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The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon
Set against the harsh reality of an unforgiving landscape and culture, The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon provides a vision of the Old West unlike anything seen before. The narrator, Shed, is one of the most memorable characters in contemporary fiction: a half-Indian bisexual boy who lives and works at the Indian Head Hotel in the tiny town of Excellent, Idaho. It's the turn of the century, and the hotel carries on a prosperous business as the town's brothel. The eccentric characters working in the hotel provide Shed with a surrogate family, yet he finds in himself a growing need to learn the meaning of his Indian name, Duivichi-un-Dua, given to him by his mother, who was murdered when he was twelve. Setting off alone across the haunting plains, Shed goes in search of an identity among his true people, encountering a rich pageant of extraordinary characters along the way. Although he learns a great deal about the mysteries and traditions of his Indian heritage, it is not until Shed returns to Excellent and witnesses a series of brutal tragedies that he attains the wisdom that infuses this exceptional and captivating book.
368 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
149 people are currently reading
6570 people want to read
About the author
Tom Spanbauer
12 books476 followersTom Spanbauer was an American writer whose work often explored issues of sexuality, race, and the ties that bind disparate people together. Raised in Idaho, Spanbauer lived in Kenya and across the United States. He later lived in Portland, Oregon, where he taught a course titled "dangerous writing". He graduated in 1988 from Columbia University with an MFA in Fiction and has written five novels.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 505 reviews
January 10, 2008
everyone loves this book. well, most people. but i gotta say that the way that spanbauer dealt with race/ethnicity in this book made me feel super yucky. and i heard an interview that he did where someone asked him about his right to write from the voices of perspectives of native characters, and i was super less than pleased with his answer.
which is a tragedy cuz a whole lot of this book is so beautiful, it makes me wanna cry. i have the same qualm with franchesa lia block and charles de lint. a ton of beauty cached in a whole lot of sketchiness. does anyone else know what to do with this?
i mean i know we talk a lot about complication and how we need to hold it, and that we live in a world that generally doesn't want to help us create complicated containers for things, but what does one do with the goodreads rating system here????
maybe we need to petition goodreads for multiple rating systems :) like one for syntax, and one for character development, and one for politics (but maybe that has to be separated by the politics of the author and the politics of the book). and don't forget the cover! we definitely need a rating system for all the covers.
don't worry, i know i'm a bit ridiculous. :P
which is a tragedy cuz a whole lot of this book is so beautiful, it makes me wanna cry. i have the same qualm with franchesa lia block and charles de lint. a ton of beauty cached in a whole lot of sketchiness. does anyone else know what to do with this?
i mean i know we talk a lot about complication and how we need to hold it, and that we live in a world that generally doesn't want to help us create complicated containers for things, but what does one do with the goodreads rating system here????
maybe we need to petition goodreads for multiple rating systems :) like one for syntax, and one for character development, and one for politics (but maybe that has to be separated by the politics of the author and the politics of the book). and don't forget the cover! we definitely need a rating system for all the covers.
don't worry, i know i'm a bit ridiculous. :P
October 13, 2015
Me ha dejado boquiabierto, en breve leeré más obras de Spanbauer que forma ya parte de mi estantería personal de libros a la que llamo MALDITA. Una estantería en la que entre otros está Denis Johnson y Cormac McCarthy, por citar a sólo dos de los integrantes.
Como ya he dicho por aquí, la primera parte (las primeras 107 páginas) ya podría ser una novela a la que daría cinco estrellas. Sin lugar a dudas esta va a ser una de las mejores novelas que he leído en los últimos seis años.
Como ya he dicho por aquí, la primera parte (las primeras 107 páginas) ya podría ser una novela a la que daría cinco estrellas. Sin lugar a dudas esta va a ser una de las mejores novelas que he leído en los últimos seis años.
September 4, 2007
This is hands down my favorite book ever written. It has changed my life more than once, and most people I recommend it to end up feeling deeply about it as well. It's raw and beautiful, and sexy and scary (in an emotional way, not in a stephen king way) and dangerous and amazing.
September 18, 2011
Oh, how I wanted to love this book. I truly did.
Over the years, it’s been highly recommended to me by writers whose work I admire and readers whose taste I trust. It has garnered glowing reviews from the NY Times, Washington Post Book World, Publishers Weekly and New York magazine, among many other well respected publications.
I almost feel badly about just how much I don’t like it.
I’ll start with what’s good. The writing is carefully composed and stylish. The narrative voice is distinctive. And the protagonists are all depicted as fairly fascinating and singular individuals. Plus there’s an element of mystery that kept me mildly absorbed until the end.
Unfortunately however, author Tom Spanbauer falls victim to many of the tropes of contemporary gay fiction and film. The book was published in 1991, suggesting that it was probably written in the late 1980’s, during the height of the Reagan presidency which gave rise to gay rage over the influence of the Christian right and the GOP’s steadfast refusal to acknowledge the seriousness of the AIDS crisis. I am all too familiar with the sub-genre of "transgressional" LGBT books/movies, including Greg Araki’s The Living End and James Robert Baker’s Tim and Pete, that depict angry gay men exacting revenge on conservatives, homophobes and haters of all stripes. Despite the fact that Spanbauer’s novel takes a different route, I can see the hallmarks of that same frustration on every page.
Nothing impedes my enjoyment of a story more than when I clearly detect the proselytizing voice of the author. If I’m reading your novel, it’s likely I’m already gay-friendly; I don’t need a sermon. The Man Who Fell In Love With The Moon is peppered with all the stereotypical messages that one can find anywhere from Glee to Latter Days to Lady Gaga videos - your family is something you choose, racism and homophobia are bad, free love is good, etc. Nothing wrong with any of these sentiments, it’s just that Spanbauer is way too obvious about it and in short order it becomes pretty tiresome.
He throws in everything (and everyone) but the kitchen sink in an effort to prove his inclusiveness. Every ethnicity, disability and gender preference is represented - a Jewish brothel owner, her lesbian lover, impoverished Native Americans, a traveling troupe of black minstrels (one of whom is a blind eunuch), an incestuous bisexual cowboy, an autistic mute, plus a handful of beleaguered beasts. And, to illustrate their acceptance of one another’s differences, just about everyone beds down with everyone else at some point or another. It all just kind of stretched the bounds of plausibility. Not to mention the bizarre suggestion that sexual energy is all powerful and healing, so the creepy remedy for someone who’s dying of gangrene is to get naked and dry hump them. Only a man could think this stuff up. Honestly.
And don’t even get me started on the villains! All the usual suspects - an overfed, latently homosexual sheriff, corrupt politicians, a big businessman intent on despoiling the environment for personal gain and, of course, judgmental [and presumably, sexually repressed] Mormons. No complexity. Just a bunch of cartoonish Snively Whiplash types.
All in all, I found the book to be overly simplistic, completely lacking in subtlety and downright preachy.
