Addictions

In witty, bitchy letters passing between London and San Diego, two gay men who are intimate friends discuss their adventures and desires. Francis, a visiting professor of literature in California, and Jeremy, Director of British National Opera, conduct their correspondence over one year on the cusp of the 90's. Both are admirers of 'bears' :chunky, hairy men.In a Britain racked by political crisis, Margaret Thatcher's power begins to totter. Interwoven between the letters are autobiographical sketches written by Jonathan, a young protege of Jeremy's, which tell the story of growing up gay and Jewish in the North of England and coming out in the more innocent London of the late 70's and 80's.Which of these 3 characters, as if drawn from 'Les Liaisons Dangereuses', will survive into the last decade of the twentieth century?In her brilliant introduction to this second edition, Professor Jane Spiro (Oxford Brookes University) writes: "We could read this as a picaresque story of sexual encounters, the way desire brings people together and flings them apart with breathtaking speed. But on closer reading....the hero of the story is in fact the 'enduring love' of true friendship."