Say Uncle

by Eric Shaw Quinn

Discovering that he has been named guardian of his infant nephew in the will of his sister and brother-in-law, Michael must fight for custody of baby Scott, and winning this, finds parenthood to be a combination of wits, resourcefulness, and spontaneity.

Genres: LGBT, Fiction, Gay Fiction

336 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1994

About the author

ERIC SHAW QUINN wrote what would become his debut novel during his spare time while working as an advertising director and theatre critic. But Say Uncle, a comic and celebratory tale of an eccentric gay man who receives custody of his infant nephew after his sister is killed in a tragic accident, took ten years to find a publisher. The idea of a gay man raising a child was deemed so controversial at the time that one editor went to far as to reject the manuscript with the words, “You and I just march to a different drummer, Mr. Quinn.” Upon its publication, the film rights were snatched up almost immediately, where after some of Hollywood’s brightest stars spent another few years agonizing over whether or not American moviegoers were ready for such a groundbreaking look at love and family. A studio merger prevented the film from getting made. So Eric decided it was time for a pen name. As “Quinn Brockton” he wrote two original novels (Never Tear Us Apart and Always Have, Always Will) based on characters from Showtime’s hit series Queer as Folk. Soon after he was chosen to write two novels based on the wild life of mega-celebrity, Pamela Anderson. He was hired to just be the “ghost writer” but then Ms. Anderson outed him to the world during an interview with Jay Leno, and the resulting media blitz took Eric around the world, landed him a spread in the National Enquirer and earned him the title of Amazon’s #1 Chick-Lit Author of 2004. Eric's recently published his first murder mystery, Write Murder, the first in a series inspired by his sojourn in the celebrity spotlight. When he’s not busy writing novels, he writes, produces and hosts for his You Tube channel, The Dinner Party Show with Christopher Rice & Eric Shaw Quinn. (www.thedinnerpartyshow.com) You can visit his blog at www.ericshawquinn.com

Reviews

[Timothy · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s a good story, even, at times, a laugh out loud story. It’s typical of its era, though, in that the uncle is a non-threatening, unsexed eunuch. When I first read this book 27 years ago, I was so grateful that it was about a gay character that I loved it unconditionally. Now it pisses me off. That’s all I want to say.

[Stephen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Maybe one of the worst books I've ever read... and that's saying something.

[D.S. Watson · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are two distinct stories represented in "Say Uncle," neither having any real connection to each other, except that the characters are the same. The first half of the book is about a gay man who suddenly finds himself guardian of his baby nephew when his sister and her husband are killed in a car crash. A custody battle ensues with the paternal grandfather. The second half deals with the now grown nephew and his love affair with a southern belle and dealing with her ultra-rich, Texas mogul of a father. So, in reality this was two novellas smashed together.

But this is hardly the worst thing about this book.

The characters were rather two-dimensional. The uncle is your typical aging Queen, his partner is only a shadow of a figure popping in every so often to add a snarky quip to the dialogue. The nephew is a blank slate. Just a kid, no real personality of his own, nothing outstanding about him. And all the other characters were about as predictable is you can get. No nuance at all.

At the basic level, the plot is intriguing. Well, the first plot, not the second. But a gay uncle fighting for his custody rights for his nephew? That makes for good drama. Too bad that Eric Shaw Quinn stumbled over well-worn and outright ridiculous tropes to give the story flavor. And what's worse, he didn't even close out the first plot line to any satisfaction. He simply found a way to brush it off and pretend it didn't matter.

Is "Say Uncle" the worst book I've ever read? Well, no, because I have read both "Twilight" and "The Art of the Deal," both which could burn in hell for eternity for all I care. But I do feel I wasted an afternoon with this doorstop. My advice to anyone who is considering this for the summer reader... perhaps stick to the instruction manual that came with your Ikea furniture. It has a better plot.

[Krissi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great start but lacked a lot as you read through the end. Kind of predictable but not terrible.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

It may not take a genius to see that money cannot buy happiness (or love), but when that subtext is buried beneath a mass of dramatic wealth and privilege then it is even more challenging.
While this Southern Belle of an author eludes to the poverty and White Trash economy that is so ever present in poorer southern states in the US, it is always seen from the lofty view point of relaxed affluence. This is yet another example of the almost sycophantic love of class freedom in America for people to aspire to social and/ or financial climbing that is ubiquitous of that hierarchy loving nation.
This, unfortunately, detracts from the primary theme that made this work so radical in its day. That is that children can have opportunities for life and development irrespective of the social normality view of the parent; i.e. a gay man can be a good Dad (sic, Uncle) too!
Free of the distractions of life by this privileged comfort allowed a focus that highlighted these opportunities in the face of cultural (and here read politically, in a Eruo/ White paternally dominated setting) adversity.
There is a smattering of tributes to the potential of other repressed cohorts (like people of colour or women), but this salute to political correctness is usually lost as a matter of eccentricity.
As a book of humour, this novel worked extremely well.
For the more auditorily stimulated of readers I would highly recommend listening to Eric Shaw Quinn's voice on The Dinner Party Show pod cast with Christopher Rice: it certainately helped this reader who is less familiar with the nuances of Southern Style and decorum. It also gave an excellent insight into the personality and context for one of the lead protagonists, the gay Uncle.

