A wonderful memoir. Such a great read. Well written. It’s a book that you just want more of. You don’t want it to end

There are gorgeous pieces about travelling and experiences of other queer people globally - and most of the book is at its best when set abroad and with the author figuring out his place in life. Once he moves back to the UK there's a weird tonal shift or disconnect from the rest of the book. It just doesn't flow as well.

I liked the book and don't want to rate it badly due to it being someone's life and not a fictional account....but at the same time I cringed at the very white and cis experience Calum clearly has - yes he does acknowledge he has more privilege, especially when talking about his own situation with his parents and his ability to travel the world.....but never does he acknowledge his whiteness as other - it is his accepting parents or money and it just irked me when he was in non-white cultures...there was little acknowledgement of this, even when he was back in London or in Europe there was a passing remark about queer people of colour but it was just a passing remark. There's no real depth of his own prejudices against HIV.

I don't know...this book didn't change my life, but I'm a very different queer person than Calum McSwiggan so it may be valuable to young gay men....but another reviewer mentioned the book feels dated, and it does. The world moves fast and culture along with it. It tries to be both a memoir and life guide I guess? But there's not much of either...

First things first, what title Eat, Gay, Love is!

Following the break-up of a long-term relationship in 2012, Calum McSwiggan decides to back up and travel the world. From teaching English in Italy to raising tigers in a animal sanctuary in Thailand, in each new place McSwiggan finds himself exploring the local LGBTQ+ scenes.

Through his experience, and the friendships he forms, we learn about the similarities and disparities of LGBTQ+ culture and lived experience globally.

McSwiggan writes with great sensitivity, yet I found something lacking with Eat, Gay, Love. Memoir is often tricky to review simply because it is not fiction, these events happened. In this case, I didn't connect with McSwiggan's writing style.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Prior to reading this book, I'd seen some YouTube videos of Calum McSwiggan a few years ago when he frequented my favourite youtubers channels. I think it truly shows that from a youtube audience perspective you really don't know what goes on in somebodies personal life and this is the perfect example. On youtube Calum has always been presented as this lovely, wholesome and positive person and whilst I still have this opinion of him, I've seen deeper into his background and I still believe he's one of the nicest people on the internet.

This book delves so deeply into Calum's life and the life of other LGBTQ+ people and how supportive the community can be. There are so many lovely anecdotes in this book as Calum truly finds himself and who he is, after years of not really knowing what or who he wanted to be and this book was honestly such a good book. I couldn't recommend it more.

I loved the first 70% of this book... and then read the last 30% cringing. The ending feels so out of touch with the broader LGBT+ scene that it wouldn't have surprised me if I discovered this was written 15 years ago (I mean, Old Compton St and Soho... really?). Such a shame as the book starts with some beautifully observed pieces about travelling and experiences of other queer people globally. I'm sure some young cis white gay men will find this book helpful or insightful but in the current climate, it already feels very dated.

I adore memoirs. I’ve only recently gotten into them but they are fast becoming some of my favourite books to read and this was absolutely no exception it was incredible. I already want to reread it!

“Gilbert Baker designed that flag in hope of a brighter tomorrow, and it’s a flag that still brings together our community and unifies us under the colours of the rainbow. To some, it may just be a few colours twisting in the wind, but to me it’s a reminder of the millions of incredible people that our community is made up of”

Well did I get more from this book than I expected to get! Callum Mcswiggan takes us on his own personal queer journey around the world to find who he wants to be and what he wants to achieve. With tales from Italy, Berlin, India, Thailand, Ibiza and some more in between we get an insight to how it feels to be queer in these countries and get a glimpse of the beautiful (and very very ugly) characters that he meets along the way.

This was such an honest, funny, educational and downright inspiring read from cover to cover which I would fully recommend to any queer person out there who is feeling a little bit lost or who would like to learn a little bit more about our culture without it being too overpowering.

I honestly didn’t expect it to horrify me at some points as much as it did and at others make me sob uncontrollably with joy (mostly when his parents were involved). It makes you sit back and think of the privelages we have in our lives here in the UK where in other countries being LGBTQ+ is still frowned upon.

Reading this I definitely felt very proud to be a part of this messed up community of ours, and it is so true no matter where you go in the world as long as you find that rainbow flag there will be someone there with a great big smile and a helping hand.

It's a good book, well written and full of food for thought.
It's entertaining, moving, well written and I liked the different stories and how Calum faced issues and different cultures.
It's a book full of hope and I loved the message of acceptance.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

“Live bravely and boldly, and never apologise for being yourself.” An amazing insight into life growing up as a gay man, his stories were so interesting and relatable.

I finished this book in days, I devoured every story and related to his experiences in so many ways. I really enjoyed the stories and the overall message of its ok to be yourself. It’s a brilliant insight into what it means to be LGBT+ in our modern society.

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for providing me with an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is not my usual genre, I’m more into crime/thriller books and even psychological thrillers too so I am extremely pleased and grateful to them for opening up my mind to something totally different.

Eat, Gay, Love is a book you will either absolutely adore for Calum McSwiggan candour and openness in his personal journey and the people he meets a long the way, or you hate it and think it's far fetched and simplistic. It's a very marmite novel.

The novel is all about Calum exploring his sexuality, and who he is after having his heartbroken. He doesn't hold back when it comes to his feelings, at times he seems like an incredibly likeable guy who you'd have a laugh with on a night out or who you just want to hug because of all the things he gone through. Then there are times within the book where he comes across as exceedingly selfish, judgemental and so unwilling to hold himself accountable for his own actions you just want to shake him and say grow up,

But that's sort of the point of the novel so it works.... it's an exploration of Calum finding himself, of him healing and moving on and him learning to embrace who he is and living life to the fullest. This a story many in the LGBT+ community will read and relate to.