Over the years, it’s been highly recommended to me by writers whose work I admire and readers whose taste I trust. It has garnered glowing reviews from the NY Times, Washington Post Book World, Publishers Weekly and New York magazine, among many other well respected publications.
I almost feel badly about just how much I don’t like it.
I’ll start with what’s good. The writing is carefully composed and stylish. The narrative voice is distinctive. And the protagonists are all depicted as fairly fascinating and singular individuals. Plus there’s an element of mystery that kept me mildly absorbed until the end.
Unfortunately however, author Tom Spanbauer falls victim to many of the tropes of contemporary gay fiction and film. The book was published in 1991, suggesting that it was probably written in the late 1980’s, during the height of the Reagan presidency which gave rise to gay rage over the influence of the Christian right and the GOP’s steadfast refusal to acknowledge the seriousness of the AIDS crisis. I am all too familiar with the sub-genre of "transgressional" LGBT books/movies, including Greg Araki’s The Living End and James Robert Baker’s Tim and Pete, that depict angry gay men exacting revenge on conservatives, homophobes and haters of all stripes. Despite the fact that Spanbauer’s novel takes a different route, I can see the hallmarks of that same frustration on every page.
Nothing impedes my enjoyment of a story more than when I clearly detect the proselytizing voice of the author. If I’m reading your novel, it’s likely I’m already gay-friendly; I don’t need a sermon. The Man Who Fell In Love With The Moon is peppered with all the stereotypical messages that one can find anywhere from Glee to Latter Days to Lady Gaga videos - your family is something you choose, racism and homophobia are bad, free love is good, etc. Nothing wrong with any of these sentiments, it’s just that Spanbauer is way too obvious about it and in short order it becomes pretty tiresome.
He throws in everything (and everyone) but the kitchen sink in an effort to prove his inclusiveness. Every ethnicity, disability and gender preference is represented - a Jewish brothel owner, her lesbian lover, impoverished Native Americans, a traveling troupe of black minstrels (one of whom is a blind eunuch), an incestuous bisexual cowboy, an autistic mute, plus a handful of beleaguered beasts. And, to illustrate their acceptance of one another’s differences, just about everyone beds down with everyone else at some point or another. It all just kind of stretched the bounds of plausibility. Not to mention the bizarre suggestion that sexual energy is all powerful and healing, so the creepy remedy for someone who’s dying of gangrene is to get naked and dry hump them. Only a man could think this stuff up. Honestly.
And don’t even get me started on the villains! All the usual suspects - an overfed, latently homosexual sheriff, corrupt politicians, a big businessman intent on despoiling the environment for personal gain and, of course, judgmental [and presumably, sexually repressed] Mormons. No complexity. Just a bunch of cartoonish Snively Whiplash types.
All in all, I found the book to be overly simplistic, completely lacking in subtlety and downright preachy.
December 18, 2009
ohmygod. this book. holy fuck. incred. i could not stop reading it, just devoured it. all the themes that Spanbauer deals with; sexuality, family, gender, race, class, religion- that is the stuff that makes up our lives. and he just takes it all and shakes it up and lays it back down in a totally different order, one that makes sense and feels right. I am usually hesitant to read native american stuff written by white dudes but i'm so glad i read this one. some of the stuff made my mind feel like it was being pushed wide open and then other stuff felt so familiar and intimate that i constantly felt like i was being pulled and pushed by the narrative. it felt like a unceasing, unrelenting challenge to morality and all of the bullshit that oppresses us and there were moments where i just wanted to stand up on the #22 clark st. bus and cheer. and moments where i wanted to scream at him to stop hurting shed and ida and alma and dellwood because i couldn't take it any more. but i think it hurt alot not because it was excessive but because it was completely plausible. it was also one of the best trans stories i've read, told in a fluid natural way. and the fucking! jesus. i loved how much sex these characters had and the openness they had about sex and sexuality. i also loved how much butt sex there was and the acknowledgement of how much "straight" guys love it. fantastic.
December 29, 2017
Shed is just the best character ever written. Or is it Ida and Alma? I adore this book like treasure.
March 17, 2018
An older person I deeply respect told me this is the book they give to potential lovers and friends as a sort of vetting process. Those too offended to appreciate it are not, as she says, invited to dinner.
For myself, I will be sitting at her side.
This book is a masterpiece.
For myself, I will be sitting at her side.
This book is a masterpiece.
June 12, 2022
Novel·la de formació ambientada en plena febre de l'or a l'estat d'Idaho, a cavall entre el segle XIX i el XX. Seguirem en Duivichi-un-Dua (o Fora-al-Cobert), un noi mestís i bisexual, al llarg de la seva transició cap a la vida adulta, íntimament lligada al bordell de l'Ida Richilieu on ha crescut i treballat. És un llibre de confrontació amb un mateix i de trobar els orígens, de forjar la pròpia identitat, de descobrir l'amor i la sexualitat en totes les seves vessants. Però no és només això.
També és un viatge per la història recent de l'Oest americà, una crítica envers el racisme i l'aniquilació i submissió forçada dels indis americans i dels negres. Del significat de família com allò que es tria, una família atípica i fins i tot còmica però que té uns noms propis que segurament em costaran d'oblidar: Ida, Alma, Dellwood, Coi-d'en-Dave. Destacar-ne també la riquesa cultural i bellesa paisatgística, descrites de manera exquisida, en contraposició amb la misèria i devastació més absolutes.
Un llibre que toca totes les tecles i que m'ha absorbit, intrigat i alhora incomodat, si tenir aquesta barreja de sensacions és possible. Spanbauer s'ho passa bé jugant amb els estereotips i forçant-nos a revisar els nostres tabús culturals. Els seus tentacles abarquen tant allò més místic i bell com la violència i vexació més extremes. I fa que els extrems es toquin, es barregin i ens confonguin. Un nou 'pepinassu' que @lesaltresherbes ja va anunciar al directe que vam fer (disponible al nostre feed, minut 48) que segueix en la línia de no deixar-nos indiferents. Crec que s'hi ha d'anar preparat, perquè els temes dels quals tracta no són fàcils de digerir. Però un cop acabat, i no ho dic per dir, afirmo que no havia llegit mai quelcom semblant.
(LAIA
També és un viatge per la història recent de l'Oest americà, una crítica envers el racisme i l'aniquilació i submissió forçada dels indis americans i dels negres. Del significat de família com allò que es tria, una família atípica i fins i tot còmica però que té uns noms propis que segurament em costaran d'oblidar: Ida, Alma, Dellwood, Coi-d'en-Dave. Destacar-ne també la riquesa cultural i bellesa paisatgística, descrites de manera exquisida, en contraposició amb la misèria i devastació més absolutes.
