Scan barcode
kellingway's review
4.0
I received a copy of 'Finding Tulsa' from NetGalley in exchange for my fair and honest review.
'Finding Tulsa' belongs in company with 'The Lost Language of Cranes' by David Leavitt and 'The Mysteries of Pittsburgh' by Michael Chabon. If I had not known going in that this novel was a work of fiction, I would have assumed it to be an autobiography. The narrator is focused on himself alone and makes no assumptions about the other cast of characters around him. In the first chapter, narrator Stan gives a clear indication of what to expect: "This story goes back and forth, but loops around itself. My life/career/whatever, misguided as they come, is based purely on the loss and discovery of men" (p. 11).
This story is filled with nostalgia, sex, and gorgeous prose. Some of the themes, such as incest, may be difficult for some readers. The story is framed around the AIDS epidemic, film, and one man's loss and discovery of himself. 'Finding Tulsa' is written in an autobiographical-style, which lends itself to family stories, rich history, and heartbreak. Provenzano writes, "Blood is sexy. Immigration stories are sexy. They are about survival, movement, shifting in planetary communities. Every man is the composite of all of his race(s), which makes him precious, even more so if he's gay, since he is the end of the line. He is his own extinction" (p. 84).
I docked this novel a star because of its difficulty to follow at times with the looping storyline and large cast of characters. It is also important to be critical of the narrator throughout the book. There are numerous times when he tells a story and then states that it didn't happen that way. He is concerned, as I said, about himself. Overall, however, the story is well-written and surprising at times. I would certainly recommend 'Finding Tulsa' to anyone wanting to read a book with gay main characters and a solid family story.
'Finding Tulsa' belongs in company with 'The Lost Language of Cranes' by David Leavitt and 'The Mysteries of Pittsburgh' by Michael Chabon. If I had not known going in that this novel was a work of fiction, I would have assumed it to be an autobiography. The narrator is focused on himself alone and makes no assumptions about the other cast of characters around him. In the first chapter, narrator Stan gives a clear indication of what to expect: "This story goes back and forth, but loops around itself. My life/career/whatever, misguided as they come, is based purely on the loss and discovery of men" (p. 11).
This story is filled with nostalgia, sex, and gorgeous prose. Some of the themes, such as incest, may be difficult for some readers. The story is framed around the AIDS epidemic, film, and one man's loss and discovery of himself. 'Finding Tulsa' is written in an autobiographical-style, which lends itself to family stories, rich history, and heartbreak. Provenzano writes, "Blood is sexy. Immigration stories are sexy. They are about survival, movement, shifting in planetary communities. Every man is the composite of all of his race(s), which makes him precious, even more so if he's gay, since he is the end of the line. He is his own extinction" (p. 84).
I docked this novel a star because of its difficulty to follow at times with the looping storyline and large cast of characters. It is also important to be critical of the narrator throughout the book. There are numerous times when he tells a story and then states that it didn't happen that way. He is concerned, as I said, about himself. Overall, however, the story is well-written and surprising at times. I would certainly recommend 'Finding Tulsa' to anyone wanting to read a book with gay main characters and a solid family story.
More...