Secret Matter
By Toby Johnson
3/5
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Currently unavailable
About this ebook
Winner of a Lambda Literary Award for Gay Men's Science Fiction!
"...a writer with a positive vision and a wonderful attitude" --Philadelphia Gay News
When human-like Visitors arrive in the skies, the mysteries begin. Where are they really from? Why have they come to Earth? What's the secret they're protecting? And why is one of them apparently flirting with the young architect Kevin Anderson who's just moved to San Francisco to help in the rebuilding after the "Big One," the earthquake that destroyed the City. Were the Visitors responsible? Or have they come to save the Earth from more such immense earthquakes & disasters?
Toby Johnson
Edwin Clark (Toby) Johnson, Ph.D., is a writer, editor and former psychotherapist now in semi-retirement. During the 1970s, he lived in Northern California and was on staff for many of Joseph Campbell’s appearances during that time and corresponded with Campbell for over a decade. He is author of four spiritual autobiographies, two books on gay spirituality, and four novels. His 1990 novel Secret Matter received a Lambda Literary Award in the Science Fiction category and the 2000 book Gay Spirituality, a Lammy in Spirituality/Religion. His most recent books are Finding Your Own True Myth: What I Learned from Joseph Campbell and Finding God in the Sexual Underworld.Toby Johnson and Kip Dollar, partners since 1984, ran Liberty Books, the gay and lesbian community bookstore in Austin, TX, 1988-1994, and managed two B&B operations together.From 1996-2003, Johnson edited White Crane: A Journal of Gay Men’s Spirituality. He worked as a literary editor and book designer with Lethe Press, 2005-2015. He’s on the Steering Committee of Austin’s LGBT Coalition on Aging.In 2018, Toby and Kip were legally married on their 34th anniversary.Johnson’s website is tobyjohnson.comThe Photo posted is from 1980, when the first edition of The Myth of the Great Secret was published. This was on the back of the book. The photo was taken by Toby's dear friend Leslie Peterson.
Read more from Toby Johnson
Gay Spirituality: Gay Identity and the Transformation of Human Consciousness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Finding Your Own True Myth: What I Learned from Joseph Campbell: The Myth of the Great Secret III Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGay Perspective: Things Our [Homo]sexuality Tells Us About the Nature of God and the Universe Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTwo Spirits: A Story of Life With the Navajo Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFinding God in the Sexual Underworld: The Journey Expanded Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSecret Matter Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Fourth Quill Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
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Reviews for Secret Matter
8 ratings1 review
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5In the near future, Kevin Anderson is about to graduate, leave New York and move to San Francisco to start his first job as a young architect helping to rebuild the city recently all but destroyed in the recent earthquake. Just before his departure his old room-mate tries to get him to come to terms with being gay, but Kevin continues to live in denial. However events will force a change of heart soon after his arrival in San Francisco. Recently the Visitors arrived landing in major cities throughout the world, human like aliens who it appears have come in peace. Soon after he takes up his new post the company Kevin is working for becomes directly involved with the Visitors building an embassy for them, and it's not long before he meets 'Bel, a handsome young alien who is immediately attracted to Kevin, and just as quickly brings him out of the closet. As Kevin gets to know 'Bel he begins to discover that the Visitors are not quite what they seem, what secrets are they concealing about themselves and their mission?The story follows the growing relationship between the two young men, one which soon develops into an intense love affair, but the main thrust of the account is the aliens' mission, the discovery of their secrets, and their attempts to prevent to US from taken actions which they claim will unwittingly cause the destruction of the world. Following a break down in relations between the US and the Visitors and the latter's subsequent expulsion, Kevin and 'Bel find that they are the only ones able to prevent the destruction of not just the earth, but the aliens' world too.There is a lot going on in this account, and the author clearly has a message to deliver. The sci-fi aspect is fascinating and a lot of thought has gone into creating the scenario playing out here, much of which I must admit lost me but no doubt such might appeal to the more avid sci-fi fans. Against this background TJ has quite lot to say about the acceptance of gays, and quite rightly has little time for bigots; he also has some thoughts on religion, faith and being gay. He proposes his own interpretation on what some scriptures say about man on man relations (although seemingly ignoring what other parts of the Bible say), but he is entitled to his view. However there are other aspects which suggest a less than clear understanding of scripture. He introduces the idea of an original pair like Adam and Eve but who do not succumb to the temptation to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge, and thus would be without sin, but misses the crucial scriptural point that, having committed no sin, they would not be subject to death, neither would their offspring. It might have been interesting to have seen this woven into the plot.Secret Matter is an interesting read, it has recently been updated to move it forward in time and take account of more recent events and it is this edition that I read, and which includes and explanatory prologue by the author and an afterword by Mark D Jordan. It provides a good mix of personal interest, sci-fi theory, drama and tension. Unfortunately the quality of the writing is not great, the narrative can be rather stilted and pedestrian although the dialogue is a little more natural - (I find it surprising that it won a Lambda Literary Award, could this have been more for its message that its literary aspirations?). After a relatively slow start as we are gradually introduced to a number of characters who will at some stage play their part, it begins to gain momentum and one becomes less aware of the shortcomings of the writing. While TJ manages to build to an effective climax many of the potential surprises are diminished as he provides many clues along the way as to where everything is heading.