Rating: 
Summary: beautiful and lyrical
Review: My favorite books are the ones in which the author disappears and one is not even conscious of the transition into a fully-imagined other world; the Year of Ice does this is spades. I think the best writers take the unique and strange and parochial and turn them into the universal. This is a beautiful book...
Rating:
Summary: Compelling Storytelling
Review: It is 1978 and Kevin Doyle has just turned 18. He is far from a stellar student and yet he provides - within his limited capacity to do so - the voice of this book. Kevin is vain and a macho clod, but like just about everyone else in The Year of Ice, he is not as he appears. Kevin has a secret, his father has a secret, his best friend Tommy has a secret, his neighbor has a secret. Appearances are truly deceiving, and the deceptions make for a rewarding and entertaining read. This is an unpretentious little book that is as thought-provoking as it is entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: A non-gay view on why this is a great book
Review: As a non-gay reader who greatly enjoyed this book, I thought I would add to the chorus of praise just to let others know that this isn't a book just for gay readers, although apparently from the reviews it's good for them also. This is a fine story, well written and very insightful. I also read it starting one evening and finished it by the next morning. Once you start it, you can't really put it down. A non-gay reader can really learn a lot about what it is like to grow up in high school being gay - it's not just about hiding your feelings, sometimes you can be forced by peer pressure or others into doing things you don't want to do in order to keep your cover. But understand, the book is not all about that and it does not come on strong as a "gay learning" book. It is truly a novel and fun to read. Anyone from the Twin Cities will really enjoy this book also for its many references to places and events which are situated here. All together, this is a great book and well worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Well Written
Review: Few books have characters with this kind of lightness, darkness, and humor. Though the main character is inartculate, the imagery and thougts in his mind are beautifully written. Each character's voice and actions ring true. And as a Class of 1978 high-school graduate, in California not Minnesota, the cultural references seem right. It's a great first book.
Rating:
Summary: amazing, wonderful and breathtaking.........
Review: this book is one of the best pieces of gay fiction that i have read by far....it's intense, dramatic well written.....it's truly a MUST READ!!!.......i can't even begin to explain the feeling i got just from reading it, i read it in 2 days, i must give KUDOS!!! to Brian Malloy, you are a true master of your work!!!.....FABULOUS!!!
Rating:
Summary: Stop reading this and ...
Review: ... scroll back up to "Add to Cart". This is a terrific novel with wonderful characters, witty dialogue and an interesting plot. Warning: you will be hooked on Kevin Doyle and will eagerly anticipate the sequel because Malloy leaves us hanging about Kevin's, uh, well, you need to read it for yourself.
Rating:
Summary: A debut novel that rings true
Review: As some who have also reviewed "The Year of Ice" on Amazon.com, I initially purchased the book due to an intriguing combination of the cover art and the subject matter. I was pleasantly surprised by the maturity of the writing I found and felt quite "in-tune" with the protagonists circumstances due to his closeness to my own, specifically the time period, the gay high school guy's mental tusseling over his feelings that one "special" friend who causes all those strange feelings, dealing with the close-yet-distant feelings for the girls in your life, and finally the typical sparring with one's father at that age regardless of one's sexual orientation.
I enjoyed the approach to the protagonists feelings about and coping with, the death of his mother, his wrestling match with his emerging sexuality, and his decisions about that first major change in life for which a person is primarily responsible : what to do after high schol graduation?
Mr. Malloy's writing rings so true that it at times felt as if I were reading my own journal. The book makes for a nostaligic and evocative read that will take those who came of age in the late 70's right back in time - for better or for worse.
Rating:
Summary: Amusing, touching, wonderful ...
Review: What a fresh and involving voice Brian Malloy brings to the standard Coming of Age novel! His narrator, Kevin, is a character brought vividly to life, so vividly that you can't help wondering what will happen as he grows and finds his place in the world.His struggles with his sexuality are treated sensitively and realistically, but also with a wry sense of self-deprecation and doubt that makes you laugh even as your heart aches for him. I will recommend this as one of the top books I've read this year.
Rating:
Summary: Intense
Review: This is a novel of intense longing that surprises you. If you've read Through The Ruins by Stephen Hart you know what I mean. Both novels capture the secret longings that we often harbor. The Year of Ice is in the same league as Ruins and I'm glad to have read them both! Read The Year Of Ice and see if it's not one of the best novels out there.
Rating:
Summary: Dead-on Cultural Accuracy
Review: Hysterical and heart-twisting--and with a dead-on cultural accuracy that renders Minnesota as exotic as any foreign port. (Finally the truth is out.) So set down those novels about India and the Seychelles and the Outback, and read The Year of Ice. When you've turned the last page, you'll miss Kevin Doyle, and you'll wait for whatever Brian Malloy writes next. Jean Harfenist
|
