The Story of the Night – Colm Toibin

I read an interview with Toibin somewhere where he mentions that people who came later to his work are sometimes shocked when they go back and read his earlier stuff as they are full of fairly graphic hot man-on-man action. Having read plenty of Alan Hollinghurst, I did not allow these hair-raising encounters to faze me and I got on with appreciating this splendid novel.

The plot is loose, going from the protagonist’s relationship with his mother in 1970s Buenos Aires to some political doings and finally a surprising and moving love story. Somehow it all works as a unity, largely due to the brilliance and empathy of the writing.