Want so badly to find this story. It's about a dying uncle who visits his gay nephew

[CyclingJ]

I've been looking so hard and for a long time for the fiction collection that has this story. I think it was written sometime between 1990 and 2005.

Plot as I remember it: A dying uncle is visiting various people in the family before he passes away, and the story takes place as he is visiting his nephew, who is gay and has a partner, and seems to be rather ostracized from the family. I think the uncle's wife had already passed away.

The uncle relates his memories of a summer (or spring?) long ago when he was just a boy. The carnival came to town, and he made friends with a boy from the carnival. They spent a lot of time together playing as kids do. Then one day the carnival is leaving. Before the boy leaves, they share a kiss, and the uncle remembers the boy's breath smelling like fresh cut hay (or grass?). And then the summer was over.

This short story touched me deeply, but I made the mistake of not writing down the book/author details. If you have any information about this story, or the anthology it was in, please reply

It would mean a lot to me to find this. Thanks.


- J

[LuggageFan]

Sounds a little like Edmund White's "A Boy's Own Story"...?

[OrphanPip]

Sounds a little like Edmund White's "A Boy's Own Story"...?

Sounds absolutely nothing like A Boy's Own Story. That's about a gay kid growing up in the Mid-West.

[Pensive]

Now after reading the story plot I find myself pretty interested too, and hope somebody would be able to tell us the title soon. :)

[Beautifull]

Now after reading the story plot I find myself pretty interested too, and hope somebody would be able to tell us the title soon. :)

Agree!