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War Against the Animals
Cameron Barnes, formerly of New York City, lives in a small town in upstate New York. After having nearly succumbed to AIDS, he's recently regained a measure of his health but his long-term lover has moved away and faces the daunting prospect of learning how to live with the idea of a future in mind again. As a tentative step, he hires two local young men, brothers Jesse and Kyle Vanderhof, to do some renovation work on his property.
With the depressed economy of the area, the changing population of the town in which they live and the recent death of their family, the Vanderhofs are facing hard times and tough decisions. The older of the brothers, Kyle, sees an opportunity in Cameron, pushing Jesse to befriend Cameron and take advantage of his boredom and directionlessness. Caught between the opposing worlds embodied by Cameron and Kyle, Jesse is torn by the demands of his brother, the expectations of his community and family, and his own mix of volatile, contradictory emotions towards Kyle, Cameron, and himself. Mirroring the community's own increasingly tense split between long-term residents and new arrivals, this trio moves inexorably towards crisis and potential tragedy that will transform each of their lives.
Widely praised for his deft prose and brilliant characterizations, over the past decade Paul Russell has become increasingly regarded as one of the finest contemporary American novelists. Now, with War Against the Animals , he returns with his richest, most accomplished, and most compelling novel yet.
With the depressed economy of the area, the changing population of the town in which they live and the recent death of their family, the Vanderhofs are facing hard times and tough decisions. The older of the brothers, Kyle, sees an opportunity in Cameron, pushing Jesse to befriend Cameron and take advantage of his boredom and directionlessness. Caught between the opposing worlds embodied by Cameron and Kyle, Jesse is torn by the demands of his brother, the expectations of his community and family, and his own mix of volatile, contradictory emotions towards Kyle, Cameron, and himself. Mirroring the community's own increasingly tense split between long-term residents and new arrivals, this trio moves inexorably towards crisis and potential tragedy that will transform each of their lives.
Widely praised for his deft prose and brilliant characterizations, over the past decade Paul Russell has become increasingly regarded as one of the finest contemporary American novelists. Now, with War Against the Animals , he returns with his richest, most accomplished, and most compelling novel yet.
358 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2003
7 people are currently reading
509 people want to read
About the author
Paul Russell
46 books135 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Paul Russell received his doctorate from Cornell in 1983 for a dissertation on the novelist Vladimir Nabokov and is currently a Professor in the English Department at Vassar College.
His fourth novel, The Coming Storm won the 2000 Ferro-Grumley Award for Gay Male Fiction.
His short fiction has appeared in literary journals such as Black Warrior Review, and Carolina Quarterly.
Paul Russell received his doctorate from Cornell in 1983 for a dissertation on the novelist Vladimir Nabokov and is currently a Professor in the English Department at Vassar College.
His fourth novel, The Coming Storm won the 2000 Ferro-Grumley Award for Gay Male Fiction.
His short fiction has appeared in literary journals such as Black Warrior Review, and Carolina Quarterly.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
January 14, 2012
I enjoyed this book. It is the second novel I read by Paul Russell. The first was "The Coming Storm" which I also enjoyed. Russell is an involving and perceptive storyteller and currently is a favorite writer of mine; I am eager to read more of his novels.
His main character, Cameron, whom I deeply cared about, is HIV positive and has been sick on and off for a while. He is sophisticated, educated, and successfully designs gardens. He is dealing with the death of one ex-lover and the recent breakup with another. He lives in a small town in the Hudson River Valley in New York State - where many New York City gays have purchased property. It is a conservative town in which generations of the same family have been living, and there are conflicts between the townies and the newcomers. That conflict is an important aspect of the novel. Cameron hires two handsome, twenty-year-old bothers from the town, Jesse and Kyle, to do handyman work on his property. (Sounds like the setup for a porno.) Kyle, the older, is homophobic. Jesse, another character I cared deeply about, is questioning who he is and where he belongs in the world, becomes interested in and curious about Cameron, and closeness develops between the two. This book is about relationships, loss, friendships, disease, dealing with death, and characters coming to grips with who they are at different periods in their lives. I indentified with many of the characters and their situations. (Russell is very perceptive at creating realistic contemporary gay men and the relationships and situations they experience.) I recommend this book.
