DANCING WITH PANTHERS

A gay English youth comes of age in the 1960s in Nochtree’s novel.

England, 1961: Mark Martin is a teenager who lives with his mother. Mark’s current situation is summed up thusly: “He hated his life, he hated the flat, he hated this city, he hated his school, he hated his mother. He hated himself.” Mark is attracted to other boys; considering the laws and social norms of the time, he does not exactly go around announcing this. One day, while in town, he learns of a local pub where gay men hang out called The Vault. When Mark is offered a fiver there for sex, he accepts. (Five pounds is a lot of money in his world and he enjoys the sex, so why not?) Mark winds up doing this regularly and becomes attached to one of the patrons, who goes by the name Pip. He also gets a part-time job at the nearby Frank’s Fish’n’Chips. (Frank’s does not pay as much as sex work, but it gives Mark a cover for his newfound income.) Through Frank’s, he meets a boy named Tommy, and Tommy and Mark become secret boyfriends. Eventually, Pip gets Mark a job at the car dealership that he runs. Pip and Mark form their own lasting relationship. As Mark manages to balance school, Tommy, Pip, and the occasional inquiries of his mother, things seem to be going well. But disaster soon strikes: After an incident with another rent boy, Mark sees no other option but to flee the country with Pip.

Mark is hardly the typical hero for a narrative that, in the second half of the book, morphs into something of an adventure story as he ventures far from home with a man who may or may not be trustworthy (though it is established early on that Pip is involved with business somewhere around Indonesia, the nature of this business is kept a secret). The first half of the story is chock-full of inviting tension—most of this comes from Mark’s chosen profession. How long can he keep up the life of a secret sex worker? But as sticky as Mark’s problems are, the story does have its share of dull moments. Mark puts out a fire at Frank’s before it can spread and destroy the whole building; this action is covered extensively and then spoken about again and again by different characters. When one of his schoolmates picks up the local paper, “There on the front page was a large photograph of Mark, smiling uneasily with Mam’s arm round him and a big grin on her face.” While Mark’s actions and the ensuing excitement have their place in the overall narrative, it is not a particularly engaging incident for the reader. Nor are many of the events that follow, such as when Mark receives an award at school for his bravery. (Mark is told of the badge he receives, as if it were not obvious, “It’s awarded for special achievements.”) Still, as Mark’s world constantly changes, readers will be curious to see where he will ultimately wind up.

This unique hero takes the story to dangerous places, both in England and abroad.