Charlie Porter's Debut Novel 'Nova Scotia House' Explores Queer Identity and World-Building

Charlie Porter's first novel, 'Nova Scotia House,' examines the construction of personal and communal identities through the lives of partners Johnny and Jerry. The narrative unfolds in London, where Johnny maintains rituals after Jerry's death from an HIV-related illness. Porter's prose alternates between long, unpunctuated sentences and short factual statements, creating a rhythmic exploration of certainty and uncertainty. The novel investigates themes of visibility, repression, and queer existence within British society. It considers life's trajectory from youthful potential to its eventual end, asking what remains afterward. Mediums like furniture design, communal living, music, clubbing, gardening, activism, and care serve as avenues for world-building. Jerry's discourse highlights music by 'black, queer geniuses' as a potent outlet for marginalized creators to forge temporary escapes. Published by Particular Books in hardcover for £18.99, the work appears in the May 2025 issue of ArtReview.