Book Report: The leatherboy Handbook
For my second book report I have chosen to read The leatherboy Handbook by boy Vincent L. Andrews. It is 183 pages long (glossary included), and was published in 2008 by the Nazca Plains Corporation of Las Vegas, Nevada. I chose to read this book by the title alone – it seemed like a good book to read to learn more about the gay leather D/s community. I’ve been fascinated with leather and D/s since I was a middle school student, and always want to learn more about the lifestyle and its history.
The Handbook provides instructional chapters on a number of varied topics which are important to understanding both the gay leather community and the leatherboy role. Included, among others, are chapters on history, self identity, BDSM, negotiations, lifestyle relationships, fashion, collars, journals, cigars, and boots. While the book is primarily geared toward gay men, Andrews is specific to indicate that ‘boy’ is an attitude and lifestyle which is independent of age, gender, or sexuality.
I learned a lot from reading the Handbook about gay leather history and culture. For instance, while it makes sense that much of the gay leather culture comes from military traditions, I did not realize it mostly grew out of the community of men who returned from World War II. It is fascinating to me, who has never served in the military and who has always been told ‘you are not welcome in the military,’ that the gay lifestyle I most identify with comes from that tradition. It gives me pause to think about how I’d do serving in the military if it weren’t for don’t ask don’t tell, my desire not to harm or kill people, and my aversion to the military-industrial complex.
The Handbook gives general guidance on what it means to be a leatherboy. Suggested general rules to follow include simple things like opening the door for and not walking in front of a Dominant, not turning your back on a Dominant, standing when a Dominant enters the room, and speaking only when recognized and asked to speak. Others rules include general prohibitions against underwear, deodorant, and hair products unless permitted by your Dominant, and the standard uniform of boots, jeans, white t-shirt, and baseball cap.
After reading much of the book, and specifically the rules and uniform presented above, I found it useful to compare where I am in terms of my interest in D/s vs. what the tradition involves. For instance, I easily bought into the general rules and ideas about how a submissive should behave – opening doors, not walking in front, etc. But as a gay man who is used to (um, addicted to) his hair gel and with a mild underwear fetish, rules which would prevent spiky hair and sexy under-things seemed to encroach on my vision of myself. This, of course, quickly raises questions of identity, cultural expectations, and where I exist in relation to the leather community rooted in the days after World War II.
it also raises broader questions about where I am as a person, what I want out of relationship and community, and how I’ll find that. Part of me is fascinated with the community which is presented in this book – and part of me feels I wouldn’t fit. Part of me wants to explore the existing culture, and part of me thinks that the guys I’ve met online who most interest me are not part of the existing leather culture.
The leatherboy Handbook was an interesting read. I didn’t necessarily read it sequentially, and some sections I found myself skimming to get to the next part. But overall it is a good introduction to the gay leather community, the role of leatherboy, and a good litmus test for figuring out where I am and what I want.
Book Report: Mr. Benson
(Note: This is the first in a series. For a format I’ve adapted one found at http://www.writinghelp-central.com/book-report.html. Suggestions regarding structure, style and content, as well as ideas for further reading, are always welcome.)
For my first book report I have chosen to read Mr. Benson by John Preston. My copy of Mr. Benson has 131 pages. It was published by Alternative Publishing of San Francisco, California in 1983. I chose to read Mr. Benson for a few reasons. I was familiar with John Preston’s other writings and his editorship of books such as Hometowns: Gay Men Write About Where They Belong, which I read as a college student. Because Mr. Preston was an icon of the gay / leather / BDSM community I wanted to read his most famous book about SM. Finally, my copy of this book came to me unannounced, and I often find books which make their way to me unsought tend to have interesting things to say.
The main characters in Mr. Benson are Mr. Benson and Jamie. Mr. Benson is a black-haired, mustachioed top who is the picture of 70s gay manhood. Jamie is a twenty five year old bottom boy, a typical Chelsea clone who is frustrated with his life and seeks more than his current situation can offer. The story of Mr. Benson is the growing D/s and intimate relationship between Mr. Benson and Jamie, as told from Jamie’s point of view.
The supporting characters come from Mr. Benson’s and Jamie’s social circle. Rocco, who is white and a submissive bottom, is a bar tender and friend of Jamie. Brendan, Rocco’s black top/boyfriend, is a friend of Mr. Benson and a New York Police Officer. The D/s relationship between Brendan and Rocco is played out such that Brendan’s abuse of Rocco is intended to make up for slavery and racism. Other characters include the men in a club Mr. Benson and Brendan belong to called the Topmen, and Rick, a beautiful blond, blue-eyed, model for a national cigarette company. New York City itself becomes a minor supporting character as well.
Mr. Benson is a gay BDSM/romance novel set in New York City, presumably in the late 1970s or early 1980s. When we first meet Mr. Benson and Jamie they are in a bar in New York. Jamie cruises Mr. Benson and, after passing a few of his tests, Mr. Benson takes Jamie home for the night. The first half of the book, through page 66, is entirely about the building of the D/s, master/slave, BDSM relationship between Mr. Benson and Jamie. The second half of the book develops a sub-plot from the first half, concerning a number of gay men going missing from the streets of New York. Mr. Benson and Brendan hatch a plan to have Rick pass as an under-cover slave, get captured, and lead the police to the location of the captured men. Jamie and Rocco end up getting abducted as well, but in the end are rescued by Mr. Benson and Brendan. Jamie stays with Mr. Benson, Brendan and Rocco intensify their relationship, and Rick becomes a slave for two of the other Topmen.
I wish that I could say I flat-out loved Mr. Benson. There are a lot of things which I really like. Jamie’s description of Mr. Benson’s actions, and his understanding of the reasons behind those actions, are great. As an aspiring sub these parts of the book gave me a lot to think about in a very good way. There are a lot of very sexy, hot scenes which make the imagination run wild. It is nice to read a ‘romance’ novel, of sorts, about kink/BDSM. As I mentioned in my introduction, I like John Preston a lot and am glad to read one of his seminal (so to speak) works.
Having said that, there’s a lot to get around. First and foremost, it is very much a period piece. All the manly, top types have mustaches. While this is fascinating to read in terms of what would have been hot and arousing for the readers in the late 1970s and early 1980s, we have certainly moved on from that idea of masculinity. Preston populates his novel with the typical ‘Village People’ types – there’s a cop, a pair of construction workers, and of course Mr. Benson as the leather man. There is a lot of very un-safe sex in terms of fluid exchange, which you could not get away with writing in today’s world.
Most of all, the characters at times are very flat, very cardboard. We are expected to take for granted that Jamie is willing to give up his whole life for Mr. Benson, no real mention of family or friends. What does that say about Jamie? On the same token, there is no real mention of Mr. Benson’s family or work outside of his ‘business dealings’ and the social group of the Topmen. In general they all often act in unbelievable ways, or the dialogue feels forced and very cliche. Most of all, the second half of the book – with the plot about a sex-slave ring run by a German Nazi and middle-eastern Sheik to capture blond all-American men – just seems too much. The point of this section of the plot is to break Mr. Benson and Jamie apart and then bring them back together. I’d much rather have a real plot which addressed Jamie’s insecurity, not a wild scheme which feels so unrealistic.
All in all I am glad I read this book, and will definitely keep it in my library of BDSM literature and erotica. I plan on continuing to read more of John Preston’s work in this genre, and look forward to more hot fantasy to ignite my mind and passions.