Un llibre que toca totes les tecles i que m'ha absorbit, intrigat i alhora incomodat, si tenir aquesta barreja de sensacions és possible. Spanbauer s'ho passa bé jugant amb els estereotips i forçant-nos a revisar els nostres tabús culturals. Els seus tentacles abarquen tant allò més místic i bell com la violència i vexació més extremes. I fa que els extrems es toquin, es barregin i ens confonguin. Un nou 'pepinassu' que @lesaltresherbes ja va anunciar al directe que vam fer (disponible al nostre feed, minut 48) que segueix en la línia de no deixar-nos indiferents. Crec que s'hi ha d'anar preparat, perquè els temes dels quals tracta no són fàcils de digerir. Però un cop acabat, i no ho dic per dir, afirmo que no havia llegit mai quelcom semblant.
(LAIA
April 22, 2009
Objectively this book is problematic as fuck. It includes a minstrel show, presents underage prostitution as a rocking good time, rape as not that big a deal and there's a dead Indian shaman living the body of our protaganist. Oh yeah, and it has a casual attitude towards incest.
But then, our hero is a boy named Out-in-the-Shed which is also used throughout the book as euphemism for sodomy, and really, what's not to like about that?
Despite not making a whole lot of sense and being just a tiny bit too entranced with the wild and wacky unusualness of its character, "The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon" is surprisingly compassionate and sweet. It believes in love, justice and the magical properties of delayed ejaculation.
But then, our hero is a boy named Out-in-the-Shed which is also used throughout the book as euphemism for sodomy, and really, what's not to like about that?
Despite not making a whole lot of sense and being just a tiny bit too entranced with the wild and wacky unusualness of its character, "The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon" is surprisingly compassionate and sweet. It believes in love, justice and the magical properties of delayed ejaculation.
July 2, 2007
I thought this book was hokey. The attempts at multi-racial/multi-cultural inclusion were insulting, and the sexuality reminded me of the way sleazy neo-hippies try to seduce people.
March 23, 2008
I'm really torn about this book. It's a beautiful, heart wrenching story that often sits close to home. The way it deals with queerness makes me really happy. It addresses hard issues and is full of interesting, well crafted characters.
On the other side, it's written by a white man, and I find its portrayals of native people and women to be stereotypical in the most offensive ways possible. The main character is a queer, male, native american prostitute who is attempting to find love, himself, his "people", and the buffalo. Usually, these types of overarching stereotypes would completely turn me off to a book. This time, I find the story so compelling that I keep reading. It's mythical in scope and so personal that it touches parts of me that I'm somewhat uncomfortable with.
On the other side, it's written by a white man, and I find its portrayals of native people and women to be stereotypical in the most offensive ways possible. The main character is a queer, male, native american prostitute who is attempting to find love, himself, his "people", and the buffalo. Usually, these types of overarching stereotypes would completely turn me off to a book. This time, I find the story so compelling that I keep reading. It's mythical in scope and so personal that it touches parts of me that I'm somewhat uncomfortable with.
March 6, 2019
This may very well be a very good book, but it isn't for me. All of the characters are hypersexual to the point that it seems ridiculous to me, and I'm unable to relate to any of their thoughts or motivations.
The author tries very hard to wrap the constant sex scenes in poetic words, and it didn't work for me. I ended up scoffing at half of the novel, but this could very well be my own bias(not being a very sexual person myself).
I do have a hard time imagining certain scenes not being ridiculous, whatever my sexuality.
Also, the demonizing of conservative religious people in this book(albeit deserved) was heavy handed and took away from the meaning of the novel. All the nonreligious people were great in the bed, wonderful people, well endowed, intelligent, and having sex all the time. All the religious people were loud and obnoxious prudes, jealous of the people having sex all the time, closeted homosexuals or bisexuals, ignorant morons, and cowards.
I do feel as if, perhaps I'm too literal minded to enjoy a novel like this, but I've been able to enjoy similar novels in the past(Now is the Hour by the same author for one). I hesitate to give it two stars, because I think it may be a wonderful eye opening novel for certain people. In the end though, I'm not one of those people and can only rate it based on my own enjoyment of it.
The author tries very hard to wrap the constant sex scenes in poetic words, and it didn't work for me. I ended up scoffing at half of the novel, but this could very well be my own bias(not being a very sexual person myself).
I do have a hard time imagining certain scenes not being ridiculous, whatever my sexuality.
Also, the demonizing of conservative religious people in this book(albeit deserved) was heavy handed and took away from the meaning of the novel. All the nonreligious people were great in the bed, wonderful people, well endowed, intelligent, and having sex all the time. All the religious people were loud and obnoxious prudes, jealous of the people having sex all the time, closeted homosexuals or bisexuals, ignorant morons, and cowards.
I do feel as if, perhaps I'm too literal minded to enjoy a novel like this, but I've been able to enjoy similar novels in the past(Now is the Hour by the same author for one). I hesitate to give it two stars, because I think it may be a wonderful eye opening novel for certain people. In the end though, I'm not one of those people and can only rate it based on my own enjoyment of it.
December 5, 2007
This book was amazing (5 stars, Yeah!). I just finished reading it and I'm already ready to read it again. The story involves Native Americans, and Cowboys, and Whores, and Mormons, and Homos, and Drunks, and Bad Guys, and Good Guys, and Animals and More. I think Tom Spanbauer is pretty much a genius. He tells you the horrible things that are going to happen at the very beginning of the book, and then tricks you into forgetting all about it until the very end. And then, on top of everything that happens, he throws in an extra tidbit of information that just breaks your heart even more. What a great read!
May 18, 2022
El meu debut en l'obra de Tom Spanbauer no ha pogut estar més satisfactori. L'home que es va enamorar de la lluna m'ha captivat per la seva bellesa, a estones m'ha corprès, en d'altres m'ha enrabiat, en definitiva, m'ha generat emocions de tota mena. Aleshores, què més se li pot demanar a un llibre? Història i personatges potents, per exemple. Doncs aquí també els trobarem, des del narrador en primera persona i gran protagonista: en Cobert, un noi mestís —meitat blanc, meitat indi— i bisexual que es guanya la vida prostituint-se, fins a l'Alma Hatch, la Ida Richilieu o el cowboy Dellwood Barker. Tots ells estan perfectament construïts, tenen molta força i es connecten els uns amb els altres per acabar conformant aquesta història fascinant. A més, costa treure-te'ls del cap una vegada finalitzada la lectura.
També hi he trobat aquells punts que caracteritzen la famosa Dangerous writing promoguda per Spanbauer en els seus tallers d'escriptura, especialment en el que fa referència al fet d'escriure sobre temes tabús o que causen por o vergonya en l'escriptor, tractant-los de la manera més sincera possible. I parlant d'això mateix, una de les coses que més m'ha fascinat del llibre és com Spanbauer entoma temes força complexos d'una manera clara i lliure, i precisament aquesta llibertat és un dels punts més importants que podem extreure de la lectura: tenir relacions sexuals amb una persona, independentment del seu gènere, deixant palés que la masculinitat o la feminitat no deixen de ser una construcció social, igual que la raça —també tractada aquí—; ser lliure per pensar i fer el que vulguis sense supeditar-te a modes o a formes acceptades per la majoria; l'opció de morir lliurement. Aquesta és la veritable llibertat i no la que ens pot ser promesa des d'un estat o una bandera.
