This past Saturday, Cover to Cover met for the 6th time to discuss This Place of Men by Doug Cooper Spencer. While I have had the book for about a month... I didn't start reading this interesting 360 page story until the week before the meeting.

This Place Of Men explores the lives of two men who struggle with truth and sexual identity. As teenagers the two main characters, Otis and Terrell, were lovers until they were torn apart by Terrell's father and his pastor causing the two men's live to take two different paths. Otis returns home twenty years later to confront the family that turned their back on him and the lover that denied him. While Terrell confronts the life that he chose and his true identity that he has denied himself for twenty years.

The story to me was new and different from any other gay novel I have read... however it was often anticlimactic. Poignant parts of the story that you look forward to happening were often mentioned as an after thought or never explained. The story was also convoluted with unnecessary characters that didn't add much to the story or its purpose. I can think of at least 4 characters that could have been left out and 4 that could have been explored more.

I think for the most part the entire group agreed that it was a good story with a disappointing and rushed ending.

The group's discussion as usual ended up being a party with plenty of alcohol and food, a deck of cards and music... good times. Sorry I will miss the sports outing this upcoming weekend.

Next month's book is Manhood by L M Ross or The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah... can't remember we chose April and May last night.