Probation, by Tom Mendicino. Kensington Books, 344 pages, $15 paper.
Perfect wife, perfect home, perfect job – well, a perfect job if you like being a traveling salesman, and Andy Nocera does; he was born to sell. But perfection implodes when repressed queer Andy is caught with his pants down in a roadside rest area. Pulled strings lead to a year of probation with mandatory counseling, but his wife throws him out and he’s fired – reduced to living with his supportive mother while selling shoddy shelving in small towns. Mendicino’s debut novel about sexual shame and spiritual redemption is, on the surface, an oft-told tale of the closet door slamming open, with the usual shattering emotional consequences. But the common story is elevated by uncommon elements: Andy is no twink and he’s good at unglamorous work, traits that set this transformative novel apart from the queer coming-out norm. Mendicino, nicely balancing humor and drama, digs deeply into his character’s buffeted psyche, depicting with perceptive characterization the profound dilemma of a ruined man finding his way back to a place of balance.
by Richard Labonte
