''The Night Listener'' is a 2000

roman à clef ''Roman à clef'' (, anglicised as ), French for ''novel with a key'', is a novel about real-life events that is overlaid with a façade of fiction. The fictitious names in the novel represent real people, and the "key" is the relationship ...

Armistead Maupin Armistead Jones Maupin, Jr. ( ) (born May 13, 1944) is an American writer notable for ''Tales of the City'', a series of novels set in San Francisco. Early life Maupin was born in Washington, D.C., to Diana Jane (Barton) and Armistead Jones Maup ...

. The novel's plot is based on the author's interaction with

Anthony Godby Johnson Anthony Godby Johnson is the subject and supposed author of the 1993 memoir ''A Rock and a Hard Place: One Boy's Triumphant Story''. Subsequent investigations suggest that Johnson may have been the literary creation of Vicki Johnson, who purporte ...

, the purported author of a book, '' A Rock and a Hard Place: One Boy's Triumphant Story'', both before and after Anthony is suspected of being a hoax.

Plot summary

Gabriel Noone is a

gay ''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 ...

writer whose late-night radio stories have brought him into the homes of millions. Noone has recently separated from Jess, his partner of ten years. Noone's publisher sends him the galleys of a

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...

apparently written by a 13-year-old boy, Peter Lomax. The author claims to have been the victim of

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...

and infected with HIV. According to his memoir, his father started beating him at two and raped him at four; his mother videotaped the "sessions". When he was eight years old, his parents started pimping him and selling videotapes. When Pete was age 11, he ran away with the

pornographic Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of Human sexual activity, sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,

tapes, and his parents were jailed. A psychologist named Donna Lomax took the boy in and eventually

adopted Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

him. Noone contacts the boy and they start exchanging a series of phone calls that develop into a kind of father/son relationship. He begins to suspect that Pete does not exist and that he and his memoir are fabrications by Donna. Even a visit to their home is inconclusive, and the novel ends with Gabriel feeling that the value of the relationship to him is more important than whether or not Pete is real. Subplots in the novel revolve around Gabriel's relationships with his lover and his father. Important themes are the nature of father/son relationships, the power struggle involved in caring for and being cared for by another, the embellishment of truth, and the secrets we keep even in the most intimate relationships.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

*The novel was adapted into a 2006

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

starring

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

, which was co-written by Maupin, Terry Anderson and director

Patrick Stettner Patrick Stettner is an American film director and writer. His first film, ''Flux'', was released in 1996 as a short, and starred Allison Janney in an early role. He went on to direct and write the screenplay for ''The Business of Strangers'' in 200 ...

. *"

Faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

", a 2002 episode of the television series ''

Law & Order: Criminal Intent ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' is an American police procedural drama television series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 20 ...

'', borrowed heavily from the book's plot.

External links

New York Times review
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070514164740/http://www.portlandphoenix.com/archive/books/00/10/06/ARMISTEAD.html An article about ''The Night Listener'' 2000 American novels 2000s LGBT novels American novels adapted into films Novels by Armistead Maupin Roman à clef novels HarperCollins books 2000 LGBT-related literary works {{2000s-LGBT-novel-stub

Plot summary

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

See also

External links