Great book (not mine!)

Early this year I heard of a new gay men's book club that meets once a month in the East Village in Manhattan. Would that survive, I wondered? Enough gay readers to meet seemed like a long shot to skeptical me. But there are, and the club does survive. We gather in the art gallery of Jon Tomlinson. Jon is the shepherd of the group, and I've told him that he must send out strong positive vibes, because every month a core of 10-12 men attend with smart, thoughtful comments on the book chosen the previous month that they really have read. The books are gay-themed and not. I like the discussions, the comradarie and the obligation to finish a book in time for the meeting. (There was one Communist-era Russian novel that I couldn't "do" and confessed my stopping halfway through.) This month's book is "Necessary Errors," a new, first novel by Caleb Crain, published by Penguin Books. It focuses on a young gay American who goes to Prague in 1990, just after the end of Communism, his exploration of the city, his romances and attachment to a group of five or six other expatriates from different countries. Crain is a gay man who lives in Brooklyn (says Google), and he is a superb writer. The New Yorker gave the book a great review, so mine is less notable, but I add my kudos and hope the book captures lots of prizes.