Lotus on a Dung Heap: Memoirs of a Gay Artist

Rating:
Summary: One's Man's Sexual and Spiritual Odyssey
Review: A brilliantly accomplished memoir, "Lotus on A Dung Heap" takes you right there, to the very heart of things and lets the reader experience the author's life in all its daring, sexual complexity. By turns irreverent and poignant, John Basile's book is not for the faint of heart. From San Francisco to Italy, Asia and Mexico, Lotus reads like a sexual travelogue with not infrequent stops for, believe it or not, spiritual reflection. It is, in fact, the dynamic interplay of spirit and flesh that makes "Lotus" so compelling and a must read for both the curious and well traveled alike.

Rating:
Summary: One's Man's Sexual and Spiritual Odyssey
Review: The book is an amazing look into the life of a sensitive gayartist as he experiences what life is all about. He is plunged intowar at the age of 18, guesses there's something wrong with him anddosen't find out until he's drafted into the Navy. From here hediscovers that not only are there hundreds of other gay men around,but with the absence of women, so-called straight men ... under theright circumstances. It is all discribed in wonderful, sometimespoetic language. The adventures go from strange to bizarre. Basile'sdescriptive voice is marvelous. After the war he finds himself in SanFrancisco where he is studying art. And here are some of the mosthilarious scenes in the book. Bohemian artists in the early 60's mixwith all manners of people that can only be found in San Francisoc.There's a marriage in Rome to a beautiful Italian girl.... Big mistakesince he was tricked into it. Basile describes the dilemma a gay mangoes through while making love to a woman and at the same time, ishaving affaires with men. It rarely works out, as he explains. Hedivorces and goes through the discovery of liberated sex in the early70's. This part of the book describes explicit sexual behaviour insex bars and bathhouses where anything goes. This was just beforeAIDS. When the AIDS epidemic surfaces, the young man volunteers as anAIDS buddy. Here there are various descriptions of his contacts withAIDS patients, heart rendering and heroic. There are case histories ofsome of the infected men and how they cope and die. Basile's abilityto describe his life is uncanny. He puts you right there. You reallyfeel what he feels. I loved the book and am looking forward to morefrom this writer.

Rating:
Summary: Fast moving action for a gay man coming out in WW2
Review: The book is an amazing look into the life of a sensitive gayartist as he experiences what life is all about. He is plunged intowar at the age of 18, guesses there's something wrong with him anddosen't find out until he's drafted into the Navy. From here hediscovers that not only are there hundreds of other gay men around,but with the absence of women, so-called straight men ... under theright circumstances. It is all discribed in wonderful, sometimespoetic language. The adventures go from strange to bizarre. Basile'sdescriptive voice is marvelous. After the war he finds himself in SanFrancisco where he is studying art. And here are some of the mosthilarious scenes in the book. Bohemian artists in the early 60's mixwith all manners of people that can only be found in San Francisoc.There's a marriage in Rome to a beautiful Italian girl.... Big mistakesince he was tricked into it. Basile describes the dilemma a gay mangoes through while making love to a woman and at the same time, ishaving affaires with men. It rarely works out, as he explains. Hedivorces and goes through the discovery of liberated sex in the early70's. This part of the book describes explicit sexual behaviour insex bars and bathhouses where anything goes. This was just beforeAIDS. When the AIDS epidemic surfaces, the young man volunteers as anAIDS buddy. Here there are various descriptions of his contacts withAIDS patients, heart rendering and heroic. There are case histories ofsome of the infected men and how they cope and die. Basile's abilityto describe his life is uncanny. He puts you right there. You reallyfeel what he feels. I loved the book and am looking forward to morefrom this writer.