His main character, Cameron, whom I deeply cared about, is HIV positive and has been sick on and off for a while. He is sophisticated, educated, and successfully designs gardens. He is dealing with the death of one ex-lover and the recent breakup with another. He lives in a small town in the Hudson River Valley in New York State - where many New York City gays have purchased property. It is a conservative town in which generations of the same family have been living, and there are conflicts between the townies and the newcomers. That conflict is an important aspect of the novel. Cameron hires two handsome, twenty-year-old bothers from the town, Jesse and Kyle, to do handyman work on his property. (Sounds like the setup for a porno.) Kyle, the older, is homophobic. Jesse, another character I cared deeply about, is questioning who he is and where he belongs in the world, becomes interested in and curious about Cameron, and closeness develops between the two. This book is about relationships, loss, friendships, disease, dealing with death, and characters coming to grips with who they are at different periods in their lives. I indentified with many of the characters and their situations. (Russell is very perceptive at creating realistic contemporary gay men and the relationships and situations they experience.) I recommend this book.
December 2, 2017
I really liked this novel because I closely identified with the protagonist, Cameron. He's an accomplished landscape architect who moved from NYC to rural New York, to a small conservative, "red-neck" village. I did that about the same age as he after living in St. Louis, NYC and DC. He adapted well to his rural life, as have I. The novel is about his interfacing and developing relationships with the local "red-necks" and the results of such a collision for both sides. I've been there. I've given away money etc for much the same reasons Cameron did. He and I have differences, his health problems and profession, e.g., are much different. But those did not matter. It was a spooky read which had me doing a lot of introspection about my past. It helped me learn some things about myself that I'd avoided. That's what fiction is all about, IMO.
The novel is well-written, the characters full, as I'd expect from Paul Russell. The prose is smooth and the read easy and quick. There are a lot of chuckles and grimaces that occur whenever 2 cultures clash in a kind of amicable (or not) way. And, it is suspenseful, one expecting some major crisis along the way, but not sure what. I wish I knew what happened to jesse and his brother. That, however, is up to the reader.
9 of 10*
The novel is well-written, the characters full, as I'd expect from Paul Russell. The prose is smooth and the read easy and quick. There are a lot of chuckles and grimaces that occur whenever 2 cultures clash in a kind of amicable (or not) way. And, it is suspenseful, one expecting some major crisis along the way, but not sure what. I wish I knew what happened to jesse and his brother. That, however, is up to the reader.
9 of 10*
October 16, 2018
I suppose there will be some who will write this off as yet another middle-aged-man-living-with-aids story, or even a May/December love tale. But there is so much more here than either of those could possibly begin to touch on. Russell is in search of the truth, and when he discovers it, his grasp is sure.
While Cameron (a character that seems almost tailored to the talents of actor Kevin Spacey) is a very credible and extremely likeable protagonist, Russell's true achievement here is in the creation of the nefarious young brothers, Jess and Kyle, who come to see Cameron as their golden goose. We already knew that Russell could write a character like Cameron in his sleep, but his canny ability to get inside the minds of these two boys is absolutely astounding. Instead of giving his readers the requisite window-dressing of a couple of hunky young guys for the main character to ogle, Russell delivers whole and complete characters, rich with emotional layers and complex thoughts and feelings, so that when those layers are peeled away and the raw testosterone-fuelled anger begins to spill out, we not only sympathise but empathise as well.
Highly recommended...especially for closeted teen boys.
While Cameron (a character that seems almost tailored to the talents of actor Kevin Spacey) is a very credible and extremely likeable protagonist, Russell's true achievement here is in the creation of the nefarious young brothers, Jess and Kyle, who come to see Cameron as their golden goose. We already knew that Russell could write a character like Cameron in his sleep, but his canny ability to get inside the minds of these two boys is absolutely astounding. Instead of giving his readers the requisite window-dressing of a couple of hunky young guys for the main character to ogle, Russell delivers whole and complete characters, rich with emotional layers and complex thoughts and feelings, so that when those layers are peeled away and the raw testosterone-fuelled anger begins to spill out, we not only sympathise but empathise as well.
Highly recommended...especially for closeted teen boys.
September 18, 2015
I quite like this book actually. The characters in this book are very interesting to read of and it was quite honest and heartbreaking.
Okay, with that being stated. I do find the plot a little bit stagnant and just so-so for me but that never made me want to stop to read it because I really care about the characters especially Cameron's life with AIDS and the brotherhood relationship between Jesse and Kyle and also on how Jesse dealt with his (sexuality) confusion with Cameron.
It was a slow pace read for me but I do think I need to read a lot of books like this to expanding out my reading range. It was quite interesting and honest indeed.
I can't decide whether this should be 3 or 4 stars.
Okay, with that being stated. I do find the plot a little bit stagnant and just so-so for me but that never made me want to stop to read it because I really care about the characters especially Cameron's life with AIDS and the brotherhood relationship between Jesse and Kyle and also on how Jesse dealt with his (sexuality) confusion with Cameron.
