History professor Ned Brummel is living happily with his partner of twelve years in small-town Maine when he receives a phone call from his estrang...
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Aug 17, 2010
Aaron
rated it: 
Life is filled with its ups and downs, and 56-year-old Ned Brummel is realizing that, overall, things have been good. He recently received a phone call from Jack, an estranged friend with whom he grew up with and shared an on-and-off relationship. As a result of the call, he finds himself on rethinking the paths his life has taken and decides to share the whole thing with his partner Thayer.
Jack and Ned's friendship actually goes back to before they were even born. Their parents were More...
Jack and Ned's friendship actually goes back to before they were even born. Their parents were More...
Aug 26, 2009
Amy
rated it: 
I am a little disappointed. While the writing is excellent, the storyline wasn't nearly as engaging as the previous book of his I read.
While lots of story/plot/history is normally good, this was just too much. For awhile, it almost seemed like a history book, touching lightly on every event from the war to AIDS to present. Maybe the fact that I knew most of this and the history part of it didn't teach me anything?
The main character, Ned...I kinda hated him until the last More...
While lots of story/plot/history is normally good, this was just too much. For awhile, it almost seemed like a history book, touching lightly on every event from the war to AIDS to present. Maybe the fact that I knew most of this and the history part of it didn't teach me anything?
The main character, Ned...I kinda hated him until the last More...
Sep 28, 2010
Joe
rated it: 
“Full Circle is a wonderfully moving chronicle of three friends that is also an unflinching, triumphant celebration of the power of gay relationships, of the deep bonds forged despite strong obstacles, and of the love that is ultimately the most important thing we can ever share.” That’s a pretty good summary from the book jacket.
I thought this was wonderfully written (even though I despise first-person present tense writing in novels, but that was only in a couple of places). It fol More...
I thought this was wonderfully written (even though I despise first-person present tense writing in novels, but that was only in a couple of places). It fol More...
Feb 06, 2011
B.J.
rated it:
Michael Thomas Ford is an extraordinary story teller. From the opening pages of Full Circle, I was drawn into this richly diverse journey across several decades by his concise, clean style of writing and his delicious word choices. Sometimes I'd finish a paragraph and be compelled to go back and examine what arrangement of his words caused me to FEEL so palpably the moment of the story.
As the characters experience their separate full circles, readers will also experience a full circ More...
As the characters experience their separate full circles, readers will also experience a full circ More...
Feb 22, 2010
Lou
rated it:
[Spoiler Alert:]
A random purchase, this book, in the midst of reading it, inadvertently forced me to concurrently look back at my life--reminiscing about my friends past and present, the inter-connections, the dramas...the good, the bad, and the ugly of it all. It was profound. It was carnal. It was laughingly gut-wrenching, and uncontrollably tear-jerking. I found myself wanting the neighbors to end up together. But I guess in a way they did. One of the best novels I've read in a l More...
A random purchase, this book, in the midst of reading it, inadvertently forced me to concurrently look back at my life--reminiscing about my friends past and present, the inter-connections, the dramas...the good, the bad, and the ugly of it all. It was profound. It was carnal. It was laughingly gut-wrenching, and uncontrollably tear-jerking. I found myself wanting the neighbors to end up together. But I guess in a way they did. One of the best novels I've read in a l More...
Jul 15, 2010
Jendi
rated it:
The opening chapters about the two childhood friends discovering sex together were so funny, sweet and real. I was also deeply moved by Ford's depiction of the impact of AIDS on the first generation of liberated gay men, whose time of freedom was so brief. I just wish he'd given us more opportunities to get close to the characters instead of filling up the book with generic cultural milestones like the assassination of John Lennon, the launch of People Magazine, the premiere of Star Wars, etc. M
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Nov 03, 2009
This book traces the intertwining lives of three gay baby boomers as they grow up. This book was fairly self-indulgent but an interesting span of time to explore being gay. The author manages to pack in as many events as possible that are relevant to the gay civil rights movement and the typical generational experiences during each decade from 1960 forward. He includes, the Vietnam War, Gay Liberation in San Francisco (including the election of Harvey Milk), and the AIDS epidemic and related
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Jul 02, 2009
Richard
rated it:
Probably one of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much were the many references to actual historical events that I remember so well. There was also a certain amount of suspense for me, knowing that the AIDS epidemic was going to hit all these men who were so sexually active and wondering who would survive.
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Apr 26, 2009
REDD
rated it: 
A friend of mine gave this to me.
The book was a bit of a drag so I had a hard time finishing it.
What i like most about the book was that it included a bit of history - circa 1950-1980 and the gay life in San Francisco prior to the epidemic.
What bothered me about this book is this part: (page 316)
"Was John's sickness merely the result of an accident? It bothered me to think so, but it bothered me even more to think that we had somehow brought More...
The book was a bit of a drag so I had a hard time finishing it.
What i like most about the book was that it included a bit of history - circa 1950-1980 and the gay life in San Francisco prior to the epidemic.
What bothered me about this book is this part: (page 316)
"Was John's sickness merely the result of an accident? It bothered me to think so, but it bothered me even more to think that we had somehow brought More...
Mar 29, 2008
Will
rated it: 
Not recommended.
I'm almost embarrassed that I finished this book; it's SO bad! I nearly put it down when a child has a prescient AIDS dream in the 1950s (!) in the first 50 pages of the book, but I plowed on through it. The characters aren't likable, the scenes are often silly and contrived, and I'm really not sure what the plot was ... ? The only thing this novel has going for it is a somewhat fun overview of queer history in the USA for the past 50 years (was it supposed to be like a gay More...
I'm almost embarrassed that I finished this book; it's SO bad! I nearly put it down when a child has a prescient AIDS dream in the 1950s (!) in the first 50 pages of the book, but I plowed on through it. The characters aren't likable, the scenes are often silly and contrived, and I'm really not sure what the plot was ... ? The only thing this novel has going for it is a somewhat fun overview of queer history in the USA for the past 50 years (was it supposed to be like a gay More...
Jun 03, 2011
Mark
rated it:
Really great book. Love the interweaving of important cultural events against the backdrop of Jack and Ned's lives....
Jan 30, 2012
Dolphe
rated it:
This is an impressive effort by an author whose work continues to grow on me. Each novel I've read by Mr. Ford is successively superior to the last. This is an outstanding story of two friends' journey through life. The storytelling is rich and compelling. Much of the humor present in the earlier novels is far more subdued here and the result is a mature and ultimately uplifting tale.
Jan 11, 2010
Deidre
rated it:
Reminds me a lot of Armistead Maupin's books, in fact he references Tales of the City, in this book. Great characters and flowing writing style. I particularly loved the way he wove real events into the lives of the characters as if they were there for Stonewall, Vietnam, & Act Up in the 80's etc.
Apr 26, 2010
tizi
rated it:
as much as i enjoyed the historical details, the entire book is quite plain, the characters not really likeable or even understandable. i loved his other books more, but am glad to have it read, because it does give a good glance at recent gay history.
Aug 16, 2008
Frynsg
rated it:
What a whirlwind this was. Kinda reminiscent of Forrest Gump, how it encompassed a lot of events in history.
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