A book about coping with a breakup looking to the world to help heal.Calum a gay male takes us along on his healing adventure from teaching to more exotic adventures.Some great some not that good,He meets many wonderful people he is embraced Do to his warm personality that shines through in this memoir.#netgalley#hodder&stoughton

I really struggled with this book, the idea behind it was sound but the execution was somewhat lacking.

I am conflicted in terms of my rating for this. On one hand, I think there are a few really strong and positive messages regarding the (mis)treatment of the LGBTQIA+ community that many people may not be aware of - I think the more books raising awareness the better. However, the writing style of this was far too simplistic - whilst it had a linear story line I struggled to stay enthused owing to the, sometimes child like, writing. To be fair to McSwiggan this happens with memoirs where the author is not a writer but it can make it a little difficult to read.

My rating is based on the strong messaging through the book and the awareness that it will raise.

Wow, I really loved and enjoyed my experience reading this book!
TW: Drug Use, Mention of Suicide, Descriptive Drug Overdose, Discussions around Homophobia and intolerance

"Things are indeed improving and yet there still isn't a single country in the world where LGBT+ people are treated as equals in every aspect of life - whether that's same-sex couples being unable to adopt in Italy; gay marriage being prohibited in India; or trans people still being denied the right to legally change their gender in Thailand."

This book is Calum McSwiggan's travel memoir where he candidly tells us beautiful and horrifying stories alike about his experiences in his travels, with specific attention on the LGBTQIAP+ community around the world. The book in itself reads pretty easily, the writing is very light and easy to digest. I loved how candidly the book was written and how we were able to experience a lot of these stories with Calum through the pages of the book, whether it be the interesting and equally amazing people he met along the way, to very important discussions and exposure about LGBT+ issues around the world, to his experiences in German Sex Club, or being scarred by a baby tiger in Thailand!

The book was at times funny, but most of the time it was enlightening and adventure filled! It really emphasised how beautifully diverse the LGBT+ community is and what you can learn from different cultures around the world. The main message that I got out of this book, was overall just being proud of who you are, and where you are.

The book really discussed important topics specific to LGBT+ people, from drugs and suicide, to sex and sexual health and education, to coming out and exploring your gender identity and issues regarding HIV/Aids.
But it also exposes you to the beautiful queer life across the world, and the unique challenges LGBT+ people face in countries like India and Thailand. Reading this book, it really felt like you were getting to know Calum and the people he came across and surrounded himself with.

A beautiful story of self-discovery, pride and wanderlust adventure! I highly recommend you pick this one up, I adored it and am so glad I read it!!

Calum McSwiggan’s memoir is a candid, upfront account of a significant period of his life, in the post-break-up stages of his relationship.

McSwiggan works as an English teacher in Italy; has some memorable, and sometimes horrific, experiences, in Ibiza, India and Thailand; and ends up in London, learning a lot more about himself and others. Considering he is not yet thirty, it is inspiring to read an account of a man’s life where so much has been accomplished.

This memoir is clearly written and expressive but, at times, cliched. However, what it does best is highlight how being honest with yourself is recommended and can reap the most useful rewards - that is, finding friendship and working out the direction of one’s life.

This was a great read, actually much better than I was expecting. It was open and honest, Calum was happy to say where he made mistakes and how he learnt from them

I loved hearing how each country treated Calum and how he found so many friends, often immediately on landing in a country - this really gave an insight into what he must be like - with a kind and welcoming personality. (When he introduces us to his mum and dad you can see why he is like this). Calum describes himself as an introvert and yet had so many wonderful experiences. As an I grocery myself I loved this.

I found myself crying in frustration sometimes but every time Calum was able to help me see what I could learn myself from the situation

A great read- I was disappointed it wasn’t longer

*ARC from Netgalley*

I'm so very happy I lost my nonfiction virginity with this book, this memoir. It was emotional, funny, important and full of hope. From the very first pages you know you're in for a very wild and queer ride. I've never read a memoir so I really didn't know what to expect. I got a story of a young man trying to find himself in the world while traveling. He knows he's privileged to be able to just leave everything behind after a break up, and just travel, working a bit, but mostly just experiencing all kinds of lives.

What I love the most is how each LGBT member of the community just kind of attracts the other. Wherever Calum went, he found someone dealing with coming out, finding out they may not be straight, being in a relationship, closeted because of their countries' laws, lovely drag queen, and many more. It was like a videogame in which the character needs to complete certain tasks in certain places and he'll be given advice or he'll learn something new and important from the experience to just keep going forward.

At first I envied Calum so much, going around the world, meeting interesting people, gaining adventure points and stories he could tell others. I wish I did just that. Then little by little I realized he was also very lost, like many others, lonely even, in need of guidance. Aren't we all? It hit hard, close to home. He also experienced something really bad and also something pretty scary, and I was so heartbroken.

I liked how Calum pointed out every single flaw in each countries' system towards LGBT+ people. He talked openly with the locals and got insights he would never could have gotten otherwise. Even where you think all is very openminded, there's something hidden. Huge steps forwards have been made, a few backwards, but the path is till very long and in need of everyone's voices to be truly equal. I loved how he pointed out everything he learned during his travels. How much there's still to achieve.

How awesome is to be bitten by a baby tiger during your first day of work? I truly liked this memoir. It's both fun and sad, light and heavy, makes you feel lonely among people you know, but also widely accepted among strangers. It gives you a beautiful sense of community, even among people who barely know each other.

Highly recommended. To both nonfiction fans and not.