From Publishers Weekly
Twenty stories by up-and-coming gay male writers offer vibrant takes on themes ranging from coming out to unrequited obsession. The anthology opens with Vestal McIntyre's "ONJ.com," which follows a mean-spirited freelancer's manipulative relationship with a female boss. Philip Huang contributes a lyrical, poignant portrait of a young woman's sad life ("American Widow"), while Patrick Ryan's "Ground Control" is a brilliant coming-of-age yarn about the bittersweet yearnings of a boy and his older classmate in the 1980s. The best discoveries include Scott Pomfret's "Chicken," a moving portrait of the tense intimacy between an aging gay man and a teenage hitchhiker with "runaway eyes"; Jorge Ignacio Cortinas's engaging, atmospheric "His Five-Year Sentence," about a young Latino shoplifter's life in northern California; and Kevin Reardon's delicately droll office opera "Teamwork." Hearts both young and old soar with ecstasy and are consumed with longing in these irresistible tales. In the book's foreword, White notes that many feel gay fiction has "run its course." This excellent collection offers proof positive to the contrary. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


From Booklist
This marvelous anthology contains stories selected by the critically acclaimed and well-known gay writer Edmund White,^B who, with coeditor Weise, gathers a collection of 20 stories by male writers relatively unknown in the literary world. Similar to the popular Men on Men series but including only new authors, these stories explore a wide range of gay experiences. Stories selected for this book are refreshing, clever, witty, and moving. Topics include aspects of gay life from teenage coming out, family drama, sexual abuse, and unrequited love to living with AIDS. Many stories deal with youthful topics (although issues of middle age appear here, too), and many explore issues of gay isolationism and gay integration into society. Especially refreshing are stories that are relevant to all sexualities, dealing with universal issues that feature both straight and gay characters. This new crop of outstanding gay writers impresses. The pithy truths, surprise (but not cliched) endings, and stimulating language prove that there is a great future in gay writing, and there are still more stories to be told. Michael Spinella
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description
Certain to become a literary touchstone, Fresh Men collects the best new writing by emerging gay authors from around the nation. The critically acclaimed author Edmund White, chair of the Creative Writing program at Princeton and the author of more than 17 gay works, selects 20 original stories from the new crop of extraordinary writers. With equal parts sensitivity and irreverence, Fresh Men speaks to the broad range of gay experiences. From stories of coming out, coming of age, self-representation and family to sex and love in the time of AIDS, from living in the closet to loving in a post-gay world, this book highlights the complexities of gay life. This groundbreaking collection also embodies a wide spectrum of literary tastes, from works rich in experimental, transgressive elements to more conventional, traditionally crafted stories.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Certain to become a new cornerstone of the gay literary tradition, Fresh Men: New Voices in Gay Fiction brings together twenty outstanding stories by new authors. From coming out to coming of age, from family politics to love in the time of AIDS, Fresh Men speaks to the broad range of gay experiences today.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly