- Paperback: 206 pages
- Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (Mar 15 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1560239379
- ISBN-13: 978-1560239376
- Product Dimensions: 21.4 x 15.4 x 1.4 cm
- Shipping Weight: 363 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,747,953 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Library Journal
While the title promises a study of the complex relationship between an older and younger gay man, it is clear after the first few chapters that the book is more about Quinn and his gay identity than his friendship with mentor Joe Riddick. The book could be titled The Mentee. The author draws detailed parallels between himself and Riddick, both "recovering Baptists" with complementary Southern family backgrounds, but there is little mentoring. Instead, Quinn treads the well-worn path of gay autobiography and fiction, featuring life in the hedonistic 1970s and 1980s, as he chronicles his experiences with licit and illicit drugs, his attempts at an artistic career, his manic-depressive episodes, and, above all, his sexual exploits. While Riddick never emerges as a flesh-and-blood personality, Quinn does, and an unappealing one at that. This book feels like a half-baked autobiographical novel puffed up with pop psychological and sociological background to make it relevant as nonfiction. Not recommended.
-Richard Violette, Special Libs. Cataloging, Inc., Victoria, BC
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
-Richard Violette, Special Libs. Cataloging, Inc., Victoria, BC
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
"Jay Quinn's exploration of the mentoring process within the gay community -of being taken under a wing, of being taught by the more mature, of learning from someone trusted -shines with honest grace. He's taken the very personal and amplified it into an exemplar for a community which has a lengthy, noble tradition of the older guiding the younger; but it's a tradition not much honored in our writing or in our public lives. This memoir, candid and Humane, intimate and witty, is an eloquent recognition of what one generation can teach another." -- Richard Labonte, General Manager, A Different Light Bookstores, San Francisco, California
"When you read Jay Quinn's THE MENTOR, it's as if you're reading a book written by two different men, complimentary and sympatico. One is a Southern storyteller, the kind that has made the South famous for its rich literary history -you can hear Quinn spinning a yarn up on the front porch, offering any number of juicy scandalous stories, confiding a couple of secrets, keeping a couple more to himself. And there's another writer, a thoughtful scholar who knows how to tell a tale on the page as well as the porch, who can look at his own life with enough wisdom to convey to others what he has learned. And that is what THE MENTOR is all about -teaching and telling each other effortlessly, the reader and writer at once protege and professor." -- Brian Bouldrey, Writer and editor, San Francisco, California
"When you read Jay Quinn's THE MENTOR, it's as if you're reading a book written by two different men, complimentary and sympatico. One is a Southern storyteller, the kind that has made the South famous for its rich literary history -you can hear Quinn spinning a yarn up on the front porch, offering any number of juicy scandalous stories, confiding a couple of secrets, keeping a couple more to himself. And there's another writer, a thoughtful scholar who knows how to tell a tale on the page as well as the porch, who can look at his own life with enough wisdom to convey to others what he has learned. And that is what THE MENTOR is all about -teaching and telling each other effortlessly, the reader and writer at once protege and professor." -- Brian Bouldrey, Writer and editor, San Francisco, California
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First Sentence
Erastes and Eromenos, the Lover and Beloved. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Painful Past That Can Help Others,
By Ed Bassilio (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Mentor: A Memoir of Friendship and Gay Identity (Hardcover)
There is a saying "You can't judge a book by its cover." This is true with Jay Quinn's THE MENTOR. I assumed the book was going to be nothing more than an easy summer read when I selected the book, judging from the young man on the cover. When I was on vacation (at the Outer Banks, no less, the setting of the book), I quickly learned this is not beach reading. The book deals with the friendship between the author and his mentor, how that relationship evolved through many difficult twists and turns, and the difference such a meaningful relationship can have in a person's life.The author is a gay "good ole boy" which makes for an interesting twist. He's also a surfer dude which adds a bit of flair. He is a Catholic convert, but definitely Catholic on his won terms. He faces challenges, bouts of depression, difficulties with substance abuse, and a whole host of other problems, yet now his life has shape. Due in no small part to his mentor, the author has grown from the many experiences that could have destroyed other people. When a person reads this book, memoirs that are more cathartic than anything else can come to mind, and this book does have a cathartic element to it, but if anything it helps a person relate to the author.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Jay Quinn 101: THE SEED!!,
By Jon Cook (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Mentor: A Memoir of Friendship and Gay Identity (Paperback)
The important point to be made about this book is that it is the first published work of Jay Quinn. I recommend that readers start with Quinn's mature, METES AND BONDS --the Lambda award winning novel-- and REBEL YELL anthology series,and then return to this first published work. Being the big fan, as I am, of Jay Quinn's books, I'm not overcritical when I say that this book is not quite "ripe"!! I just feel that most people will appreciate it more after they read the more finished books first. That way, you will better appreciate the dominating themes of his body of work. Why are Jay Quinn's books so important? Because Jay Quinn is not afraid to break taboos. That is #1. In the Lambda Book Report he talks openly about the roles of alcohol and in METES AND BOUNDS he writes about drugs affecting the lives of gay men. From Man-Boy love, to incest relations, he writes the truth. Jay Quinn is the most important new Southern writer today.
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Enjoyable Read!,
By
This review is from: The Mentor: A Memoir of Friendship and Gay Identity (Hardcover)
How great it would be if all young gay men just coming out could have an older person, a Mentor, help guide them through life's trials and experiences. It certainly would have helped me. Jay Quinn's personal narrative is such a honest, no holes-barred read, and so interesting. It must have been hard to put all this down for everyone to see. Through all his troubles with relationships, drugs, and depression, he manages to pull through. All with the help of his dedicated mentor, Joe Riddick. By reading this book other gay men will relive their own similar experiences, and know that they are not alone. We are all here to experience what life has to offer us, and it would be great if the different generations could help guide each other. We should all be "Mentors." I highly recommend this book.
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