It was a slow pace read for me but I do think I need to read a lot of books like this to expanding out my reading range. It was quite interesting and honest indeed.
I can't decide whether this should be 3 or 4 stars.
September 20, 2017
Wow! In the middle of a growing culture war between the rural locals and the mostly gay new residents from the city, in a small community in upstate New York, a young local comes of age due in part to his interactions with a middle aged gay man he works for. The conflicts in the younger local man's life are echoed by the memories the gay man has of his own childhood and youth. I identified with the well-drawn characters, and was captivated by the plot, wanting to race through the book to see what happens next.
April 12, 2019
I’m comfortable with this writer - for me, reading his words is like a conversation with a trusted friend. Some parts are flamboyant and hit me as a bit much but overall, I felt like the characters were each dealing with life from their perspective as well as they could. Everybody in the story has a position to hold which is a strength and a weakness of the book. I’ll read more Paul Russell, that’s for sure
March 8, 2012
I really don't understand the other reviews on here that rated this book as five stars. I wanted to like this book and I tried, thus the whole reason why I finished it however the plot line moves at such a tedious pace its hard to stay interested. The chapters don't even close with any sort of incentive that would make you want to turn the page and go on. Its basically a book about people feeling awkward around each other and reflecting and ruminating on the past times of some distant life which we never even get full closer on. I only give it two stars because in the last few chapters of the book finally something tangiable starts to happen and it closes on a slightly heart pounding note. But even at that it is a bit of a sorry excuse for an ending. You feel like you dedicated yourself to basically nothing.
Its too bad because the author's reviews of his other works were promising. I wish I hadn't started with this one.
Its too bad because the author's reviews of his other works were promising. I wish I hadn't started with this one.
August 18, 2008
Another novel about an older gay man looking back at his life and loves as he faces the end brought on by, you guessed it, AIDS.
Depressing that gay writers are caught up in the same tired cliches as everyone else...
Depressing that gay writers are caught up in the same tired cliches as everyone else...
August 7, 2021
If you want to read a book filled with awful people doing awful things, then War Against the Animals is the book for you. There is an undercurrent of ugliness in this book that just seeps into every page. There's so much homophobia, misogyny (every woman in this book, and there aren't many, is described negatively), classism, and self-loathing here that the combination became toxic. Still, Russell got me to turn the pages and kept me interested (although I'm not sure why). I couldn't figure out what Cameron saw in Jesse. I also didn't get the whole culture of Jesse and his family. And Max and the assorted other gay guys just seemed like caricatures. A swing and a miss for me on this one.
June 1, 2021
It was a magnificent story. A really special one - not just a love story between a middle aged man and a youth. it was more than that. I was akeptic at first, and the pace is a bit slow, but this is just a build-up towards the climax in the last chapters. Cameron and Jesse's night was astonishing and beautiful. I won't ever forget it. their scene together, that magical night, it was worth reading even 500 hundred pages of build up.
June 20, 2023
Paul Russell is an accomplished storyteller. He creates characters that readers care about long after they finish reading his books. This novel includes complex characters (Cameron, Jesse, and Kyle). My only critique is that the ending, while exhilarating and action-driven, seems a bit rushed and incomplete. Overall, this is an excellent, thought-provoking novel.
February 3, 2019
A story about two different men dealing with death (of different sorts for each) while trying to figure out how to live. Written and set in the 90s, AIDS figures heavily without feeling cloying or cheap. I guess you could call it a coming-of-age story mixed with a coming-of-middle-age story.
Read
August 26, 2019Loved it! Could see so many similarities to the region my wife and I live in as well as places we have visited.
July 13, 2020
Would’ve been five but I didn’t like the ending.
January 1, 2024
The ending lacked hope.
October 8, 2025
Beautiful, beautiful writing. Am ready to read it again. Heart-breaking, amusing, all-too-true story of a friendship that could have been, a family that could have found peace.
July 26, 2017
have this in paperback
July 27, 2024
War Against The Animals by Paul Russell
As someone who fazed what our protagonist, Cameron Barnes, went through -- almost dying from AIDS to then come back to life and grow old -- this novel is quite personal.
After recovering from his illness, Cameron moves to Stone Hollow, a small town in the Hudson River Valley in New York State - where many New York City gays have purchased properties and are engaged a conflict between the townies and the newcomers. Cameron's lover of eight years, Dan Futrell, left him because he could not deal with Cameron's recovery. Dan is HIV negative and does not want to be stuck to Cameron anymore.
Cameron's best friend since college, Max Greenblatt, is running against the local mayor, Roy Vanderhof. The comedy relief is mostly the growing culture war between the rural locals and the mostly gay new residents from New York City.
