Books by Casey Charles

In the summer of 1955, sixteen-year-old Tommy Cadigan finds himself helpless in the face of desire, especially when the man that wears the face is his high school swimming coach, a young Korean War veteran who is still recovering from receiving a "blue ticket" discharging him from the military because of his homosexuality. Unsure if his infatuation is returned, Tommy distracts himself with the attention of a local bully, who hustles older men at night besides a decrepit zoo in Boise's park. Tommy soon finds himself in the midst of a scandal that threatens to ignite the entire town...and his life will never be the same.

Examines contemporary films and documentaries that dramatize the intersection of law and queer life, analysing the effects of legal doctrines-jury selection, unwanted sexual advance, negligence, hate crimes, and gay marriage-on the production and reception of queer film and fiction.