Synopses & Reviews
Raised in a loving Catholic family in Denver, Martin Moran was a star student who imagined that hed one day become a U.S. senator. When he was twelve years old, a camp counselor seduced him, initiating a sexual relationship that would last three years-and haunt Morans life for decades. He discovered a passion for acting and built a career that would take him to Broadway, but only when Moran finally tracked down and confronted his abuser thirty years later could he finally forgive himself for someones else trespass.
Funny and tender about growing up Catholic and gay, The Tricky Part never oversimplifies either the abuse or the vexing work of recovering from it. This powerful story carries us to the heart of a paradox: that what we think of as damage may be the very thing that gives rise to transformation, even grace.
Synopsis
A marvelous, courageous and above all, thoughtful memoir (The Washington Post) about a Catholic boy raised in a loving family who is haunted by the sexual abuse he experienced at summer camp.
Raised in a loving Catholic family in Denver, Martin Moran was a star student who imagined that he'd one day become a U.S. senator. When he was twelve years old, a camp counselor seduced him, initiating a sexual relationship that would last three years-and haunt Moran's life for decades. He discovered a passion for acting and built a career that would take him to Broadway, but only when Moran finally tracked down and confronted his abuser thirty years later could he finally forgive himself for someone's else trespass.
Funny and tender about growing up Catholic and gay, The Tricky Part never oversimplifies either the abuse or the vexing work of recovering from it. This powerful story carries us to the heart of a paradox: that what we think of as damage may be the very thing that gives rise to transformation, even grace.
About the Author
Martin Moran grew up in Denver and attended Stanford University and the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. He lives in New York City, where he makes his living as an actor and writer. He has appeared in many Broadway and Off-Broadway plays, including Titanic, Cabaret, Bells Are Ringing, Floyd Collins and The Cider House Rules. He won a 2004 Obie Award for his one-man play, The Tricky Part, which he continues to perform all over the country.
Reading Group Guide
“Marvelous, courageous, and above all, thoughtful.” —
The Washington PostThe introduction, discussion questions, suggestions for further reading, and author biography that follow are designed to stimulate your group’s discussion of The Tricky Part: A Boy’s Story of Sexual Trespass, A Man’s Journey to Forgiveness, Martin Moran’s searchingly honest memoir about sexual abuse and its painful aftermath.
1. The scale and severity of sexual abuse of children, particularly within the Catholic Church, is finally being recognized in the United States. What does The Tricky Part add to our understanding of the nature and consequences of such abuse?
2. Why does Martin blame himself for what Bob does to him? What enables him to realize, much later, that he was not at fault?
3. Bob tells Martin that they are not homosexuals because they love each other, and to be a homosexual is to be without love. Is there an element of love in Bob’s behavior with Martin, or is it purely abusive? How does Martin’s relationship with Henry prove Bob’s statement false?
4. What effect does Martin’s relationship with Bob have on his emotional life as a young boy? What are the worst consequences of his abuse?
5. Why does Martin Moran frame the narrative of The Tricky Part with his confrontation with Bob? Why is it so important that Martin speak to Bob? What does Martin gain from this encounter?
6. After seeing a cover story in Time about a gay soldier, Martin’s mother tells him, “I think I’d rather find out one of my children was dead than homosexual” [p. 146]. What would make her feel this way? What forces—cultural, social, religious, personal—might have contributed to such an attitude? How does Martin react to these words?
7. Martin’s voice teacher, Winnie, tells him that being an actor is “important work. It’s a way to channel the divine, Marty. Music, theater, can be a passport to the infinite. Healing for you and for others. It’s a way to reach people” [p. 189]. In what ways might music, theater, or any art serve as a “passport to the infinite”? How are theater and music healing for Martin?
8. Another important teacher in Martin’s life, Brother Tom, asks: “Are we bodies with a spirit or spiritual beings with bodies? And can we not see our bodies, the desires that course through us, as sacred?” [p. 129]. What is the difference between being a body with a spirit or a spirit in a body? How does Martin navigate and ultimately resolve the tensions between desire, addiction, shame, and the sacred?
9. Martin’s mother, recalling her own painful childhood with her alcoholic mother, tells him: “Forgive me—I just need to know that, before I go to the grave, someone has heard my story” [p. 166]. What is the inherent value of telling one’s story and of having someone else hear it? What does Martin Moran achieve by telling his story?
10. At the end of The Tricky Part, Martin writes that “in the middle of the whole tangled mess, the whole story, there has always been something sacred” and wonders if it’s possible “that what harms us might come to restore us” [pp. 283–84]. What is sacred at the center of Martin’s experience with Bob? Has Martin been restored by what has caused him so much suffering? How is this dynamic related to the Christian idea of redemption through suffering?
