Nights in the Gardens of Spain

Rating:
Summary: From Whale Rider to Male Rider!
Review: I beg to differ from some of the comments below. This is not what I would call a particularly sweet book, and in fact those people who read this book based on their love of the movie "Whale Rider" (which is based on the Witi Ihimaera novel of the same name), may be in for a bit of a shock!

This is a novel about a married father "coming out" after years of playing straight (at least in public). It is pretty graphic both in its raw description of David's sexual encounters and in its rendering of his emotional turmoil. But to me the graphic sexual encounters were part of the point. We've got used to the "soap opera" depictions of gay men on our TV screens and movies, but there is more to the gay lifestyle than good fashion sense and being best buddies with straight women. The sex scenes in this book "lift the lid" on what goes on between the sheets (or in the steam room...) and in doing so give the reader an insight into the physical side of gay life.

But its not all about the sex, and there are powerful accounts of love David feels for his wife and children and the adjustments they, his friends and his parents have to make as he leaves what from the outside (and even from the inside) looked like a marriage with everything.

As always, Ihimaera's writing is strong. He is easy to read, and has a geat "ear" for dialogue. While David is clearly identified as a Maori male, this novel has less of a culteral theme than other Ihimaera novels I have read - at least in the ethnic sense. I guess you could say that it provides a pretty good insight to the gay "culture" in contemporary urban NZ.

While this book won't be for everyone, it is certainly a thought provoking and ultimately very powerful novel.

Rating:
Summary: Unlikeable main character, disturbing cliches
Review: I wanted to like this book - because I liked 'The Uncle's Son' a lot - despite its flaws (of which, are similar to the ones found in this book - inconsistent actions made by unlikeable characters.) I found the main character, David completely self-obsessed, unlikeable and ultimately, not a person who makes strong decisions in keeping with his (underwritten) character. Understanding his marriage with Annabelle (another severe sad sack of a woman - female characters are not a strong point here - they're all in awe of David, the formidable protagonist who women constantly lust after) - and his reluctancy to end a glaringly bad union is something this reader never got. It seems a forced plot point - especially when he's constantly quoting the 'love of his life', endlessing scoring new sexual conquests and looking for new partners. David seems like he's spiralling out of control - but not in a believable way. I also found the main character's sexual views disturbing. The author constantly re-iterates what a masculine, sexually dominant aggressive 'master' he is, pointing a finger at the cliche that effeminate, passive gay men are weak and lesser in the rank of homosexuality. A character this arrogant and unlikeable leaves the reader scratching his head, wondering how a gay author can perpetuate such harmful stereotypes.
Roimata from The Uncle's Son - a walking political agenda disguised in the skirt of a radical polynesian feminist/lesbian - is transplanted here in the form of another suspiciously similar character (but this time a man) - and the author's seeming fascination with Americans is replicated here many times. What is an American? A race? A political point of view? Or a good time? Here it's an offensive cliche - as is the word"Oriental", something I thought had been wiped out of our vernacular.
For all its good meaning toward sexual tolerance and racial understanding, Nights In The Gardens Of Spain, ends up offending this reader as royally as it seemingly is trying to educate. Perhaps if David was less self-obsessed, and more pro-active in his choices, we'd get a better sense of self.
In this garden he comes across more as a prickly thorn than as a sweet-smelling rose.

Rating:
Summary: ...nice and warm, with a wee too much sugar
Review: Little to do with Spain has this charming narrative of a bi middle class kiwi man experiencing the problems of coming out. Mr Ihimaera takes us through different settings to explain the perceptions, relations and crafty names the hero gives to the people who make up his sentiments. In fact the nick names and images are the most imaginative part of the tale. 'The gardens' are a gay sauna that the hero returns time and again as if to gain perpective from his inner ad outer conflicts. Gripping as the story is the author could have left more to the imagination of the readers with out being so explicit about what is what in the tale.If he would have done so it could have been forgiving the over sugary romantic, politically correct, family orienteted, post aids poor ending he gves to the story. Nevertheless it's a good one for someone who wants to 'come out' clean saleswise.