This is a gentle story narrated by young Gabriel Harkin, the son of the title, who lives in Northern Ireland during the 1960s and 70s. A young boy in 1964 when the novel begins, his story is one of growing up during the time of the "troubles" which provide a subtle background for his personal experience of dealing with his own homosexuality. He does well enough in school, but is not a scholar, and from the beginning he does not fit in either at school or at home. The novel traces his gradual discovery of why this is, and his homosexuality is only one of the reasons. How he deals with his growing awareness of his sexuality is one source of suspense in the story. At the same time his family gradually prospers financially even as the violence of the "troubles" grows ever more menacing in the background. This novel is quiet and understated, but it has just the right tone for the story. There is additional suspense primarily due to a subplot regarding Gabriel's Uncle Brendan who is away from home at the beginning of the story. He returns and the result of that event along with the growing political clamor provides sufficient action to keep the reader interested until Gabriel's story comes to its climactic close. ( )

Gabriel grows up in Northern Ireland in the 1960s and 1970s, struggling with the feeling he's different from the others. Uncle Brendan, his father's brother, seems more sympathetic to his problems (not that he ever shares all of them), but it's clear Brendan has his secrets too, and they are revealed at the end. Not bad. ( )

This is a beautiful coming-of-age story that centers around a Catholic boy's struggle to recognize and accept his homosexuality amidst a turbulent Northern Ireland in the 1960s-1970s. It is sad, wise and at times, pretty raunchy. The writing is great, it really made me feel like I was there in Ireland, during that time. The characters are so well developed and despite quirks, I easily and quickly grew to care about them. While the author could have easily fallen prey to bashing on the Catholic church and such, he makes you understand more than inflame. I think his handling of such enormous topics was sensitive, interesting and open-minded. However, I think the novel could have used some editing, some themes, like Gabriel's struggle to succeed in school and his battle with his homosexuality, seemed to play out endlessly ~ very repetitive. It could have been tightened up quite a bit. But overall, that is a small complaint. I enjoyed the reading, the learning and the place and time. I do recommend this book, but the sexual content is rather graphic, so one must be okay with that. ( )

Gabriel starts to suspect that he is not like other boys during puberty, and enjoys a series of childhood sex games with Noel, a young male friend, and also his cousin Connor. Gabriel is later abused at school by a priest, Father Cornelius. ( )

I kept forgetting this book was fiction and not a memoir. It reads like a memoir. (I think it's a memoir disguised as fiction, but don't tell Gabriel's, I mean Damian's, family's neighbors that.) The names are all changed, and probably he added some fictional bits to make it more interesting. But, besides the facts mirroring the author's life, irrelevant details find their way into the narrative. Things that only matter to people because it's the way it really happened, not because it moves the plot forward. For example, if you were writing a novel you wouldn't think to yourself, "Let's see, I only have 3 examples of my protagonist's schoolmates teasing him unmercifully and calling him a queer, I'd better stick another one in here." You'd figure you'd gotten your point across. But in a memoir, the author thinks, "Oh, yeah, and then there was Joe Schmoe in 8th grade--can't leave that one out. What a jerk."

I like to go in knowing which I'm reading, so the fact that it's labeled fiction and written like memoir was distracting. I'd find myself thinking "why is he telling us about his aunt's fiance who doesn't even appear as a character, when his aunt isn't even in this scene?" and then I'd decide it was because it was really a memoir and settle back into reading.

As memoirs go, it's very well written. I'd probably give it 4 stars, if it were billed as a memoir. As fiction, it only gets 3 from me, but I'd definitely read a work of true fiction by this author, if he writes one. ( )