Darryl

I loved this book–it reminded me a bit of when I first saw Shortbus: No one person reminded me of me, but I felt like I had found some of my people. Darryl (the person) is by turns endearing, exhausting, a sweet person, kind of an asshole, wonderful, pitiful. Ess really gives voice to the whole “people are complex” thing through Darryl and his friends/lovers.

Ess reminds me here from time to time of Vonnegut in the way that she gives us so much with so few words. There's a bit of philosophy, a bit of the-personal-is-political, some love and critique of changes (and recognitions) of sexuality and gender, but it never gets heavy-handed about any of that: Mostly it's just a book about a guy going through some things.