These Things Happen

Wesley Bowman, the teen protagonist of this debut novel from the writer, producer, and director of such TV dramas as My So-Called Life and Thirtysomething, leads a privileged but fractured life in Manhattan. His parents have divorced, and Wesley’s recently moved in with his father—an influential gay rights activist—and his father’s partner, George, in order to “get to know each other as men, since the belief is I might soon become one.” While Wesley struggles to acclimate to his new digs, his best friend, Theo, wins the class presidency and announces he’s gay during his acceptance speech. His classmates are indifferent, but Theo, eager to acquire “edge,” hopes for a trial by fire for coming out. When the flames do crop up, they’re much hotter than Theo could’ve imagined, and they land him in the hospital. Despite a tendency to couch exposition in dialogue, Kramer succeeds in depicting an emotionally resonant and unexpected connection between Wesley and George. The humanity and love between two people thrown together by circumstance is Kramer’s triumph, and it nearly redeems the novel. Agent: Gail Hochman, Brandt & Hochman Literary. (Nov. 2)