Quina joia de lectura, maleït mestre Spanbauer, m'has introduït el teu verí i ara necessito llegir tot el que has escrit.
També hi he trobat aquells punts que caracteritzen la famosa Dangerous writing promoguda per Spanbauer en els seus tallers d'escriptura, especialment en el que fa referència al fet d'escriure sobre temes tabús o que causen por o vergonya en l'escriptor, tractant-los de la manera més sincera possible. I parlant d'això mateix, una de les coses que més m'ha fascinat del llibre és com Spanbauer entoma temes força complexos d'una manera clara i lliure, i precisament aquesta llibertat és un dels punts més importants que podem extreure de la lectura: tenir relacions sexuals amb una persona, independentment del seu gènere, deixant palés que la masculinitat o la feminitat no deixen de ser una construcció social, igual que la raça —també tractada aquí—; ser lliure per pensar i fer el que vulguis sense supeditar-te a modes o a formes acceptades per la majoria; l'opció de morir lliurement. Aquesta és la veritable llibertat i no la que ens pot ser promesa des d'un estat o una bandera.
Quina joia de lectura, maleït mestre Spanbauer, m'has introduït el teu verí i ara necessito llegir tot el que has escrit.
November 30, 2018
"Aquellos que tienen algo que necesitan esconder siempre odian a aquellos que no lo esconden."
Una de las novelas que más me ha emocionado durante toda la lectura. Sin prejuicios ni tapujos, de la forma más natural posible, Tom Spanbauer nos cuenta la historia de un Indio que necesita descubrir quién es y de dónde proviene. Durante su descubrimiento personal, se incluye también el descubrimiento sexual y familiar. Una novela para leer con la mente muy abierta. La narración es preciosa y lo que cuenta también, además de retratar la época y el lugar a la perfección nos hace replantearnos lo normal, lo normativo y como el deseo va más allá de todo eso. Desde la primera frase te sumerges en el mundo cruel y mágico del oeste.
Una de las novelas que más me ha emocionado durante toda la lectura. Sin prejuicios ni tapujos, de la forma más natural posible, Tom Spanbauer nos cuenta la historia de un Indio que necesita descubrir quién es y de dónde proviene. Durante su descubrimiento personal, se incluye también el descubrimiento sexual y familiar. Una novela para leer con la mente muy abierta. La narración es preciosa y lo que cuenta también, además de retratar la época y el lugar a la perfección nos hace replantearnos lo normal, lo normativo y como el deseo va más allá de todo eso. Desde la primera frase te sumerges en el mundo cruel y mágico del oeste.
June 24, 2010
I love this book beyond all reason. But the other women in my book club despised it, and I can see their point of view, too. The sexual abuse of the main character is so twisted that most of them couldn't get beyond it. I didn't have children at the time and now that I do, I realize that might have been a game changer for me, too.
I found myself utterly haunted by these strange, otherworldly characters who formed such a poetically bizarre family. I still don't know quite how or why it works, since this is the kind of writing that can so easily become pointedly obtuse or eagerly lend itself to parody. But when it works, to me this is the kind of writing that strikes that common chord of our humanity, creating the deepest kind of resonance. This book most definitely worked that way for me, and when it was over, I thought of it for weeks and months afterward, and eventually read it again, something I have only done with a handful of books in my life.
I found myself utterly haunted by these strange, otherworldly characters who formed such a poetically bizarre family. I still don't know quite how or why it works, since this is the kind of writing that can so easily become pointedly obtuse or eagerly lend itself to parody. But when it works, to me this is the kind of writing that strikes that common chord of our humanity, creating the deepest kind of resonance. This book most definitely worked that way for me, and when it was over, I thought of it for weeks and months afterward, and eventually read it again, something I have only done with a handful of books in my life.
June 16, 2023
collons, feia temps que no llegia un llibre dels que et sacsegen per totes bandes d'aquesta manera.
April 22, 2025
"Si tu eres el diablo, no soy yo quien cuenta esta historia" 𓅯
No me creeréis cuando os digo que escribir esta reseña es hasta duro para mi, porque significa que he terminado. Pues aquí estoy, sentado en el ordenador, que es donde se escriben las cosas que importan (después del diario y del grupo conmigo mismo), haciendo esta reseña.
Llegué a este libro tras la firma de libros de Alana Portero este febrero en Oviedo. Cuando alguien del público le preguntó cuáles eran sus referentes o libros que le inspiraron, habló de "El muchacho persa" de Mary Renault, de "Fuegos" de Marguerite Yourcenar y finalmente de este, de Tom Spanbauer.
A mi La Mala Costumbre me encantó y escuchar a Alana también, así que me lo compré sin saber mucho de él. Yo no le conocía, aunque parecía que estaba esperándome. Como algunas de mis gatitas sabréis, uno de mis libros favoritos es "Monstruos Invisibles" de Chuck Palahniuk. Me gustó mucho porque cuando lo leí no había leído nunca nada igual. Era una escritura directa, cruda, era muy visceral y humana. Cual fue mi sorpresa cuando veo que Chuck Palahniuk aprendió a escribir asistiendo a las clases de Tom Spanbauer, a las clases de lo que el llamaba "escritura peligrosa".
La escritura peligrosa, por lo que he leído, es escribir de lo que más te aterra, de algo que tengas sin resolver. "Una historia loca contada por una vieja loca tendría que haceros pensar" . Leer a Tom ha sido como encontrarme con alguien que me estaba esperando. Según avanzaba veía a Alana y veía a Palahniuk, y veía a Margarita y a Brandy Alexander.
Tom, escritor de Idhao, bisexual, defensor de la justicia inteligente, da vida en "El hombre que se enamoró de la luna" a una serie de personajes inolvidables, no solo por su personalidad, más bien por su manera de escribir. De narrar las cosas. De narrar las paisajes, de cerrar los párrafos y las frases. Es que nunca había leído nada igual. Tarde tanto en leerlo porque cada cierre de párrafo o descripción me decían "suficiente por hoy, tengo que parar".
Es imposible definir la sexualidad del protagonista. En realidad de casi ningún personaje. Es una oda a la sexualidad, al amor, a la maternidad, a correr detrás de algo que tienes en frente, a esconderse, a los cuerpos, a querernos, a bailar, a tocar nuestros cuerpos y salir a escuchar.
Solo una vez antes me había pasado que había acabado un libro y me puse a llorar. El libro ya era perfecto pero el final lo cambió todo. Según terminé, me puse a leerlo de nuevo porque todo era distinto. Será algo que haga constantemente a partir de ahora.
