Sailor’s Island is a story that will take you on a journey from a mining town in Canada to a US Navy destroyer during the Second World War, and continue on with the survival of three men on a South Pacific island. Against the backdrop of war between nations, this is a story of the war that raged inside the minds of men born different than the majority of those men around them.
Young Sailor Cook has finished high school and is on his way to the Annapolis Naval Academy in the fall of 2013.
Sailor Cook is confused about his sexuality and isn’t sure being gay is compatible with a career as an officer in the United States Navy.
Sailor has a great uncle whom he has never met but with whom he shares his full name. The uncle resides in an assisted living facility on the Canadian island of Manitoulin. Sailor hopes a visit to the mysterious Uncle Cook might provide Sailor with the answers he’s searching for.
As the young Sailor Cook learns about his uncle’s account of survival during World War II, he becomes better equipped to understand his future role in life. And how being gay can relate to his expectations of an officer with a military career.
Reviews for Sailor’s Island
5.0 out of 5 stars
Uniquely Intergenerational
This book may well be unique in gay literature with it's intergenerational theme, and the role that an older generation plays in healing the younger. As always, Swank's characters are well developed and become both memorable and lovable. Survival on the island becomes inter-twined with self-discovery of the main character, as he struggles toward self-acceptance of his sexuality. As the author unfolds and reveals the personalities of each character, they become crucial to the story of Sailor's personal integration. Of course, there are surprises and nothing is given or taken for granted as the story unfolds. It keeps the reader very engaged, and it is hard to put down until it is finished.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sailor's Island is masterful
I was sort of expecting a small town reject making it on his terms sort of story but this is so very much more. Once we meet the senior Sailor Cook and begin a journey through his time in WWII, the book grabs you by the heartstrings and squeezes. At times I cried; at times I laughed. I was so caught up in the story that I let everything else slide at home until I finished it. I was kept guessing about the "other man, that caretaker" right up to the very end. I am a huge fan of Jon Swank's books and this is one of his best. Go get a copy now. You won't regret it.