The Language of Love and Loss

Yates’s satisfying follow-up to Leave Myself Behind picks up 20 years later, with Noah York now 37 and a restless artist eking out a life in Providence, R.I. He reluctantly visits his mother, Virginia, in his small New Hampshire hometown, the setting of the earlier volume, where as a teen he faced homophobic bullying and a severe beating. Virginia drops two bombshells in quick succession: first, she has ALS; and second, she wants Noah to find the daughter she gave up for adoption before he was born. Adding to Noah’s turmoil is his growing conviction that breaking up with his high school boyfriend, J.D., while they were in college was his life’s greatest mistake. As a narrator, he’s an agreeable companion, brimming with self-awareness and wit, such as when he complains about his smelly Greyhound seatmate while wishing he could afford better accommodations and noting he’s “prone to macabre hyperbole.” After Noah finds his sister, Carolyn, he secretly meets with her to gauge her interest in meeting their mother. He also navigates the sticky situation of reconnecting with the married J.D., who still talks to Virginia. A picnic brings together all the characters, including Virginia’s long-lost sister Cindy, for high drama and heightened emotions. This is a sequel fans of the original didn’t know they needed. (June)