[Taylor Parham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eric Shaw Quinn wrote a marvelous novel named Say Uncle, it was about character named Michael Reily whom was different from everybody else. He was normal guy who lived an everyday normal life: going to parties, drinking, having an office job. However, Michael was not very much liked by society as a whole because he was homophobic and this novel based on the time back when being homosexual was not accepted as much. What I like the most is how Mr. Quinn goes through this novel and not once does Michael ever flaunted that he was homosexual nor did he have a significant other. No, he was judged because of his feminine characteristics that he portrayed throughout the novel, for instance how he dressed and how he through these huge extravagant parties. Nobody made it a big deal that he was gay until after a tragedy that resulted in him having custody of his baby nephew and society as a whole believed he was not a “perfect” parent suited for this child all because he was “different.” It is just something we humans do to everybody even now, we judge a book by its cover or make stereotypes out of one another instead of supporting each other.

[Matthew Dye · Rating 3 out of 5]

WHAT?! That's the end?!?!?!

I just can't even. WTF *was* that?

The switches in point of view were jarring in the beginning, but you get used to it. Then it switches to the first person and Scott takes over, and though his voice is funny, his story is entirely conventional. Who *cares* about some increasingly spoilt straight white kid --- we've seen this book a million times --- while the much more interesting character --- the gay titular uncle --- is completely sidelined. Who *cares* about a boy discovering girls? It's a massive missed opportunity.

[Courtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok so the first part of this book is truly amazing and real. It shows how the main character truly develops and takes in his infant nephew and fights to keep him after his parents die. I felt the struggle he went through and was happy that he got to keep him in the end. Then in the second half of the book it’s though the eyes of the nephew. And I just couldn’t make myself read it anymore. It’s like ok why not make it better. It’s like two different people wrote the book. I had to stop reading it. Life is way to short to read something that you can’t get into.

[Kristofer · Rating 1 out of 5]

I added this to my 'gave-up-on' shelf. Wanted to give it a go because the guy is good friends with Chris Rice and I love most of Chris's work, however, this book was just terrible. I haven't put down a book in a long time, but this one I just couldn't get into. Characters were annoying and underdeveloped. Kind of messy.

[Scott Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is sort of cute. I think it might have been more impactful had it been published in the 90s. Society has moved on a bit from where we were then.

I frequently found myself distracted by the constant descriptions of cigarette smoking.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful, hilarious, crazy, fun story! If you are expecting the usual bachelor-turned-dad story, think again.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked Michael, but wasn’t a huge fan of Scott (which was a bulk of the book). Quite an in depth and complex coming of age story. It’s had its highlights. Steamy scale1 of 5 (Audible)

[Sumiko Saulson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nearly 20 years later, Eric Shaw Quinn's funny and often poignant look at a single gay man's struggle to gain custody of and raise his nephew is still as fresh and relevant as today's headlines.

The book takes place in a a conservative Southern town over a period of time seemingly the 70s, 80s, and 90s, and in a political environment where a gay man adopting is still controversial, and gay marriage isn't even yet on the plate. What I like best about it is it's verisimilitude... the book immediately immerses the reader in a time and a place not so far in the past when the prejudice against homosexuality was so great that the only way its gay protagonist is able to achieve respectability is to live as a veritable monk or sexual neuter. We are not so far removed from this view in modern society, and the book very naturally takes the reader back to that place.

This book is parenting and sacrifice, and the society's callous behavior towards those deemed as different or "other," specifically, in this case, Michael because he is gay, but it doesn't take a lot of reading between the lines to pick up the tone of indictment of the practice of demonizing and dehumanizing of those who are unlike ourselves. Michael is a very human character. Without ever losing its sense of humor, the book lets us feel Michael's pain and loneliness, and the lengths to which he is willing to go in order to have a family. Because he is so human, when he is treated unfairly, it resonates with the reader. We care about what happens to him.

The book was a pleasure to read, with it's light touch on heavy issues.

I had a little bit of trouble with a switch in character point of view (from uncle to nephew) that occurs in the middle of the book, but other than that I found the book's pacing very successful.

My overall impression is that this is historically important work that creates a very good window into the period of time in which it was written.

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I seriously love this book. I had to put this book on my list because it is the first book that Eric wrote, and I think that everyone should read it. Plus I wrote all that stuff about Star..so it is only fair that I add this book too. This is the touching story of a gay man who is the guardian of his sister's child following the death of her and her husband. Written at a time when there was a lot of controversy surrounding gay parenting. This story shows how one man deals with society and his role as a caretaker to raise this child. I want to reread it again now.

[Ashley Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book when I was in high school. Well actually I got half way through it and didn't finish it. I was sorry to have not finished it. I looked in every book story I could think of and went to libary trying to find it. I eventuly found it on line. I got the book finished it and loved it. I wish that Quinn would come out with another novel because I really enjoyed his writing. It's was different than anything I've read but it told a great story and I will reread it.

[Dave1962uk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book many years ago when it was first published in paperback. Today for some unknown reason it popped into my head as a book that I would love to read again so I am going to try get a copy for my kindle. Fabulous read.

[Renee · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE this book. the characters are amazing. the dialogue is great. the storyline is fantastic. the ending is simply perfect. highly recommend this. <3 Michael <3 Scott. i was hooked from the first page and couldn't put it down.

[Rhonda Brodbeck · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the non-conformist nature of the lives in this book. Good characters, good story.

[Greg · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK read, but not as promising as it could be

[Simon Exton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A joy to read. Pure entertainment.

[Samantha Hileman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most people have comfort food. I have comfort media. Movies, music, books that I turn to when the world overwhelms. This is definitely on my list of comfort reads. Amazing book.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it