MIDNIGHT COWBOY by James Leo Herlihy...

MIDNIGHT COWBOY by James Leo Herlihy (Primus: $8.95) Considered daring in 1960, this novel about a would-be male prostitute, seems decidedly tame 30 years later. James Herlihy continually pulls his punches, retreating into vague metaphors in the scenes that should have the most graphic sexual and emotional impact. The reader never learns the secret of Joe Buck’s success as a stud; his sexual prowess has to be taken as a given. He’s supposed to be an alienated and even innocent figure: “The persons, male and female alike, who were so eager to avail themselves of his splendid body never appeared to notice that it was inhabited by Joe Buck,” but he’s just plain dumb. Buck is such an easy mark, it’s difficult to believe he could survive in New York as long as he does, even with the febrile guidance of Ratso Rizzo.