A HOME AT THE END OF THE...

A HOME AT THE END OF THE WORLD by Michael Cunningham (Bantam: $6.99). Michael Cunningham attempts to redefine the concept of the family for the late 1980s in this rambling novel. Jonathan, an alienated, sensitive, gay Midwesterner, and Clare, a New York sophisticate hardened by years of pursuing the latest trend, have established a sexless but supportive partnership in Greenwich Village. The arrival of Bobby, Jonathan’s aimless, undefined boyhood companion, complicates their comfortable idyll and leads to the establishment of an even more unconventional menage. Cunningham strikes some resonant chords as his trio of aging baby-boomers struggle to establish their collective identity and find a more meaningful goal than being among the first to adopt the latest SoHo fad. However, the potentially interesting story is undermined by the nebulous characterizations. Although the narrative supposedly reflects a shifting point of view, Jonathan, Clare and Bobby all seem to say the same things about the same subjects, and unless the reader checks the heading of the chapter, he can’t tell which of them is speaking.