Brothers in Arms: A Novel | Michael Carson
"In the environs of Liverpool is a boys' Catholic school, and in that school is a fourteen-year-old Martin 'Wobbles' Benson-- an extraordinary adolescent fiercely unhappy with being fat and with the mysterious urges he explores during sessions of 'The Rude Club'-- fumbling encounters with two other boys that drive him to confession with dismal regularity. Benson, it seems, has two conflicting passions: the Holy Mother Church and other boys. So it's not unexpected that he chooses to enter St. Finbar's Seminary. But what happens there will be a stunning surprise to jolly good Benson. For here in a naughty and hilarious coming-of-age and coming-out story, written with a tone and intensity reminiscent of James Joyce's Dubliners, we witness a boy's own story-- of loneliness, choices, and sexual desire." -- Back cover.