Review: Good, But Not His Best
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 11, 2014
"Stuck in Oz" is a beautiful, heartwarming, small book (bigger than a novella, smaller than a full-blown novel), that's fun to read, but not quite among his best. I'm Mr. Grey's #1 fan. I read virtually everything he writes (I don't read short stories, but I've read everything else he offers in the Kindle Store).He is an eloquent writer with broad insights and amazingly attractive characters. The characters in this book are also engaging and sympathetic, but the insights not quite so broad.This is the story of Jeremy, fleeing California, after his neglectful mother's death, with his 3-year-old brother, Petey. Jeremy is terrified that his brother will be taken from him and put into the system, so he packs everything he can into his rundown car and takes off in the middle of the night.  They end up at their uncle's place in Kansas in the midst of a paralyzing snow storm.This inexperienced young man takes some time to come to trust his uncle (also gay) and to feel "wanted", for the first time in his life. He's pretty skittish, up until that point, and actually attempts to run away, leaving Petey with his uncle, so that he won't become a burden. Of course, this being Andrew Grey, he falls in love with someone he meets in this small town (Nate) - the first love (and first sex) of his life."Stuck in Oz" is a gentle book, but sometimes a bit too gentle. The obstacles to be overcome are minor, and they fall too fast - sometimes with barely plausible reasons. My feeling is that this book was just the introduction to a new series by the talented Mr. Grey, and not meant to have much dramatic impact on its own. I do look forward to future installments of "Tales From Kansas", but do so with the hope that they will have a bit more depth, edge and conflict, and much less hurried and facile resolution.Knowing Mr. Grey, I'm confident they will.