Old and young gay
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He’s a skilled storyteller, holding back enough to keep his reader continually engaged, but character is his thing: the people and narrators who populate Zigzag’s 16 stories are complex, relatable, and very much themselves, whether they’re humorous, irritating, or lovable, or a combination of the three.
For example, there’s Mason Chastain in “The Hazardous Life,” a high-school French teacher nearing retirement who embarks on teaching a senior-level French literature course and falls for one of his most promising male students.
But to the gay men in Gambone’s stories, the path to self-knowledge and emotional fulfillment is filled with thorny obstacles and, in some cases, dead ends. The book focuses on old age, and the gay men in its pages reflect frequently on the past. He recounts his early experiences at a bar where older men gathered, noting how these men, far from seeking validation, simply wanted to enjoy life without the pressure to conform to youthful ideals.
To tears and confessions and reassurances, of course, but the journey in all of Gambone’s stories is full of both predictable outcomes and startling surprises.
There’s a fair amount of gay male sex, too, some of it explicit, and if that’s a red flag for you as a reader, then Zigzag may not be easy to take.
They highlight that love, in all its forms, defies easy categorization. “The truth is, illness can strike anyone at any age,” he says. Felsenthal notes that, unlike heterosexual intergenerational couples, which may be met with skepticism but some acceptance, gay intergenerational couples often face harsh scrutiny. There’s also the letter carrier Sam and his younger husband, Daryl, in “Big Boy,” who encounter a wealthy couple, Monroe and Richard, as they walk through the South End.
Sam and Daryl have an open relationship within certain boundaries, which these new friends end up challenging.
The Many-Splendored Loves of Older Gay Men
Queer baby boomers are now elders, the first generation to grow old after Stonewall. But what’s erotic in the book is not gratuitous, and Gambone is never vulgar in spirit.
Yet for people like Felsenthal, these older men are the ones who bring them comfort, stability, and a sense of belonging. Zigzag is his second short-story collection (after The Language We Use Up Here), and he has also written a novel (Beijing) and some notable nonfiction: Something Inside: Conversations with Gay Fiction Writers;Travels in a Gay Nation: Portraits of LGBTQ Americans; and a remarkable memoir, As Far as I Can Tell: Finding My Father in World War II, which I reviewed in the Provincetown Independent in 2021.
It reinforces Gambone’s themes and the sense of community among disparate characters, but it also underlines his ambivalence about the right and wrong choices in life. However, Felsenthal insists that his relationship with his husband, Jeff, is built on mutual respect, shared interests, and a love that deepens with time.
Breaking Stereotypes, Building a Future
As Felsenthal and his husband continue to navigate their lives together, they face not just the typical challenges of aging but also the added layer of societal judgment.
This focus on Jeff’s potential health problems overlooks the strength and depth of their connection, and the profound way they complement each other emotionally and intellectually.
Intergenerational love stories like Felsenthal’s challenge the preconceived notions of relationships, particularly within the LGBTQ community.
Society at large often misinterprets relationships between younger and older individuals, especially when they involve men. Mason is in the closet, having been married to a lesbian for 44 years and faithful — emotionally, at least — till her death. Alan gets his jollies hooking up at seedy motels with an Egyptian donut-shop owner, Najib, who’s married to a woman and the father of a little girl.
Accusations of exploitation or ulterior motives surface frequently.