Inanimate Heroes

by Zack W. Van

Andrew is a timid high school student in a small town named Tomliw. Like most freshman, he has quite a few things to be on edge about. However, unlike most freshman, Andrew is in fact one of the only gay students in his high school. His greatest fear is that he will become a social pariah if someone finds out his secret. But once he is confronted by an old bully from middle school, he comes face to face with every fear he's had since 6th grade: being noticed in a bad way. Luckily, he isn't alone. With the help from a few teachers, a best friend, his mother, and a mysterious older boy who seems to take a platonic interest in him, he begins to gain confidence in himself. But is it enough to confront the bully and finally accept himself as he is?

264 pages, Paperback

First published November 22, 2011

About the author

Zack W. Van is an exciting and talented young author. At just 19, he published his first novel named "Inanimate Heroes", a story of hardship for a gay teen trying to defend himself from bullying. At 22, he is currently working on several different works, including his second book.

Reviews

[Tracy Carlisle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inanimate Heroes draws the reader into a world of a teenaged boy who is outed by his friends and must deal with the day to day bullying that comes with being a gay teen in a suburban high school. The reader immediately connects to the main character, Andrew, and his struggles of dealing with not only starting high school, but the added challenge of dealing with his tormentors. Deep, dark, sad, and ultimately uplifting, Inanimate Heroes is a book you can't put down. While dealing with his demons, Andrew lets you inside of his head and makes you pull for him to come out a winner. The book is not completely dark, as the narrator's thoughts are sometimes quite hysterical and leads you to want to befriend him. The story moves quickly and wanting to know, "what is going to happen next?" Not for gay teens alone, any reader who had to deal with the nightmare of starting high school, dealing with bullies, or pulling for the underdog will love this book.

[Josh Rockwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me just say: I loved this book. I read it on my kindle and my friends made fun of me because I took my kindle to work and tried to read it while there. (got yelled at a few times. oh well.)
I was bullied a lot for being gay in high school. My favorite book for a long time was Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson ( a book I really recommend if you liked this) because we read it my sophomore year in high school for English. But now that I have read this book, I have to say this book should be required reading too! Kids need to see the damage they can do from a few hurtful words. It is so amazingly written too. Great imagery and just so realistic. Well done Zack W. Van!

[Bradley Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rather easy read with no intellectual pretense, Inanimate Heroes is a superior first novel for Zack W. Van who seems quite at ease in the telling of this story of juvenile development. A work of moral fiction, its realism reflects a personal familiarity, which lends credibility to this heartfelt depiction of the enormity of teenage peer affect. Written obviously for a target audience of the emerging adolescent, Inanimate Heroes tells a familiar tale with an unfamiliar intimacy beyond the normal narrative. An example of literature in the abstract - leaving much unsaid and unresolved, it stands a completed thought illustrated with tidbits of insightful emotional color and connection. It is a look into the thoughts of Andy, a high school freshman, who, like his peers, is seeking the teenage dichotomy of assimilated individuality in an ever-expanding social environment. As an isolated gay student at a small high school in a somewhat provincial community, Andy shares the understandings and misunderstandings of his new social situation. His experiences with senseless bullying are presented so as to guide the reader through its emotional toll on toward a path of realization and (dare I say it?) redemption. Don't misunderstand. There is no glorified happy ending - only a recognition of possibility, of the light located somewhere on the other end of the tunnel. It gets better. After reading Inanimate Heroes, I'm prone to believe that Mr. Van's first novel is a combined creation of care and understanding.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inanimate Heroes can turn any reader into a compulsive page turner. Author Zack Van did a tremendous job of describing experiences in such a way that you feel apart of each bullying episode as well as transending the event to narrrate for the reader the complexity and range of paralyzing emotions victums experience. In a time when the nation is just begining to deal with the serious issue of bullying this book couldn't be more relevant in expressing the need for solutions and helping the discourse to bully prevention.

[Paige Kowalski · Rating 5 out of 5]

I normally am not a fan of reading, but I really enjoyed this book. I couldn't put it down! Once I got to the end, I was depressed because it was over, but don't get me wrong the ending was absolutely amazing. This story is good for anyone to read. It empowers LGBTQAI people, but also those that are heterosexual. I identify as a heterosexual female, and I am very close to many LGBTQAI people, but with this novel, I had a chance to take a deeper look into a young man growing up in a judgmental and closed minded high school. I definitely recomend this book to anyone and everyone!

[Sarah Frederking · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me want to read it from start to finish without stopping. It is heartbreaking to know that this kind of bullying is going on all around us, and so many people turn their backs to it. This book would be a good read for anyone. It will keep you interested and wanting more. I was actually really excited when I saw that this book was available and i purchased it right away. I can see myself reading again in the future.

[Brad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great short novel. It was well written with a well developed plot and story line. As a young gay man this book is easy to relate too. It neither over nor under emphasized the inner and outward difficulty of being a gay teenager in high school. Great read for any young member of the community or their families or any one who just wants to read a good story.

[Pauleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just got done reading this book. It was incredible! In every situation Andy goes through you feel like you're sitting right there next to him. It's one of the first I've read in a long time that I just couldn't put down. Might even be one of my favorites now. I looked up the author but he only has this book out.=( I hope he writes a sequal or at least another one!

[Maryann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very good story, Good yet not so good because of the prejudice that kids can hold againist other kids Andy really show's you what kids can go through being bullied. I would recommend this book to anyone who has been bullied, to anyone who is being bullied, and to every Parent weather your child is the bully or your child is the one being bullied.
a MUST READ!! 5+ *****'s!