Sin querer ser más pesada, hace menos de un año que Tom falleció y creo que se llevó consigo muchas respuestas. Yo lo conocí justo después. Creo que este es mi libro favorito y que Tom es la persona que mas me gusta como escribe del mundo. Así que espero que esté donde esté el Gran Misterio le haya dado alas de teru teru.
"Más allá de la última farola, en todas las direcciones, allí donde terminaba la luz, en la oscuridad, el cielo, inmenso, también esperaba". ⏾
No me creeréis cuando os digo que escribir esta reseña es hasta duro para mi, porque significa que he terminado. Pues aquí estoy, sentado en el ordenador, que es donde se escriben las cosas que importan (después del diario y del grupo conmigo mismo), haciendo esta reseña.
Llegué a este libro tras la firma de libros de Alana Portero este febrero en Oviedo. Cuando alguien del público le preguntó cuáles eran sus referentes o libros que le inspiraron, habló de "El muchacho persa" de Mary Renault, de "Fuegos" de Marguerite Yourcenar y finalmente de este, de Tom Spanbauer.
A mi La Mala Costumbre me encantó y escuchar a Alana también, así que me lo compré sin saber mucho de él. Yo no le conocía, aunque parecía que estaba esperándome. Como algunas de mis gatitas sabréis, uno de mis libros favoritos es "Monstruos Invisibles" de Chuck Palahniuk. Me gustó mucho porque cuando lo leí no había leído nunca nada igual. Era una escritura directa, cruda, era muy visceral y humana. Cual fue mi sorpresa cuando veo que Chuck Palahniuk aprendió a escribir asistiendo a las clases de Tom Spanbauer, a las clases de lo que el llamaba "escritura peligrosa".
La escritura peligrosa, por lo que he leído, es escribir de lo que más te aterra, de algo que tengas sin resolver. "Una historia loca contada por una vieja loca tendría que haceros pensar" . Leer a Tom ha sido como encontrarme con alguien que me estaba esperando. Según avanzaba veía a Alana y veía a Palahniuk, y veía a Margarita y a Brandy Alexander.
Tom, escritor de Idhao, bisexual, defensor de la justicia inteligente, da vida en "El hombre que se enamoró de la luna" a una serie de personajes inolvidables, no solo por su personalidad, más bien por su manera de escribir. De narrar las cosas. De narrar las paisajes, de cerrar los párrafos y las frases. Es que nunca había leído nada igual. Tarde tanto en leerlo porque cada cierre de párrafo o descripción me decían "suficiente por hoy, tengo que parar".
Es imposible definir la sexualidad del protagonista. En realidad de casi ningún personaje. Es una oda a la sexualidad, al amor, a la maternidad, a correr detrás de algo que tienes en frente, a esconderse, a los cuerpos, a querernos, a bailar, a tocar nuestros cuerpos y salir a escuchar.
Solo una vez antes me había pasado que había acabado un libro y me puse a llorar. El libro ya era perfecto pero el final lo cambió todo. Según terminé, me puse a leerlo de nuevo porque todo era distinto. Será algo que haga constantemente a partir de ahora.
Sin querer ser más pesada, hace menos de un año que Tom falleció y creo que se llevó consigo muchas respuestas. Yo lo conocí justo después. Creo que este es mi libro favorito y que Tom es la persona que mas me gusta como escribe del mundo. Así que espero que esté donde esté el Gran Misterio le haya dado alas de teru teru.
"Más allá de la última farola, en todas las direcciones, allí donde terminaba la luz, en la oscuridad, el cielo, inmenso, también esperaba". ⏾
August 13, 2017
***SPOILERS
On the surface, this book sounded exactly like the sort of book that I would thoroughly enjoy: an exploration of race, gender, sexuality and spirituality under a western backdrop. However, whilst these topics are touched upon, I was sorely disappointed by Spanbauer's preoccupation with 'dicks' and 'f**king' which ultimately ruined this book for me, along with the pointless conclusion.
It becomes immediately clear that Spanbauer does not want to shy away from taboo topics in this novel, presented through his "dangerous writing" style. I went into this book aware that difficult topics would be addressed. However, I had issues with the ways in which these issues were fantasied about. For example, the incest involved was portrayed as idealistic and romantic - Shed is aware the Dellwood could be his father, but sleeps with him anyway in a romantic setting; and when Dellwood also realizes that they are father and son, they have another sexual encounter by a fire, under the moon. This fantasist eroticism about incest angered me, and I almost put the book down at this point, as Spanbauer did not provide any reasoning for the characters' actions, which left me feeling disconnected from them and frustrated with Spanbauer.
Also, after Dellwood hacks Ida's legs off, the characters have a three way, which again is romanticized into a warped spiritual experience, when in reality, Ida is having two men performing sex acts against her whilst she is unconscious. Ida is then raped by the primary antagonist, and then after Shed saves her, he 'puts his dick in her' and has sex with her himself, again which is portrayed as spiritual, which completely ruined this scene for me.
By the end, this book had infuriated me and I forced myself to finish it. The end really deflated me, as it cancels out the whole story: Shed is revealed to not even be Native American. So this whole journey he was on to be reunited with his heritage becomes farcical.
For me, it seems that Spanbauer wanted to push the reader as far as he could for the ultimate shock factor. This came across as arrogant to me, and it's a shame as he ruined some potentially great scenes between the characters.
Though, I did like Spanbauer's characterization. You felt like the individuals were actual people, and the town, Excellent, is commendably set up to feel alive and breathing. It's just a shame that I couldn't find any sort of likability for the characters due to their obsession with f**king.
On the surface, this book sounded exactly like the sort of book that I would thoroughly enjoy: an exploration of race, gender, sexuality and spirituality under a western backdrop. However, whilst these topics are touched upon, I was sorely disappointed by Spanbauer's preoccupation with 'dicks' and 'f**king' which ultimately ruined this book for me, along with the pointless conclusion.
It becomes immediately clear that Spanbauer does not want to shy away from taboo topics in this novel, presented through his "dangerous writing" style. I went into this book aware that difficult topics would be addressed. However, I had issues with the ways in which these issues were fantasied about. For example, the incest involved was portrayed as idealistic and romantic - Shed is aware the Dellwood could be his father, but sleeps with him anyway in a romantic setting; and when Dellwood also realizes that they are father and son, they have another sexual encounter by a fire, under the moon. This fantasist eroticism about incest angered me, and I almost put the book down at this point, as Spanbauer did not provide any reasoning for the characters' actions, which left me feeling disconnected from them and frustrated with Spanbauer.
Also, after Dellwood hacks Ida's legs off, the characters have a three way, which again is romanticized into a warped spiritual experience, when in reality, Ida is having two men performing sex acts against her whilst she is unconscious. Ida is then raped by the primary antagonist, and then after Shed saves her, he 'puts his dick in her' and has sex with her himself, again which is portrayed as spiritual, which completely ruined this scene for me.
