''Rainbow Milk'' is a

semi-autobiographical An autobiographical novel is a form of novel using autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fictive elements. The literary technique is distinguished from an autobiography or memoir by the stipulation of being fiction. Bec ...

novel written by British writer

Paul Mendez Paul Mendez (born in 1982) is a British writer based in London. He wrote the 2020 semi-autobiographical novel, '' Rainbow Milk''. Biography Mendez was born in the West Midlands to a second generation Jamaican-British family. He was raised as ...

and first published by a

Little, Brown and Company Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emily ...

imprint in 2020. Mendez'

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

tells the story of Jesse McCarthy, a Black

gay man ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

who flees his home after being

outed Outing is the act of disclosing an LGBT person's sexual orientation or gender identity without that person's consent. It is often done for political reasons, either to instrumentalize homophobia in order to discredit political opponents or to com ...

by members of his community.

Reception

In a review for ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'', Sarah Gilmartin commented on the opening section of the novel, which narrates the life of a Jamaican immigrant trying to settle in the

Black Country The Black Country is an area of the West Midlands county, England covering most of the Metropolitan Boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall. Dudley and Tipton are generally considered to be the centre. It became industrialised during its ro ...

during the 1950s. Gilmartin said the section "stands alone as a virtuosic piece of writing – urgent, original and heartbreaking." Gilmartin praised

Mendez Méndez is a common Spanish language, Spanish surname, originally a patronymic, meaning ''Son of Mendo'', ''Menendo'', or ''Mem''. A longer form sharing the same root is Menendez (disambiguation), Menéndez, while the Portuguese language, Portugues ...

' "ear for dialects" throughout the book, which lets the reader get closer to the characters. The reviewer said the "early parts of Jesse’s life make for an engrossing read," but said the author should have made obvious the connection between the initial chapter and McCarthy's story sooner. Gilmartin also criticised the overuse of shocking and sexual details, which eventually lose impact, and noted that " cing is a big issue" in the novel. Author Tony Leuzzi, reviewing for ''

The Brooklyn Rail ''The Brooklyn Rail'' is a publication and platform for the arts, culture, humanities, and politics. The ''Rail'' is based out of Brooklyn, New York. It features in-depth critical essays, fiction, poetry, as well as interviews with artists, criti ...

'', said it was one of the "more convincing debuts" he has read, as well as "one of the more humane." Leuzzi commented on Mendez' writing ability in letting the main character "articulate his thoughts and feelings without exploiting his struggles for cheap consumption." In his text, Leuzzi also discussed the reviews left by readers on sites such as

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, which "complained about excessive, 'pointless' sex scenes", and said that " ch criticism is misplaced" due to their importance to understand the main character's "psychological and emotional trajectory." ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' noted the pacing issue, saying "the novel sags with overwritten passages". Although the reviewer calls ''Rainbow Milk'' "compelling at times", they also mention the novel's "confused and inconsistent" structure. Annie Bostrom, reviewing for ''

The Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is av ...

'', praised the novel and called it "an epic", saying Mendez shows skill when jumping between the past and the present in the story. The novel received a starred review from ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'', which called it "an explosive ''

Bildungsroman In literary criticism, a ''Bildungsroman'' (, plural ''Bildungsromane'', ) is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood ( coming of age), in which character change is impo ...

'' drawing on the legacy of Britain’s

Windrush generation British African-Caribbean people are an ethnic group in the United Kingdom. They are British citizens whose ancestry originates from the Caribbean or they are nationals of the Caribbean who reside in the UK. There are some self-identified Afro-C ...

of 1950s migrants from the West Indies."{{cite web , title=Fiction Book Review: Rainbow Milk by Paul Mendez , url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-385-54706-2 , website=

, access-date=October 3, 2021 , language=en

References

2020 British novels British LGBT novels 2020 debut novels 2020 LGBT-related literary works Little, Brown and Company books Novels set in London 2020s LGBT novels