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Navigating Differences: Friendships Between Gay and Straight Men, by Jammie Price. New York: Harrington Park Press (Haworth),1999. 172 pp. $39.95 cloth. ISBN: 0-7890-0619-7. $19.95 paper. ISBN: 1-56023-952-2.
This book is an important contribution to men's studies and the sociology of relationships because it provides a rare and insightful look at friendships between gay and straight men. The book is based on Price's research, conducted between 1994 and 1996 through in-depth, openended interviews with gay men and their straight friends. Price analyzed a total of 44 friendship pairs and identified three groups of friendships, based on how the men perceived and responded to their sexual differences. One group of men embraces their differences, another ignores their differences, and a third struggles with their differences in sexuality. For each group, Price explores the issues of intimacy, communication, and the challenges cross-sexuality brings to these friendships.
The book comes to life through the stories of how these friends deal with coming out, signify gender, manage emotions, and cope with pressures from family and friends....