By the end, this book had infuriated me and I forced myself to finish it. The end really deflated me, as it cancels out the whole story: Shed is revealed to not even be Native American. So this whole journey he was on to be reunited with his heritage becomes farcical.
For me, it seems that Spanbauer wanted to push the reader as far as he could for the ultimate shock factor. This came across as arrogant to me, and it's a shame as he ruined some potentially great scenes between the characters.
Though, I did like Spanbauer's characterization. You felt like the individuals were actual people, and the town, Excellent, is commendably set up to feel alive and breathing. It's just a shame that I couldn't find any sort of likability for the characters due to their obsession with f**king.
November 5, 2023
Libro interesante y complicado. Nos narra la vida de Cobertizo, un chico mestizo criado en un prostíbulo, bisexual, en un pueblo con cada vez más presencia religiosa (en este caso, mormones). Un pueblo de pocos años de vida, con la promesa de las minas, con la decadencia del lejano oeste y el alcohol y el opio presente para los que querían divertirse a pesar de todo.
Aquí Spanbauer nos hace hincapié en dos cosas: una, la familia que uno elige, lo importante que suele ser. Dos, el racismo de raza y religión que existía y existe en EEUU y de las pocas oportunidades que tuvieron los indios para poder tener una vida digna. Hay otros temas tratados en esta historia que no me han gustado. La primera, la aparente poca importancia a la violación que padece de niño Cobertizo. La segunda es el trato que se le da a la prostitución, pareciendo que los personajes que trabajan en la casa de Ida son super felices haciendo lo que hacen ya que son la antítesis a los mormones. Puedo entender el punto, pero desde luego no me parece soñador poner a trabajar a alguien de 12 en un prostíbulo, y más después de un trauma semejante. Punto fuerte a los cuatro personajes principales y los secundarios. Cada uno tiene cosas bonitas, otras loquísimas y por último se hacen querer por el vínculo que forman entre ellos. Pocos libros he leído con una familia tan disfuncional como la aquí descrita. Un pero que le pongo al libro, a veces es un poco repetitivo.
¿Me ha gustado? Si y no. Pero me ha hecho pensar, sufrir, descubrir, maldecir, y creo que es lo que el autor quería, así que más que conseguido. Y he amado a Cobertizo, por ser como es y por lo que luchó para conocerse a sí mismo.
Aquí Spanbauer nos hace hincapié en dos cosas: una, la familia que uno elige, lo importante que suele ser. Dos, el racismo de raza y religión que existía y existe en EEUU y de las pocas oportunidades que tuvieron los indios para poder tener una vida digna. Hay otros temas tratados en esta historia que no me han gustado. La primera, la aparente poca importancia a la violación que padece de niño Cobertizo. La segunda es el trato que se le da a la prostitución, pareciendo que los personajes que trabajan en la casa de Ida son super felices haciendo lo que hacen ya que son la antítesis a los mormones. Puedo entender el punto, pero desde luego no me parece soñador poner a trabajar a alguien de 12 en un prostíbulo, y más después de un trauma semejante. Punto fuerte a los cuatro personajes principales y los secundarios. Cada uno tiene cosas bonitas, otras loquísimas y por último se hacen querer por el vínculo que forman entre ellos. Pocos libros he leído con una familia tan disfuncional como la aquí descrita. Un pero que le pongo al libro, a veces es un poco repetitivo.
¿Me ha gustado? Si y no. Pero me ha hecho pensar, sufrir, descubrir, maldecir, y creo que es lo que el autor quería, así que más que conseguido. Y he amado a Cobertizo, por ser como es y por lo que luchó para conocerse a sí mismo.
March 17, 2017
Sin duda este libro ha sido toda una revelación. Lo empecé sin ganas y me sorprendió a cada paso. Es tan original que da hasta vértigo porque muchas veces no sabes como interpretar las cosas que te cuenta el narrador. El narrador, por cierto, es lo mejor de toda la historia.
Lo recomendaría, pero no a todo el mundo. Creo que hay que tener una mente abierta para leerlo e intentar no juzgarlo en ciertos sentidos, principalmente porque hay que darse cuenta de el tipo de sociedad y de época en la que está ambientado y tb porque en el fondo es una especie de realismo mágico en el que no puedes creerlo todo al cien por cien.
Lo recomendaría, pero no a todo el mundo. Creo que hay que tener una mente abierta para leerlo e intentar no juzgarlo en ciertos sentidos, principalmente porque hay que darse cuenta de el tipo de sociedad y de época en la que está ambientado y tb porque en el fondo es una especie de realismo mágico en el que no puedes creerlo todo al cien por cien.
June 19, 2019
“What’s a human being without a story?”
Author Tom Spanbauer’s storytelling is delivered in a method he calls “dangerous writing”. His brand of prose—plain-spoken and evocative, personal and sensual, forcing readers to face things we may not wish to see—places the inscape in direct communion with the story’s landscape. It is the act of looking people in the eye, because to look into someone else’s eyes situates us all on a human level, making it difficult, if not impossible, not to commiserate. In the case of The Man Who Fell in Love With the Moon, the gaze of its narrator, Out-In-The-Shed—Shed for short—aims directly into his readers’ eyes, into the imagination and kindred minds of those who accompany him on this journey. We are not passive observers of his story. Shed invokes and provokes empathy and passion, sorrows and all the active things inside us that encompass imagination and sex and what it means to be a part of something greater than ourselves, but to also be at one with who we are. Our human-being stories.
Shed believes that through our experiences and in their sharing, we each become our own story. His own begins as an invitation to join him—as long as we're not the devil—to act as cohort and confidante as he regales us with an extraordinary tale of becoming—becoming real, becoming human, becoming someone and everyone at the same time. His is a tale of not knowing how to be, because he does not know the meaning of his true name, Duivichi-un-Dua. How can a man be if he doesn’t know who he is?
Shed’s story ends how it begins—“If you’re the devil, then it’s not me telling the story.”—and it is not an easy one to follow at times. He straddles two worlds and yet belongs fully to neither. Things happen to him rather than him being their motivation. The late 19th and early 20th centuries provide the canvas for a bald-faced portrait of racism, prejudice, and an egregious history of erasure of the tribes and tribal customs by the white man, the white government, and the arrogance of the white missionaries who, with their dogmatic ideologies and self-proclaimed pure Christian values, only wished to civilize the savages and purge their otherness. Told in retrospect, his tale includes some of Shed’s earliest memories: how he was orphaned at the age of ten or eleven; how, at the age of twelve, he became a whore, same as his mother. How we was born two-spirited, a Berdache, “a holy man who fucks with men”, servicing those who crave something the women can’t give them…out in the shed behind the Indian Head Hotel.
We follow Shed and the people who are his found and chosen and bawdy family: Ida Richilieu, Alma Hatch, and Dellwood Barker—the man Shed loves the most ever, the man who fell in love with the moon—through the death of Shed’s mother, Princess; through a war with the Mormons in the small town of Excellent, Idaho; through Shed’s journey to discover who he is; through loss and the discovery of truths and untruths; through his beautiful human-being story.