Cameron -- part of the gay invasion--decides to hire two local teenage boys, Kyle, and Jesse Vanderhof --both nephews of the current mayor. Kyle, the older one, immediately comes to see Cameron as their golden goose and uses Jesse as bait to get money from Cameron. What Kyle does not know is that Jesse is very fragile and conflicted. Jesse is questioning who he is and where he belongs in the world. He becomes interested in and curious about Cameron, and closeness develops between the two. Which, in turn, starts to interfere with the close relationship the two brothers had--which has been changing since their fatter, Bill Vanderhof, died of liver cancer. But like most of Russell's characters, the mere complexity of the relationship is what defines the plot.
Narrated beautifully from the third person point of view of both Cameron and Jesse, the characters come alive. I saw many of the aspects of my gay life flashing from the pages I read. Whether it is dealing with my sexuality, dealing with an HIV diagnose, aging, my mortality, and thinking I would never find love again, it's all there. "Still it troubled him to realize he'd probably never again feel longing -- or anything else -- as intensely as he felt when he was a teenager. The scar tissue thickened. Books, music, friendships, sunsets -- about none of those things did he care the way he once cared." Cameron reveals on page 75.
This book is about relationships, loss, friendships, disease, dealing with death, and characters coming to grips with who they are at different periods in their lives. But mostly is about loneliness--and we gays know a lot about that: "The night was humid, even oppressive; still, he had to suppress a shiver. Never had he felt so completely alone--the aloneness the dead must feel, stuck inside coffins, in sealed envelopes never to be opened, fading fast in the memories of the people who knew them so well, or at least thought they did, when they were alive." Jesse feels that way on page 323, once he realizes he's gay and must denounce all of his redneck friends and family. Kyle, the older brother Jesse used to worship, will never be able to relate with him anymore. We've all been there in one way or another.
I love Paul Russell's books for how he manages to write about such dark times but with such warmth and tenderness at the heart of them. Highly recommended!
As someone who fazed what our protagonist, Cameron Barnes, went through -- almost dying from AIDS to then come back to life and grow old -- this novel is quite personal.
After recovering from his illness, Cameron moves to Stone Hollow, a small town in the Hudson River Valley in New York State - where many New York City gays have purchased properties and are engaged a conflict between the townies and the newcomers. Cameron's lover of eight years, Dan Futrell, left him because he could not deal with Cameron's recovery. Dan is HIV negative and does not want to be stuck to Cameron anymore.
Cameron's best friend since college, Max Greenblatt, is running against the local mayor, Roy Vanderhof. The comedy relief is mostly the growing culture war between the rural locals and the mostly gay new residents from New York City.
Cameron -- part of the gay invasion--decides to hire two local teenage boys, Kyle, and Jesse Vanderhof --both nephews of the current mayor. Kyle, the older one, immediately comes to see Cameron as their golden goose and uses Jesse as bait to get money from Cameron. What Kyle does not know is that Jesse is very fragile and conflicted. Jesse is questioning who he is and where he belongs in the world. He becomes interested in and curious about Cameron, and closeness develops between the two. Which, in turn, starts to interfere with the close relationship the two brothers had--which has been changing since their fatter, Bill Vanderhof, died of liver cancer. But like most of Russell's characters, the mere complexity of the relationship is what defines the plot.
Narrated beautifully from the third person point of view of both Cameron and Jesse, the characters come alive. I saw many of the aspects of my gay life flashing from the pages I read. Whether it is dealing with my sexuality, dealing with an HIV diagnose, aging, my mortality, and thinking I would never find love again, it's all there. "Still it troubled him to realize he'd probably never again feel longing -- or anything else -- as intensely as he felt when he was a teenager. The scar tissue thickened. Books, music, friendships, sunsets -- about none of those things did he care the way he once cared." Cameron reveals on page 75.
This book is about relationships, loss, friendships, disease, dealing with death, and characters coming to grips with who they are at different periods in their lives. But mostly is about loneliness--and we gays know a lot about that: "The night was humid, even oppressive; still, he had to suppress a shiver. Never had he felt so completely alone--the aloneness the dead must feel, stuck inside coffins, in sealed envelopes never to be opened, fading fast in the memories of the people who knew them so well, or at least thought they did, when they were alive." Jesse feels that way on page 323, once he realizes he's gay and must denounce all of his redneck friends and family. Kyle, the older brother Jesse used to worship, will never be able to relate with him anymore. We've all been there in one way or another.
I love Paul Russell's books for how he manages to write about such dark times but with such warmth and tenderness at the heart of them. Highly recommended!
