Tramps Like Us was originally published in 2001 but due to life and world circumstances leading to the book not getting much traction, it is being republished in 2025. It's both autobiographical and fiction, the story based heavily on the author's own life while also making enough changes to where fiction comes into play.

The story takes place between 1974 and 1986, following Joe as he leaves home for the first time to travel around the USA. As a young gay man in this era, he is having a lot of sex, shooting up drugs and meeting people who will come in and out of his life. This is the era before and during the AIDS crisis, but the novel focuses a lot on Joe's relationships, and the places he goes to. It's not plot heavy until nearer the end.

I wish I had clicked more with this book, but unfortunately I didn't. There was too much "and then I did this, and then I did this" to make me invested. As I said, a lot of character focus and not a whole lot of plot. I think this book will resonate a lot with older American gay men who also lived through that era and can relate to all the things Joe talks about.

A rambling novel about a young gay man’s coming of age. It’s more of a series of moments and scenes in his life as opposed to a structured plot, but I enjoyed that as it was like hearing stories from a friend.

I loved the characters, the found family, and how the time spanned from pre-AIDS to after. I thought that was especially interesting as many novels I’ve read have focused on the time after the AIDS epidemic started, but I liked how this novel covered the 70’s and 80’s, and how the epidemic slowly creeps in the book and affects the characters.

Definitely worth the read if you enjoy queer fiction!

Thank you to NetGalley and MCD for this ARC!

“Tramps Like Us” is a semi-autobiographical novel telling the partially fictionalised story of author Joe Westmoreland’s life, from growing up in 1960s and 70s Missouri to moving around the United States, living in places such as New Orleans and San Francisco. Along the way we watch the narrator, Joe, come into his identity as a gay man, learn what he likes and dislikes, find friends and lovers and of course do a whole lot of drugs. But despite the prevalence of scenes of him and his friends going from club to bar and bar to club, at the heart of this novel is the story of queer people and social underdogs coming together and building their own family units, their own support systems, which are there for them even in death.

As someone born in the 2000s I have absolutely no way of even imagining the gay experience of the 70s and 80s, but I really liked the way this book portrayed both the ups and downs of this time. It showed how many people were alienated from their families and how they found their own, new families, it showed the fun of drugs and partying, but also how those things could drain you, and it showed a great variety of different ways of getting through (and sometimes ahead in) life.

Of course one can’t talk about a gay book set in the 80s without also mentioning AIDS. While this book does discuss and show the effects of the mounting AIDS epidemic on our narrator and his friends, I certainly wouldn’t say it is the focus of the book. It is, however, much of the focus of the last 20% or so, as the narration enters the mid-80s, and these last 20% filled me equally with dread and heartbreak, but also with genuine warmth as we watch these characters care for each other through the last months of someone’s life, doing everything to be there for the sick and for each other. As I cherish friendships over any other relationships, reading these scenes meant the world to me.

Another element I felt was very important to this book’s identity were the many references to music – the music the narrator likes, the music his friends like, the music playing in the clubs and bars they go to, the concerts they go see. I unfortunately have near zero knowledge of 60s-80s New Wave (?) music, but if you do I imagine this book will hit even harder for you, especially in the nostalgia department.

Really the only thing I feel I must mention before someone reads this book (and I think everyone should) is its writing style. I am someone who tends to prefer purple prose, so the very simplistic writing style with short sentences was a bit difficult for me to get into, but if that is something you prefer you’ll probably fly through this even more quickly than I did.

Overall I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about queer life in the 70s/80s, one person’s experience of the AIDS epidemic, or if you really love this period’s music and want to have a fun (but heartbreaking, keep that in mind) ride down memory lane.

I’m often wary of books about the AIDS crisis, because many of them just become gay trauma porn. However, this didn’t feel like that. Yes, there is tragedy in here - but it is told in such a way that I didn’t feel like that was all it was about, while still important. I really enjoyed this and it made me feel many emotions.

Absolutely love the retro cover, it’s sexy and fun and alluring and im happy to say the book is all those things too. I think this is great for readers that love Edmund White.

I really wanted to like this book. The premise sounded interesting but I honestly struggled to finish it.

The biggest issue for me was the writing style and pacing. The writing didn’t flow well, and some of the descriptions just felt completely off or even ridiculous. One that really stuck out (in a bad way) was: “The mirrored disco ball spun specks of light all over the reminded me of flakes of oatmeal before it’s cooked.” That’s just one example, but there were a lot of lines like that that pulled me out of the story instead of drawing me in.

