Invisible Life: A Novel (Invisible Life Trilogy)

by E. Lynn Harris

Paperback, 1994

Status

Available

Call number

PS3558.A64438 I58 1994

Publication

Anchor (1994), Edition: Reprint, 304 pages

Description

Available at last, E. Lynn Harris's beloved first novel in a hardcover edition. Just a few years ago, E. Lynn Harris was selling his self-published novel Invisible Life out of the back of his car. Today he is a bestselling publishing sensation, with more than one million copies of his four novels sold. To celebrate Harris's incredible success, and offer his fans the opportunity to own, at last, a hardcover version of Invisible Life, Doubleday is proud to announce a special edition of the book so many have cherished. Invisible Life is the story of a young man's coming of age. Law school, girlfriends, and career choices were all part of Raymond Tyler's life, but there were other, more terrifying issues for him to confront. Being black was tough enough, but Raymond was becoming more and more conscious of sexual feelings that he knew weren't "right." He was completely committed to Sela, his longtime girlfriend, but his attraction to Kelvin, whom he had met during his last year in law school, had become more than just a friendship. No matter how much he tried to suppress them, his feelings were deeply sexual. Fleeing to New York to escape both Sela and Kelvin, Raymond finds himself more confused than ever before. New relationships--both male and female--give him enormous pleasure but keep him from finding the inner peace and lasting love he so desperately desires. The horrible illness and death of a friend force Raymond, at last, to face the truth. Invisible Life has been hailed as "one of the most thought-provoking books--since James Baldwin's Another Country" (Richmond Voice), and Harris's "stories have become the toast of bookstores, reading groups, men, women, and gay and straight people" (Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Proceeds from the sale of this special fifth anniversary edition will go to the E. Lynn Harris Foundation, a charitable organization that gives young people across the country the opportunity to study writing with established authors, and also aids emerging artists.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member doowatt34

Very well written fictional expose on the life of friends, family and new associates and their relations...It will keep your interest until completed....

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LibraryThing member MsNikki

A good book about a sensitive topic. A well written novel about a young black man who has to confront his homosexuality. He never felt "gay" and even had a long term girl friend he had real feelings for, so how did this happen? Is he still a man, and what will his family and friends say? Harris

covers the entire gamut in his novel. The real benefit is that the author doesn't try to sugar coat the real emotional confusion, fear, and health concerns surrounding living as a bi-sexual black man particularly if you're in the closet (on the down-low).

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LibraryThing member bamalibrarylady

The first time I read this book, I was completely blown away. Never before had I read a book which was so true it was scary. "Invisible Life" managed to do what most books hadn't done before, tell what it feels like to come to terms with your sexuality realistically. By this, I mean that most of

the times I read books in which the character was gay, the author would sugar coat the issue or worse, spend most of the book debating about the pros and cons of "coming out".However what E. Lynn Harris has managed to do it create a character who realizes that he is gay and from that point on learns to accept this. Harris doesn't try to take the easy way out in this story by having him tell everyone and they just accept it and move on. Instead, Harris places his character in a situation in which he could either deny who he is or accept himself.From reading this book, I learned a lot of things. Mainly, I realized that life is hard for everyone, no matter if you're straight or gay. Also, I learned that before you make peace with yourself, you have to learn to accept yourself for who you are.So, for anyone who liked this book as much as I did, I recommend that you read all of E. Lynn Harris' books: Just As I Am, Abide With Me, If This World Was Mine, and This Too Shall Pass.

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LibraryThing member bamalibrarylady

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LibraryThing member susandennis

E. Lynn Harris was in Seattle recently promoting his latest book. I read a couple of interviews with him that peeked my interest so I got his first book - this one and read it. It's really an easy read and a really interesting view into the life of a black gay man. As a white straight woman, this

is a world I honestly don't know at all and this small novel was a really interesting read.

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