The End of Innocence

The End of Innocence is a celebration of what it means to be young, Black and gay. This celebration and joy of discovery comes at a considerable price: the innocence of Fitzgerald T. Washington (the novel’s main character). Washington is hurled into the mutable gay “lifestyle” of Chicago in the 1980s and all the while he juggles the struggles of puberty, high school, religion, and the military. Written in first-person narrative, Innocence draws the reader in with the candid story-telling style of Washington. Alaric Blair offers a real character that has real experiences and (by virtue of his honesty) provides the means for the renunciation of commonly held myths among Black gay men. Moreover, Innocence serves as the vehicle for Washington’s journey from the naiveté of childhood to the pragmatic “enlightenment” of adulthood. The reader will immediately identify with the questioning mind of (the child) Fitzgerald regarding gender assignment and the sexual identity of boys and girls. Fitzgerald not only questions but he also challenges the conventions of his environment and learns much about himself and those around him—particularly his family, friends, and lovers—all the while holding on to a healthy sense of humor and a flare for the dramatic.