One Gay American

Genre: Memoir

Published by: Coffee Town Press

Pages: Paper Back

Ratings: 7 JAGS

 

Dennis Milam Benise return memoir; One Gay American is a beautifully crafted coming of age, coming out story. Benise takes the reader on brief history lessons of the strides the people of the LGBT Community have accomplished, all the while making parallel connections to his own personal struggles.

As a child born into 60s, Dennis grows up in the conservative Mid-west. From an early age, he realizes he is way different than other boys his own age, all the while navigating a secret fascination for wedding dresses and Barbie Dolls from his passive aggressive parents. Dennis learns to cope with his effeminate mannerism by joining theater, where he eventually finds his future wife at the young age of 19 and gets married.

Dennis Milam Benise’s One Gay American is a wonderfully written story of real life, and the obstacles that we all face to find our true identity-and with that, true love. Dennis’s matter of fact approach to the foibles of everyday life as a young gay man is stereotypical in most period memoir pieces of similar fashion, but his monologue shines brightly as he puts forth a connection in his growth of being a shy effeminate male, to an out and proud gay man.  

Torch In The Dark by Hadiyah Joan Carlyle

Genre: Memoir

Publisher: Book Publishers Network

Ratings: 4 JAGS

Blog Review:  Virginia Armstrong

 

Torch in the Dark is a story of a woman’s lifelong journey as she struggles with the traumatic events of her childhood.  The story takes place during the 60’s and 70’s, the hippie generation, when pot and protests reigned.  It was also a time when little was known about the mind and how past experiences could adversely affect ones personality, emotions and overall well-being.

Once her story comes out, her parents and doctors refuse to believe the truth and she finds herself committed to a mental hospital, having to endure shock therapy and plied with medication. Faced with having to conceal the truth for freedom, she turns to friends for help.  Soon after, she finds herself pregnant.  Pressured to either abort or put the baby up for adoption, she chooses to raise her son alone. It is during this time that she learns about welding.  Taking a class among all male students, she persists, knowing deep inside her that this is something she must do.  It is in striking the arc that frees her, making her feel whole again.

Torch in the Dark begins strong, the author grabbing hold of the reader’s emotions and taking them along on the journey. Unfortunately, that only lasts for a few pages into the story.  The author then seems to engage in another style of writing, her words becoming empty and void-the material read almost robotic. Throughout the story, her instincts seem to be dead on, yet most times she looks to others for direction, which ultimately makes matters worse.

As time goes by, she becomes more aware of her issues, and yet she uses them as a crutch instead of trying to change them.  Soon the story takes on a whiny tone and the reader becomes frustrated with the author. By the end of the book, you realize the author is always eager to take from others, but is never willing to give in return.

In Hanuman’s Hands by Cheeni Rao

In Hanuman’s Hands is a poignant memoir of a young Indian man, Cheeni Rao, whose experience with American freedoms routed in the mark of passage of college life, leads him on the path of drugs and alcohol. A product of a devout Hindu family with lineage of privileged Brahmin priests, Rao is reduced to a homeless drug addict on the streets of Chicago, prostituting himself for his next fix and petty crime to quench his need for more drugs.

Excellent read.  Cheeni Rao’s account of self-destruction is a must for anyone who thinks that the first hit of a pipe or the snort of a line can not affect all walks of life. A cultural rich story of one man’s triumphant defeat of addiction and long road to recovery, this memoir gives the reader a new found respect for not only the strength of the human spirit, but also the beauty and complexity of Indian culture. 

The allure of the drug world and its integration with Indian culture in America’s homeland is rich and engrossing. Praise for Cheeni Rao strength and determination to defeat the destruction of addiction.

8 JAGS