Lost Memory of Skin by Russell Banks

Lost Memory of Skin chronicles the background and current difficulties of a 22-year-old convicted sex offender known as the Kid, who has served his prison time. When the novel opens he is living under a bridge in a Florida city, one of the few places he is permitted to stay because it is not within 2,500 feet of anywhere children might gather. Backflashes reveal his lonely childhood, as he is exposed to the sexual couplings of his mother and becomes addicted to pornography by the age of 11. Although he is ironically still a virgin, his intent to meet and perhaps seduce a 14-year-old girl brands him as an offender alongside others who have committed much more predatory acts.

Then the Professor enters the Kid's life, supposedly to interview him for scholarly purposes. The Professor provides assistance and a kind of friendship, but it turns out that his own life is built on deception and lies, causing the Kid to reconsider everything he has believed.

This novel implies that our current laws regarding these offenders should be more closely examined. If you have ever looked online at the sex offender registry, you will know that the legal charge is listed, with no elaboration. Thus an offender found guilty of "Indecency with a child" could be a 19-year-old caught having sex with his 17-year-old girl friend or the rapist of a 5-year-old. Unlike other former convicts, the sex offender is forever publicly identified as such and is often restricted as to where he may reside. In an effort to keep the public safe, society has possibly created a new kind of victim.

I'll have to admit that I am extremely puzzled by the many highly favorable reviews for this 2011 novel. I recognize that it does reveal a current shortcoming in the American justice system, and that is a valuable contribution. The core examination of the background and life of the young sex offender is well done, creating understanding and empathy without condoning actions. So what's not to like? The other major character is unbelievable and his story seems to have no connection to the rest; the characters are not given names, only designations -- The Kid, The Professor -- leading to the appearances that this is an allegory, yet the point is unclear; the late introduction of a third major character, The Writer, to "explain things" is extremely awkward, and he really doesn't explain much of anything anyway.

So I would characterize this as a moderately interesting novel, but one with major flaws. I have read others by Russell Banks, so I know he is capable of much better.