The pacing and structure were also pretty chaotic. It was hard to get a clear sense of the timeline or how much time was passing in different parts of the main character’s life. It all felt a bit of a mess.

What disappointed me most, though, was how emotionally flat it felt. There are some intense moments—like scenes of SA early on—but I still felt totally disconnected from the characters and events. I wanted to care, but I just didn’t.

Overall, I think this book had a lot of potential, but the execution didn’t work for me at all.

An important book from an important perspective: this is exactly the kind of story that the world needs to read right now. Looking forward handselling this title!!

Shocked by how little I've heard about this book considering how good it was! I really took my sweet time reading it because it made me feel so many things, I was in for a ride. The writing, the characters, everything was just so interesting and profound, I was really in my feels a lot of the times.

Tramps Like Us by Joe Westmoreland is a compelling memoir that offers an honest and raw look at the life of a young man grappling with identity, love, and self-discovery. Set against the backdrop of two turbulent decades in America, the 1970s and 1980s, Westmoreland's writing is poignant and at times brutally candid, capturing the struggle of growing up and searching for meaning in a world filled with challenges. His reflective style creates an intimate connection with readers, making it easy to empathize with his journey. Though at times dark and heavy, the book ultimately portrays a message of resilience and the complexity of human experience. It’s a powerful, thought-provoking read for anyone interested in memoirs that delve into the intricacies of life’s more difficult moments.

Tramps Like Us is described as a mix of a novel and a memoir and that's the best way to describe it.

The story was very interesting, if a bit hard at time because of the subjects it contains. Please, read the content or trigger warnings before reading this book. There's a universe of differences between Joe's life and mine and sometimes it felt impossible to believe that he really could have lived like that. In between the drug use, the possibility to move and travel on a whim and the sex scenes, I felt like I was reading a story from another world.
The story made me feel hundred of emotions, anger, happiness, confusion and a lot of sadness with the ending. This story is heartfelt and bittersweet. The writing pulls you in. It's clinical and journalistic, like Joe is just relating facts as they happened. But, still, you can feel everything. It's an interesting experience to read.
There is a note from the author at the end, explaining that he took events from his life and people he met. He just edited some stuffs to make it 'flow better'. This is a re-edition, the book was first published in 2001. And I think it's a really interesting book to read.
I was interested since the synopsis but the preface is what really made me intrigued with the book. I think it's a really interesting book to read and I would definitely recommend it, with caution.

an insanely interesting novel to dive into. it really shows the struggles of what gays went through during such a scary time.

"Tramps like us" by Joe Westmoreland was an interesting read. I found it unique in the time period it covered mostly leading up to the epidemic while most the story was placed before.

I wanted to give this five stars and the first half of the book would have deserved them. I loved the road novel style writing, the vignettes, the eclectic cast. But then I wanted more and by the last 1/3, it wasn't delivering for me. I'm confident that another reader would have enjoyed what I didn't, because the prose is good and there's just something about the narrator which is impossible to ignore! I was delighted to have the chance the to read this

This is one of those books that will stay with you long after reading it. Joe has got to be one of the most complex, intriguing characters that I've read in some time. His journey takes us on a roller coaster that I found myself physically reacting to at times. The author does such a great job of writing about the AIDS crisis in the 80's, it's done with respect and dignity to many queer people who lost their lives and the effect it had on the community still till this day. You will need tissues while reading this but I highly recommend this to anyone, it is a must read!

Tramps like Us by Joe Westmoreland

4/5 Stars 🌟 * this will be posted to instagram on 28th jan 2025

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC for the upcoming rerelease of this book in 2025

** A lot of Trigger warnings for this books ** Be careful before starting if you have any issues with them **

When beginning this book I didn’t expect any of this, I thought this was going to be a little book about sex, drugs and rock n roll.

Little did I know it would open up to be a fictional style retelling of Joes life. My heart broke though out, there was a lot of really sad moments with the childhood, during his teenage and young adult years things got worse.

Having Joe’s final chapter be so raw and emotional really made me understand his passion and importance of chosen family.

The book was lighthearted yet had lots of dark undertones and showed how back in the day, young people could be careless without understanding the consequences but slowly started to learn and grow from them.

Honestly Tramps like Us was a great book, it was slow burn and felt like reading a biopic you’d see on television.

I suggest reading it but again be careful if you are sensitive to topics of abuse, substance abuse and more.