The Man Who Fell in Love With the Moon is a book unlike any I’ve read before, and my head was so full of its story when I finished that I couldn’t think of much else for the longest while. Fair warning, though: it isn’t always an easy read. Shed describes it as a crazy story about crazy people told by a crazy. That is fairly accurate. But it is also a story of strength and love and resilience. It is a story filled with a magical sort of realism and spiritualism that mingles with all manner of human trials and tribulations. It is a story about speaking truths out loud because sometimes silence is the sound of fear.
Reviewed for The Novel Approach
Author Tom Spanbauer’s storytelling is delivered in a method he calls “dangerous writing”. His brand of prose—plain-spoken and evocative, personal and sensual, forcing readers to face things we may not wish to see—places the inscape in direct communion with the story’s landscape. It is the act of looking people in the eye, because to look into someone else’s eyes situates us all on a human level, making it difficult, if not impossible, not to commiserate. In the case of The Man Who Fell in Love With the Moon, the gaze of its narrator, Out-In-The-Shed—Shed for short—aims directly into his readers’ eyes, into the imagination and kindred minds of those who accompany him on this journey. We are not passive observers of his story. Shed invokes and provokes empathy and passion, sorrows and all the active things inside us that encompass imagination and sex and what it means to be a part of something greater than ourselves, but to also be at one with who we are. Our human-being stories.
Shed believes that through our experiences and in their sharing, we each become our own story. His own begins as an invitation to join him—as long as we're not the devil—to act as cohort and confidante as he regales us with an extraordinary tale of becoming—becoming real, becoming human, becoming someone and everyone at the same time. His is a tale of not knowing how to be, because he does not know the meaning of his true name, Duivichi-un-Dua. How can a man be if he doesn’t know who he is?
“By telling your story, the knowledge you have will become understanding, and that—knowledge becoming understanding—is better than anything there is to feel.”
Shed’s story ends how it begins—“If you’re the devil, then it’s not me telling the story.”—and it is not an easy one to follow at times. He straddles two worlds and yet belongs fully to neither. Things happen to him rather than him being their motivation. The late 19th and early 20th centuries provide the canvas for a bald-faced portrait of racism, prejudice, and an egregious history of erasure of the tribes and tribal customs by the white man, the white government, and the arrogance of the white missionaries who, with their dogmatic ideologies and self-proclaimed pure Christian values, only wished to civilize the savages and purge their otherness. Told in retrospect, his tale includes some of Shed’s earliest memories: how he was orphaned at the age of ten or eleven; how, at the age of twelve, he became a whore, same as his mother. How we was born two-spirited, a Berdache, “a holy man who fucks with men”, servicing those who crave something the women can’t give them…out in the shed behind the Indian Head Hotel.
“The only me I know is not me. I must have been born that way, and so far living hasn’t helped out any.”
We follow Shed and the people who are his found and chosen and bawdy family: Ida Richilieu, Alma Hatch, and Dellwood Barker—the man Shed loves the most ever, the man who fell in love with the moon—through the death of Shed’s mother, Princess; through a war with the Mormons in the small town of Excellent, Idaho; through Shed’s journey to discover who he is; through loss and the discovery of truths and untruths; through his beautiful human-being story.
“The only thing that keeps us from floating off with the wind is our stories. They give us a name and put us in a place, allow us to keep on touching.”
The Man Who Fell in Love With the Moon is a book unlike any I’ve read before, and my head was so full of its story when I finished that I couldn’t think of much else for the longest while. Fair warning, though: it isn’t always an easy read. Shed describes it as a crazy story about crazy people told by a crazy. That is fairly accurate. But it is also a story of strength and love and resilience. It is a story filled with a magical sort of realism and spiritualism that mingles with all manner of human trials and tribulations. It is a story about speaking truths out loud because sometimes silence is the sound of fear.
Reviewed for The Novel Approach
August 6, 2009
El año pasado, por estas mismas fechas, cerraba Ahora es el momento después de un punto y final particularmente intenso. No es anormal que acabe un libro llorando... aunque tampoco es lo más común. Y más allá del sentimentalismo con el que recuerdo aquella lectura, se me quedaron dentro muchas otras impresiones igual de impactantes. Hoy, por estas fechas, acabo de cerrar El hombre que se enamoró de la luna y todo ha vuelto a mi mente, como cuando un olor antiguo te obliga a rescatar memorias perdidas.
El orden de lectura inverso, sin embargo, me ha pasado factura. Una vez leído Ahora es el momento, en El hombre que se enamoró de la luna es inevitable ir tropezando con ciertos vicios que, se nota, Spanbauer ha ido puliendo con el paso del tiempo. Y es que el segundo libro de este autor (el primero es Lugares Remotos) peca, precisamente, de intentar elevar unos palmos no sólo la altura de los ojos de sus protagonistas, sino la del propio escritor y (pretendidamente) la del lector: la trama se ve salpicada de un misticismo algo excesivo que hace que el libro aterrice en las peligrosas aguas pantanosas del realismo mágico... Pero, sorprendentemente, y pese a este pequeño lastre, Spanbauer sale del embolado con nota. Incluso con nota de excelente (de 8.5 que el profesor decide subir porque le cae bien el alumno).
Y todo gracias a su espectacular capacidad para abrir el pecho de sus personajes y dejar al descubierto sus entrañas de la forma más dulce y sutil, mientras los maneja con hilos invisibles a través de una trama que parece que va a estallar visualmente en cualquier momento. El argumento avanza suavemente por meandros silenciosos bañados por una dulce luz que encierra una intensa concepción estética en muchas escenas (encuadradas en escenarios fascinantes descritos con una capacidad sublime para la imagen, tal y como el lugar en el que quiere morir Dellwood Barker o el pic-nic con la comitiva vestida de blando). El hombre que se enamoró de la luna supura un magnetismo ineludible, de tal forma que es inevitable acabar prendado de esta historia que, precisamente, pone especial mimo sobre la figura del cuenta cuentos y la pericia de narrar. Desde el principio, el libro se sustenta en la certeza (tal y como dice Barker) de que la única forma de vivir la vida es contándosela a los demás: por eso es necesario ser un buen narrador. Y Spanbauer es un narrador más que excelente, incluso en sus primeros trabajos.
La naturalidad con la que viven sus vidas Cobertizo, Alma Hatch, Dellwood Barker e Ida Richilieu, en contraposición a esa América rural omnipresente en Spanbauer, está abocada al drama (en una estructura, narrada en primera persona por el mismo Cobertizo, excesivamente parecida a la de Ahora es el momento). Y aunque el autor resuelve la trama con sucesivos zarpazos de pesimismo, el lector se encontrará, al final del camino, con el corazón encendido: Spanbauer consigue, sin aspavientos ni subrayados, que te pongas del lado de sus protagonistas. Que te pongas del lado de aquellos que (una vez más) se empeñar en ser quienes son, sin importarles las convenciones del medio que les rodea.
