Goldberg Variations: The Redemption of the Damned

Jamie Goldberg, newly out of the closet in 1980 Detroit, thinks coming out would solve his problems. Yet, allusive darker traumatic secrets seem to linger. He discovers human sexuality is more complex than merely gay vs straight. He also learns the struggles of suicidal thoughts, low self-esteem, and sexual acceptance only begin with coming out. In short, he realizes coming out appears to pose more problems than it solves. Sometimes he is sustained only by his own wry sense of humor, love of music or the theater. Eventually a cast of Detroit characters accept him as he is, even if he does not, which prepares him for a date with his past he cannot escape. That confrontation threatens to damn him or possibly redeem him.

About the Goldberg Variations

Although The Redemption of the Damned is intended to stand alone, it is part of a multi-volume work called The Goldberg Variations. It is the successor volume to The Rites of Passage. This series follows its main character on a journey of self-discovery through an odyssey of trials, errors, and the occasional moment of grace leading this main character, Jamie Goldberg, on his elusive journey to discovery, redemption and self-actualization. This journey takes him to many places while meeting a diverse cast of characters along the path to his own surprising, quirky self-discoveries.

Praise for Volume 1

“The Rites of Passage is like encountering a gay Portnoy’s Complaint in its distinctive blend of Jewishness, sex, moral panic, and maternal dominance. And it’s painfully realistic in its depiction of what ‘coming out’ is …” — Patrick Mulcahey, seven-time Emmy Award-winning screenwriter of The Bold and the Beautiful

“When I read the searing tale of Jamie’s journey from childhood through adolescence and young adulthood, I lived it as if it were my own. It chronicles his anguish as he finds himself on the outside, increasingly isolated from family, school and college, his coming to terms with transgressive fantasies and his authentic self” -- Kunal Mukherjee, author of My Magical Palace

“Reading The Rites of Passage reminded me of the fragile time in one’s youth when one may or may not mistakenly believe that all information is somehow related to one’s self. So, rather irrationally and hilariously, I started to assume the book was about me …” Rene Capone, gay figure painter and author of many graphic novels including The Legend of Hedgehog Boy

Jonathan Arnowitz Taylor is a San Francisco-based writer and designer. Recently he has published his first novel, The Rites of Passage is the first installment of a multi-volume series, The Goldberg Variations. He is also a leading designer for creating user-friendly technology and has worked for companies such as Google, Nokia, IBM, and the Dutch design bureaus Informaat and Keen Design. Jonathan has published two books on software design. As this book will show, Jonathan's passions include the human condition, theater, opera, travel, social justice, and communities. All of these passions figure prominently in his writing. Jonathan graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Theater Arts. Redemption of the Damned is Jonathan's second novel in the The Goldberg Variations series.