In this engaging collection of essays and articles, Michael Rowe presents a multifaceted perspective on 'the common threads that run through 'gay mens' lives. Ultimately, Rowe makes it clear that the gay man's story is the story of his extended family in the largest human community. In the book, fellow writer Michael Riordon helps Rowe to understand 'gay lifestyle' when he comments, "What does that mean? There is a desire to have a meaningful life, to love, to be loved. I experience the world differently from a heterosexual, but that doesn't mean that I necessarily want different things." Rowe's subjects range from those as celebrated as gay Olympian Mark Leduc to the less well known but no less interesting: the closing piece, 'Twenty-Five Yards from Shore', is both a striking glimpse of Rowe's own quest for fulfilment and a particularly fine example of his poetic facility with the essay. Academic and public libraries will want this for their gay/lesbian studies collections as well as for collections devoted to social history and to writing.