“Loaded” by Christos Tsiolkas expresses more than a queer story. This novel explores identity through the experiences of Ari, a young gay raised in the north suburbs in an immigrant Greek family in Melbourne.
Ari is surrounded by his family, friends, hookups, and his romantic interests. He takes all the risks in his life, showing a decadent, sad, and angry atmosphere in the story. Tsiolkas displays the gay scene in the city in the 90s: drugs, HIV, discrimination, and segregation in a crude narrative. The main theme is Ari’s path to adulthood, and his struggle and pain in assuming homosexuality from a working-class family in a city that excludes him in many ways, a city with walls, and divisions.
The description of Melbourne as a complex character itself impresses me. Tsiolkas describes the north, the east, the west, and Saint Kilda as parts of a hydra with many heads, lifestyles, demography, that grows in complexity. I think this book transcends the time it was written. I agree that Melbourne in 2025 keeps a bit of the spirit of the 90s. And, as a gay man myself, I understand Ari on his search for identity, he was a well-made character. I recommend this book to people over 18, who will find understanding and fulfill their curiosity with a well written queer novel as Loaded. 5 of 5
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