What a wonderful, beautiful read.
Told in the form of small episodes that take place in the life of the protagonist, the novel sucks you right in, like you're right there alongside Joe and his friends. It's like sharing snippets of a life with a friend, reminiscing on your common memories. The writing is simple and accessible, but never simplistic, it is full of sentiment and weight in it's vulnerability, the openness in which the events are shared with the reader - we become the confidents Joe tells his story to, or the spectators of this troubled, happy sad life we're being shown. I loved the manner in which music is always present through each episode, as music is such a big deal to me, too, and it was so much fun to find names I used to listen to at about the same time - I'm from a younger generation, though, and while the characters were in their late 20s, early 30s listening to Sistes of Mercy and Siouxie, I was 15, 16 and enjoying the very same songs. I may have screamed a little when the Prince gig happened, or when Madonna visited the store Nick owned.
The characters felt so real, and so close, it was impossible for me not to forge an emotional bond with them all, even those who sort of annoyed me a little, like Ali sometimes did. They became my friends, through the reading, my found family, and it was really both heartwarming and heartbreaking to witness their bonds and the way they cared and looked after each other in the midst of what was such a dreadful time with the full force of the AIDS epidemic and the lack of knowledge there was about it.
To say my eyes watered quite a bit through those final chapters would be an understatement - I had to pause to wipe my tears, for it felt far too close to home, those losses.
It's a book I would recommend to anyone as a portrait of a time younger generations won't know, and older generations won't know either, unless they moved in certain outskirts of society. A must-read for the beauty of the contents and the historical context.

Joe Westmoreland’s Tramps Like Us pulled me into a raw, emotional journey through the 1970s and ’80s. Following Joe, a young gay man escaping an abusive home, I felt every mile of his search for freedom, belonging, and self-discovery. His bond with Ali, another outsider, leads them to New Orleans and San Francisco, where they dive headfirst into a world of music, drugs, and fleeting joys.

Westmoreland’s storytelling is brutally honest, capturing both the euphoria of youth and the heartbreak as the AIDS crisis begins to shatter their community. This reissued cult classic is a gripping tale of friendship, survival, and a generation caught between liberation and tragedy. It left me deeply moved and grateful for the stories that endure.

Sad, powerful, poignant, intense and so much more. Each time I read a part, I took a break to digest all that I had read and experienced during the read. Joe, the main character, goes through so much, ups, downs, poor, traveling across the country, meeting so many people, experiencing pretty much everything possible.

Some books you pick up and immediately realise that this is going to hurt. And oh boy, was this expectation proven to be right in this case.
Tramps like us invites the reader to witness the journey of narrator Joe, who navigates through the US, various cities, a very formative decade (the 1980s) and his own drive to find a home among misfits. With glimpses of his past, the narrator eases the reader into his present and allows him to tag along on a wild ride through the entirety of the United States, making friends, falling in and out of love, finding home among the unexpected company and always, always finding the high side of life (pun, unfortunately, intended). He allows us, the readers, to bear witness to wonderful moments of companionship, heartbreak, the loneliness probably only few readers can relate to and twists and turns of a life lived not on a linear schedule.
Something that left me really impressed was the factual style of storytelling the narrator uses, yet never creates a distance to the reader. Even if there was not much of a descriptive style of writing, I noticed myself quickly falling in love with this band of societal outcasts, minorities and misfits. Through narrator Joe’s eyes, he painted with clear and precise strokes a picture of this family he found in various cities, with members adding to the bunch and some leaving to their own fates at some point.
This clear, concise storytelling was a stark contrast to an unreliable narrator under the influence of substances, heightened emotions and on the journey to find love, for others and himself, and companionship. It was fascinating, how easily I was dragged into this world that is so foreign to me in more than one sense and started to understand more and more with each chapter, what formed the narrator, his troubles and strengths as well.
This is a story of friendship, of celebrating the high life even if in darker places, of finding new people, of family that is not blood related, of heartbreak, of loneliness, of searching for substitutes, of friendship and companions for a while, of uprooting life, of never standing still, of depression, of life altering diseases and life ending pacts between the people who love each other in more than the romantic sense. This also is a story of utter tragedy. And of comedy, at points. This is a story of life fully lived.
I would love to talk about this book on and on, but I probably would just be reiterating the same few points over and over, which is why I truly recommend reading this yourself. I was not ready for the final chapter, and it did leave me sobbing.

What a fun romp through a tumultuous couple of decades this was. It was lewd, it was funny, some parts were serious and they were interspersed in a way that was easy to digest. I loved it.