11. As Martin tries to be honest with himself and with Henry about his sexual addiction, he thinks, “The thing to give up here, to sacrifice, is the secrets” [p. 230]. Why is having a secret life so destructive for Martin?
12. Martin’s sister Marion tells him, “Life is only for love, Marty, and sacrifice is the language of love” [p. 208]. Martin later looks up sacrifice and discovers that it comes from two Latin words: “Sacer—sacred; facere—to make, to do. Sacrifice. To make sacred” [p. 210]. What does Marion mean when she says “sacrifice is the language of love”? How does this statement affect Martin?
13. Winnie tells Martin that we are all here “to serve others. What I am doing for you, you will, in some way, do for someone else, for others, one day” [p. 188]. In what ways can his writing of The Tricky Part be seen as an attempt to serve others? How might someone who has suffered sexual abuse be served by reading this book?
14. How might The Tricky Part affect those in America who oppose gay marriage and who think homosexuality is immoral? Is it possible that anti-gay readers might have a change of heart after reading Martin Moran’s story? Why or why not?
1. The scale and severity of sexual abuse of children, particularly within the Catholic Church, is finally being recognized in the United States. What does
The Tricky Part add to our understanding of the nature and consequences of such abuse?
2. Why does Martin blame himself for what Bob does to him? What enables him to realize, much later, that he was not at fault?
3. Bob tells Martin that they are not homosexuals because they love each other, and to be a homosexual is to be without love. Is there an element of love in Bobs behavior with Martin, or is it purely abusive? How does Martins relationship with Henry prove Bobs statement false?
4. What effect does Martins relationship with Bob have on his emotional life as a young boy? What are the worst consequences of his abuse?
5. Why does Martin Moran frame the narrative of The Tricky Part with his confrontation with Bob? Why is it so important that Martin speak to Bob? What does Martin gain from this encounter?
6. After seeing a cover story in Time about a gay soldier, Martins mother tells him, “I think Id rather find out one of my children was dead than homosexual” [p. 146]. What would make her feel this way? What forces—cultural, social, religious, personal—might have contributed to such an attitude? How does Martin react to these words?
7. Martins voice teacher, Winnie, tells him that being an actor is “important work. Its a way to channel the divine, Marty. Music, theater, can be a passport to the infinite. Healing for you and for others. Its a way to reach people” [p. 189]. In what ways might music, theater, or any art serve as a “passport to the infinite”? How are theater and music healing for Martin?
8. Another important teacher in Martins life, Brother Tom, asks: “Are we bodies with a spirit or spiritual beings with bodies? And can we not see our bodies, the desires that course through us, as sacred?” [p. 129]. What is the difference between being a body with a spirit or a spirit in a body? How does Martin navigate and ultimately resolve the tensions between desire, addiction, shame, and the sacred?
9. Martins mother, recalling her own painful childhood with her alcoholic mother, tells him: “Forgive me—I just need to know that, before I go to the grave, someone has heard my story” [p. 166]. What is the inherent value of telling ones story and of having someone else hear it? What does Martin Moran achieve by telling his story?
10. At the end of The Tricky Part, Martin writes that “in the middle of the whole tangled mess, the whole story, there has always been something sacred” and wonders if its possible “that what harms us might come to restore us” [pp. 283-84]. What is sacred at the center of Martins experience with Bob? Has Martin been restored by what has caused him so much suffering? How is this dynamic related to the Christian idea of redemption through suffering?
11. As Martin tries to be honest with himself and with Henry about his sexual addiction, he thinks, “The thing to give up here, to sacrifice, is the secrets” [p. 230]. Why is having a secret life so destructive for Martin?
12. Martins sister Marion tells him, “Life is only for love, Marty, and sacrifice is the language of love” [p. 208]. Martin later looks up sacrifice and discovers that it comes from two Latin words: “Sacer—sacred; facere—to make, to do. Sacrifice. To make sacred” [p. 210]. What does Marion mean when she says “sacrifice is the language of love”? How does this statement affect Martin?
13. Winnie tells Martin that we are all here “to serve others. What I am doing for you, you will, in some way, do for someone else, for others, one day” [p. 188]. In what ways can his writing of The Tricky Part be seen as an attempt to serve others? How might someone who has suffered sexual abuse be served by reading this book?
14. How might The Tricky Part affect those in America who oppose gay marriage and who think homosexuality is immoral? Is it possible that anti-gay readers might have a change of heart after reading Martin Morans story? Why or why not?