For the suburbanites of 1960s Toronto, the Jane Loop streetcar terminal is the gateway to the vibrant and uninhibited city. For Neil Bennett, it is also an escape — escape from his father’s sadistic pranks, the taunts of childhood bullies, and the rigid propriety of his Islington neighbourhood.

The summer before Neil’s seventeenth birthday, the façade of respectability is shattered when a vigilante begins to break into nearby homes, exposing the transgressions of his neighbours. The break-ins, along with the arrival of an alluring new bread delivery man and a visit from his aunt Sylvia from Hollywood, embolden Neil to finally explore the possibilities that exist beyond his own street.

With evocative writing and engaging dialogue, Graham Jackson masterfully explores the subtle complexities of life in 1960s suburban Toronto in this provocative coming-of-age journey to self-discovery.

Born and raised in Toronto, Graham Jackson has been a journalist, playwright, researcher for Methuen Publishers, and writer on male-on-male intimacy from a Jungian perspective. He lives in Toronto where, when not writing, he practices as an analytical psychologist.

Graham Jackson's profile page

“With lean prose that achieves admirable clarity and compelling rhythms, Graham Jackson has written a no-holds-barred dive into the psyche of his characters that is frightening, compelling, and ultimately exalting.”

Jaime Manrique, author of <i>Latin Moon in Manhattan</i> and <i>Eminent Maricones</i>

“Jackson’s mannered depiction of early 1960s Etobicoke is deft, and his characterization of Neil’s sexual awakening is sensitive and eloquently expressed. As a gay coming-of-age novel set in the era before homosexuality was decriminalized in Canada, The Jane Loop fills an interesting niche.”

Literary Review of Canada