddities in life with a warm sense of reality…. Bouldrey’s style evokes a reverence for the small epiphanies of youth.”
—Bay Area Reporter
Hopelessly drawn to the romantic notion of a double life, young Michael Bellman spends summers in Monsalvat, Michigan, coming of age in a loving tangle of highly eccentric relatives: Great Uncle Jimmy speaks to his dead wife during meals; Cousin Anne torments Michael beyond endurance; reckless Cousin Tommy secretly smokes cigars and can’t wait to “kick butt in ’Nam” – and Michael watches every magical move he makes.
A few years and one driver’s license later, as family alliances change and long-silent desires surface, Michael begins to understand his attraction to the double life because he’s living one – at roadside rest stops, in library washrooms, and public parks. Coming out is the first step, coming to terms is the next….
“Bouldrey is both a fine storyteller—attentive, compassionate, witty — and a highly intriguing stylist. In The Genius of Desire everything is in balance, no one is predictable, and Bouldrey’s narrator is the perfect host. I was never less than enthralled.” —Dennis Cooper, Author of Frisk
“Bouldrey’s handling of Michael’s coming out to his family and childhood friends demonstrates well the import and cleansing effect that coming out has for gays and lesbians—an import and an effect not dissimilar from those of the rites of the church that Michael was taught to revere as a child.” —Booklist
“Wonderfully intelligent … An auspicious debut: wise, funny, and courageous.” —Charles Baxter, Author of Shadow Play
Originally published in 1993, this new edition includes a 2019 foreword by the author.
THE GENIUS OF DESIRE e-book:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/33tbilS
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2K3rKSq
Nook: https://bit.ly/2rDJPA2
Apple: https://apple.co/2rFW2UZ
310 pgs • ISBN 978-1-951092-11-5
US$5.95 • CAN$7.95 • UK£4.95 • EU€5.95 • AU$8.95
