I think the variables involved are due in part from them both being obstinate men who don't want to commit one way or the other, but also because gay relationships aren't given the same credence as heterosexual relationships in their families and community. I've been in relationships like this and know lots of gay couples that live in this state of uncertainty.

Is this an extended hookup? A loving affair? A marriage by another name? Roommates with benefits? The reader is never entirely certain because Benson and Mike aren't certain. Neither is particularly good at communicating how he feels so these unwieldy emotions are primarily expressed in fights and sex. From meeting on an app and a mutual acquaintance to living together to Ben being in the strange position of co-habiting with Mike's mother when he leaves, the state of their connection is uncertain and fragile. It felt really true the way Benson and Mike never really define their relationship. Washington shows how these elements of their identities certainly don't define them but have a persistent impact on how they interact with the world and each other. These elements can be found in many relationships, but there are specific challenges which African-American Benson and Japanese-American Mike face being a same-sex couple. Although there is a strong emotional and sexual bond, this story lays out much of the ambiguity and uncertainty that exists between them. This is also one of the most complex and honest portrayals of a modern-day gay relationship I've ever read. Although they alternately narrate this novel we also get glimpses into the lives of their families, neighbours and the larger community so there's a wonderful kind of plurality to Washington's narrative. His debut novel “Memorial” is a kind of extended story you might have found in that collection but concentrates on couple Benson and Mike whose relationship is severely tested when Mike leaves their home in Houston to reconnect with his estranged dying father in Osaka.

He movingly portrayed the numerous conflicts and strong bonds to be found amongst families, friends and neighbourhoods as well as many different ethnic and socio-economic groups. Bryan Washington's story collection “Lot” imaginatively delved into the fictional lives of a variety of characters in Houston.

Memorial bryan washington