false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223663807m/486714.jpg 486714 2 Mark Merlis, who debuted in 1995 with the marvelous <I>American Studies</I>, has once again worked magic, producing a book that is as momentous as it is mysteriously moving. Set during the Trojan War, <I>An Arrow's Flight</I> recounts the story of Achilles's son Pyrrhus, prophesied to be the soldier who conquered Troy. But Merlis's tale departs from the standard versions of the story: here, Pyrrhus is a go-go boy and hustler who lives in the demiworld of the gay ghetto and bears a closer resemblance to characters from John Rechy's <I>City of Night</I> than anybody in Edith Hamilton's <I>Mythology</I>. In its opening pages, <I>An Arrow's Flight</I> seems to be little more than a clever postmodern gag, but Merlis knows exactly what he is doing, and the novel quickly becomes a unique, emotionally overwhelming masterpiece. Merlis's historical and sexual sleights of hand end up thrilling and shocking by locating us somewhere between myth and history, between fiction and fable. The very themes and ideas of <I>An Arrow's Flight</I> shimmer and shift before our eyes: war, male friendship, Troy, AIDS, sexual identity, and Vietnam are all explored and elucidated. By the end, the novel resonates with beauty, intelligence, and empathy. <I>--Michael Bronski</I> 474994 1998 An Arrow's Flight: A Novel total:67|5:18|4:29|3:15|2:4|1:1| 67 260 107 11 5 0 true false Mon May 18 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri May 15 17:19:02 -0700 2009 Wed May 27 08:22:24 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Aug 31 09:26:54 -0700 2007 Fri Aug 31 20:15:24 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 true false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Sat May 02 10:22:50 -0700 2009 Sat May 02 10:25:25 -0700 2009 1 3 0 false false Thu Aug 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 30 11:53:17 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 07 05:31:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Feb 24 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 24 19:51:03 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 28 19:57:01 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Tue Sep 18 20:21:21 -0700 2007 Mon Apr 21 08:30:59 -0700 2008
"Still, it was one thing to put forth your little generic flower of masculinity and wait for some bee to come suck it, and quite another to...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 31 15:13:28 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 31 15:24:47 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Jan 15 16:39:08 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 15 16:52:55 -0800 2008 2 0 false false Sat Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Fri Nov 09 17:03:15 -0800 2007 Fri Nov 09 17:06:27 -0800 2007 5 0 false false Sun Sep 23 07:39:00 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 23 09:25:30 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Thu May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 21 17:50:34 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 21 17:51:17 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Thu Nov 19 17:05:26 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 17:05:26 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Thu Nov 05 09:19:10 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 05 09:19:10 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Nov 02 10:29:42 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 02 10:29:42 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Fri Oct 30 14:38:04 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 30 14:38:04 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed Oct 28 12:02:33 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 28 12:02:33 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Tue Sep 15 20:44:21 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 15 20:44:21 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Sep 12 16:26:02 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 12 16:26:02 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Sep 10 10:25:32 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 10:25:36 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed Sep 09 15:58:56 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 09 15:58:56 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=486714