| Haycraft Keebler, the manic-depressive hero of this ambitious novel, believes that it is his duty to save the world. Spending most of his time in a rundown bar appropriately named the Don Quixote, Haycraft devises plans to cure society's ills, from spray-painting the city's trashcans gold to creating a “community living room” across the length of an alleyway. The regulars at the Don Q, all idealistic misfits in their own ways, affectionately tolerate Haycraft's crazy schemes and outraged polemics, but when he becomes romantically involved with a teenage male prostitute, a disastrous chain of events ensues that throws the community into chaos.
The novel swerves into the lives of various other characters, too: the aging hipster owners of the Don Q, Beau and Glenda Stiles, who have long kept watch over Haycraft; the pragmatic entrepreneur Romeo Diaz, who stumbles into the internet porn industry and finds love and heartbreak, and who is something of an antagonist to Haycraft, goading him on to wilder ambitions and humiliating him whenever possible. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of book? - thoughtful Time/era of story - 1980's-1999 Political/social activism Yes Plotlet: Internal struggle/realization? Yes Struggle over Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Main char. serviced by prostitute? Yes Love problems? - gay guy urges Pearls of wisdom from homeless? Yes Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Age: - 40's-50's Ethnicity/Nationality Unusual characteristics: Main Adversary Identity: - society Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Eccentric/Smart/Dumb: Yes Eccentric: How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Average intelligence Setting How much descriptions of surroundings? - 6 () United States Yes The US: - Midwest City? Yes City: - dirty, grimy (like New York) Writing Style Sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references only - descript of kissing - licking - actual description of hetero sex - two guys doing it Weird Victorian/Shakespearean English? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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