El orden de lectura inverso, sin embargo, me ha pasado factura. Una vez leído Ahora es el momento, en El hombre que se enamoró de la luna es inevitable ir tropezando con ciertos vicios que, se nota, Spanbauer ha ido puliendo con el paso del tiempo. Y es que el segundo libro de este autor (el primero es Lugares Remotos) peca, precisamente, de intentar elevar unos palmos no sólo la altura de los ojos de sus protagonistas, sino la del propio escritor y (pretendidamente) la del lector: la trama se ve salpicada de un misticismo algo excesivo que hace que el libro aterrice en las peligrosas aguas pantanosas del realismo mágico... Pero, sorprendentemente, y pese a este pequeño lastre, Spanbauer sale del embolado con nota. Incluso con nota de excelente (de 8.5 que el profesor decide subir porque le cae bien el alumno).
Y todo gracias a su espectacular capacidad para abrir el pecho de sus personajes y dejar al descubierto sus entrañas de la forma más dulce y sutil, mientras los maneja con hilos invisibles a través de una trama que parece que va a estallar visualmente en cualquier momento. El argumento avanza suavemente por meandros silenciosos bañados por una dulce luz que encierra una intensa concepción estética en muchas escenas (encuadradas en escenarios fascinantes descritos con una capacidad sublime para la imagen, tal y como el lugar en el que quiere morir Dellwood Barker o el pic-nic con la comitiva vestida de blando). El hombre que se enamoró de la luna supura un magnetismo ineludible, de tal forma que es inevitable acabar prendado de esta historia que, precisamente, pone especial mimo sobre la figura del cuenta cuentos y la pericia de narrar. Desde el principio, el libro se sustenta en la certeza (tal y como dice Barker) de que la única forma de vivir la vida es contándosela a los demás: por eso es necesario ser un buen narrador. Y Spanbauer es un narrador más que excelente, incluso en sus primeros trabajos.
La naturalidad con la que viven sus vidas Cobertizo, Alma Hatch, Dellwood Barker e Ida Richilieu, en contraposición a esa América rural omnipresente en Spanbauer, está abocada al drama (en una estructura, narrada en primera persona por el mismo Cobertizo, excesivamente parecida a la de Ahora es el momento). Y aunque el autor resuelve la trama con sucesivos zarpazos de pesimismo, el lector se encontrará, al final del camino, con el corazón encendido: Spanbauer consigue, sin aspavientos ni subrayados, que te pongas del lado de sus protagonistas. Que te pongas del lado de aquellos que (una vez más) se empeñar en ser quienes son, sin importarles las convenciones del medio que les rodea.
January 30, 2012
Ouch!!! The violence in this book is so real as to be almost inescapable, the way violence is when you live with it. The day to day degradation and loss of power suffered by the main character, Shed might seem over the top to some who don't know the history of the west. But everything about this book is as crisply true to life as if it had been written in High Def. All stars are against Shed as his is illegitimate, fist nations, orphaned, and bisexual. He is put to work selling himself and his employer, the matron of the hotel. But Shed knows what love is, and where to find it. His instincts that he calls 'killdeer' are flawless. He even gets away from the addictive love of the green eyed cowboy who falls for the moon. Mind bending, heart breaking, riff with savage abuse and unfiltered ignorance, this is still a love story, and one worth reading. I would call it, the man who fell in love with himself and that label is by no means a criticism. The happy ending, if you can call it that, hinges on the enslaved lover finding self worth on his own terms. That's hope, folks, and you gotta love hope.
May 17, 2009
If you're sensitive, conventional, religious or just easily offended - do not read this book. Stay far away. Sex is like breathing for these people, a way of survival, which is why the reader has to understand and then accept these characters for who and what they are. Spanbauer's language is difficult in the beginning and definitely takes getting used to but when you do, its quite worth it. You just have to understand that these people come from a wholly different place, with different beliefs and lifestyles. Once you get past that, you actually grow to love them.
February 17, 2023
4,5 - Es una novela bastante atípica, de esas que deja poso y estás un tiempo dándole vueltas, con un componente sexual muy elevado y un mensaje descomunal a la tolerancia que igual no gusta a todo tipo de lectores, pero a mí me ha parecido una lectura buenísima.
Los personajes, sus diálogos y las relaciones afectivas que se van desarrollando en el oeste americano de finales del siglo XIX son maravillosas. Tiene escenas que se quedan grabadas, algunas por su crudeza, otras por su sentido del humor o por la ternura que desprenden.
Tengo claro que en algún momento volveré a leerlo.
Los personajes, sus diálogos y las relaciones afectivas que se van desarrollando en el oeste americano de finales del siglo XIX son maravillosas. Tiene escenas que se quedan grabadas, algunas por su crudeza, otras por su sentido del humor o por la ternura que desprenden.
Tengo claro que en algún momento volveré a leerlo.
October 20, 2017
Sencillamente impresionante, este libro está lleno de sabiduría, en serio, lo recomiendo muchísimo, y empatizas con la mayoría de personajes de una manera brutal!!!! hacía mucho que no me atraía tanto un libro <3 aishhhhh
Lo recomiendo 100% de verdad.
Con este libro he descubierto este autior, que tiene una narrativa muy buena para mí, impresionante, sinceramente <3 me ha ENAMORADO *O*
Lo recomiendo 100% de verdad.
Con este libro he descubierto este autior, que tiene una narrativa muy buena para mí, impresionante, sinceramente <3 me ha ENAMORADO *O*
April 3, 2007
Beautifully written. Queer as fuck without calling itself such. About whores, cowboys, Indians, Mormons, and so much more, in the late 1800s... The characters will become good friends who you hate to leave when you've finished the book.
May 29, 2016
Grandes historias, pero sobretodo, grandísimos personajes. Creo que los recordaré siempre.
January 2, 2019
Shed is a half Native Americwn bisexual prostitute, who lives in a brothel, while he is also searching for his father during the time Mormons move into the state of Utah (20th century).
This summary already sounds super crazy and this book is even more crazy. It is partly hilarious, witty and highly amusing. Some parts I really disliked: the book is extremely sexually explicit, plus extreme violence, rape, and incest can be found (trigger warning).
I am not sure how to rate it. It's somewhere between three and five stars, so I'll settle in the middle. Some parts were wonderful other parts terrible.
Would love to know what Native American readers think about this book though.
OH, THE HUMANITY.
This summary already sounds super crazy and this book is even more crazy. It is partly hilarious, witty and highly amusing. Some parts I really disliked: the book is extremely sexually explicit, plus extreme violence, rape, and incest can be found (trigger warning).
I am not sure how to rate it. It's somewhere between three and five stars, so I'll settle in the middle. Some parts were wonderful other parts terrible.
Would love to know what Native American readers think about this book though.
OH, THE HUMANITY.
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