October 12, 2025
'I must be honest and say that this is the first of Paul Russell's novels that has failed to totally engage and capture my attention and interest. I have loved Mr. Russell's work since discovering 'The Boys of Life' and always thought he was an author who could never disappoint me - and I would not want anyone to not read this book because of my failure to be as pleased with it as others but - isn't there always a but, that unfortunate harbinger of disappointment? - it did not really grip or engage me.'
That was how I started my review back in 2021 and while I don't wish to reject what I said I now find that I have more respect for this novel - I think Mr. Russell whether intentionally or not was stepping into the 'culture wars' territory that preoccupies us today. I also think his examination of the way society/neighborhoods are changing is both fascinating and sympathetically handled. He would touch on the same issues in his 2015 novel 'Immaculate Blue'.
The novel has a great many quiet strengths and the more I think about it the more I like it. I do believe I will read again one day - and have no hesitation giving it four stars or recommmending it.
That was how I started my review back in 2021 and while I don't wish to reject what I said I now find that I have more respect for this novel - I think Mr. Russell whether intentionally or not was stepping into the 'culture wars' territory that preoccupies us today. I also think his examination of the way society/neighborhoods are changing is both fascinating and sympathetically handled. He would touch on the same issues in his 2015 novel 'Immaculate Blue'.
The novel has a great many quiet strengths and the more I think about it the more I like it. I do believe I will read again one day - and have no hesitation giving it four stars or recommmending it.
June 4, 2013
Oh what to say about this one?
The writer writes well. The character of Cameron Barnes, an aging AIDS afflicted homosexual is well-defined.
I'm afraid that's where my compliments end. The other characters were flat and cliched. Young Jesse is a red-neck with poor grammar. He is struggling with his sexuality. His girlfriend is chubby and dull. His mother is a flat, uninvolved chain-smoker. His brother is a stereotype of the homophobic small-town dullard. The story was tedious. Well-past-middle-age Cameron has a crush on teen age Jesse. Really? What would they possibly have in common?
We need better gay fiction than this!
The writer writes well. The character of Cameron Barnes, an aging AIDS afflicted homosexual is well-defined.
I'm afraid that's where my compliments end. The other characters were flat and cliched. Young Jesse is a red-neck with poor grammar. He is struggling with his sexuality. His girlfriend is chubby and dull. His mother is a flat, uninvolved chain-smoker. His brother is a stereotype of the homophobic small-town dullard. The story was tedious. Well-past-middle-age Cameron has a crush on teen age Jesse. Really? What would they possibly have in common?
We need better gay fiction than this!
September 25, 2014
I couldn't put this book down once I started. The two central characters glow with nuance and intricacy. And are surrounded by a tapestry of vivid characters, places, memories, regrets, passions, and ultimately as each searches for dignity in their own humiliations a not quite resolved salvation.
I highly recommend this book to admirers of good writing and well told stories of complicated people in difficult situations. This book very much deserves to stand with the best of Marilynne Robinson.
I highly recommend this book to admirers of good writing and well told stories of complicated people in difficult situations. This book very much deserves to stand with the best of Marilynne Robinson.
March 31, 2014
Paul Russell has demonstrated his gift for developing unforgettable characters in his previous work, but in his latest novel, he reaches new heights. The plot focuses on the uneasy interactions between the local citizens of a small town in upstate New York, and its growing faction of gay transplants from Manhattan and other urban areas. Russell manages to avoid any of the usual pitfalls inherent in such a plot in several ways.
February 24, 2019
This is an absolutely wonderful novel and, along with Keith Hale's Clicking Beat on the Brink of Nada, one of the two gay-themed books that I can't understand why there is no film version. It's a better story, in my opinion, than Michael Cunningham's A Home at the End of the World, and that novel made for an incredible film. Compelling characters, a setting that shapes the action, and a story that holds you close.
June 5, 2015
Fantastic! Paul Russell hooks me within 10 pages and I can not stop until I binge read till the end. This was no different. He can tell a story with suspense that will make one hold one's breath. I finished in 3 or 4 days of reading into the night and every available moment each day. This book is all kind of things, mystery, coming out, family alienation, self loathing and an ending you will not want to spoil by reading the end first! Enjoy!
September 30, 2007
written by one of my former college professors . . .
June 23, 2010
Takes place in my home ground, which is always fun. Good characters, good read.
June 7, 2012
I tried to get into it, but I couldn't.
August 19, 2012
What an incredible book!
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March 22, 2013Coming soon ......
June 24, 2013
A beautiful and captivating tale of life, death, prejudice and the endearing power of the human heart. A must on any LGBT bookshelf
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews