tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7198340413567584365.post7064117780143182594..comments2023-10-16T04:49:58.218-08:00Comments on Wulfwyn Reads Excessively : Review of Well With My Soul - Gregory G AllenFranceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17114377975088727480noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7198340413567584365.post-78119938144639521772012-04-30T13:30:24.441-08:002012-04-30T13:30:24.441-08:00Greg told me you were inviting reviews, so here...Greg told me you were inviting reviews, so here's mine, even at this late date. I believe this book could get through to people who are uncomfortable with gays. <br /><br /><br />A journey of two brothers, one gay, one straight, whose wildly diverging choices lead them back to the arms of family.<br /><br />Jacob and Noah Garrett are the prodigal son and his resentful brother, who narrate the unfolding of their adult lives in alternating chapters monologue-style. Good-looking, self-indulgent Jacob is their mother’s favorite, despite his abandoning career after career -- and ultimately her -- in an ever-morphing quest for gratification. Reliable, responsible Noah stays home, with her, and in the midst of a quite ordinary life gradually undergoes his own voyage of self-discovery. Their paths shepherd one brother to a fundamentalist pulpit, marriage and children, the other into a genuine awakening into forgiveness, grace and appreciation for family, and reconverge in a homecoming with a decidedly (but not heavy-handed) scriptural underpinning. Allen’s memoir-like debut novel deftly recreates the mindsets and ephemera of settings as extreme as his protagonists, from small-town Tennessee in the 70s to the high-flying days (and nights) of Manhattan’s gay community in the Studio 54 years and the AIDS epidemic that followed. Allen, who is gay, has openly grappled with the self-destructiveness, addictions and early death of his elder straight brother (Proud Pants, 2011). Here he has assigned those demons to the gay protagonist, along with few appealing characteristics beyond physique. Befitting Allen’s background as a playwright, the inner dialogues, recounted conversations and story arc ring true. His characterizations are uniformly compassionate and non-judgmental as well (even Jacob’s, and even those of the zealots who attempt to convert him to heterosexuality). They’re largely believable, too, with the exception of the brothers’ ultimate female allies, particularly the girlfriend who becomes Noah’s wife, and whose occasional too-good-to-be-true responses threaten her status as three-dimensional. <br /><br />The novel succeeds as both entertainment and wise-hearted social history, conveying the primal power of faith and family (blood and chosen) without preaching.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7198340413567584365.post-80937565211688570192012-04-30T13:29:03.710-08:002012-04-30T13:29:03.710-08:00I think this book actually could get through to pe...I think this book actually could get through to people who are uncomfortable with gays. Greg told me you were welcoming comments about it so here's my review, even at this late date:<br /><br /><br />A journey of two brothers, one gay, one straight, whose wildly diverging choices lead them back to the arms of family.<br /><br />Jacob and Noah Garrett are the prodigal son and his resentful brother, who narrate the unfolding of their adult lives in alternating chapters monologue-style. Good-looking, self-indulgent Jacob is their mother’s favorite, despite his abandoning career after career -- and ultimately her -- in an ever-morphing quest for gratification. Reliable, responsible Noah stays home, with her, and in the midst of a quite ordinary life gradually undergoes his own voyage of self-discovery. Their paths shepherd one brother to a fundamentalist pulpit, marriage and children, the other into a genuine awakening into forgiveness, grace and appreciation for family, and reconverge in a homecoming with a decidedly (but not heavy-handed) scriptural underpinning. Allen’s memoir-like debut novel deftly recreates the mindsets and ephemera of settings as extreme as his protagonists, from small-town Tennessee in the 70s to the high-flying days (and nights) of Manhattan’s gay community in the Studio 54 years and the AIDS epidemic that followed. Allen, who is gay, has openly grappled with the self-destructiveness, addictions and early death of his elder straight brother (Proud Pants, 2011). Here he has assigned those demons to the gay protagonist, along with few appealing characteristics beyond physique. Befitting Allen’s background as a playwright, the inner dialogues, recounted conversations and story arc ring true. His characterizations are uniformly compassionate and non-judgmental as well (even Jacob’s, and even those of the zealots who attempt to convert him to heterosexuality). They’re largely believable, too, with the exception of the brothers’ ultimate female allies, particularly the girlfriend who becomes Noah’s wife, and whose occasional too-good-to-be-true responses threaten her status as three-dimensional. <br /><br />The novel succeeds as both entertainment and wise-hearted social history, conveying the primal power of faith and family (blood and chosen) without preaching.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7198340413567584365.post-42950767718362431472011-10-19T23:12:46.218-08:002011-10-19T23:12:46.218-08:00Hi Lori. Thank you for stopping by and leaving you...Hi Lori. Thank you for stopping by and leaving your comment. I hope people do get past the uncomfortable feeling and talk about the book. I found it to be very thought provoking.Franceshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17114377975088727480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7198340413567584365.post-60010581705202394162011-10-17T08:02:23.571-08:002011-10-17T08:02:23.571-08:00I did read Gregory's book and agree with you. ...I did read Gregory's book and agree with you. It is not a book for everyone. The subject matter can be uncomfortable for some but if you get past that it is an incredible story. It moved me to tears at times. This story needs to be shared.lorihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01130055925565694059noreply@blogger.com