Bereft

by Craig Laurance Gidney

Rafael Fannen is a 14-year old boy who has won a minority scholarship to Our Lady of the Woods, an all male Catholic college preparatory school.  Winning the scholarship quickly turns into a nightmare, as Rafe has to deal with the racism of his fellow students. Things quickly spin out of control when he is targeted by a vicious bully.

When Rafe decides to fight back and take control of his life, the lives of everyone around him will change. But none more than his own.
"Gidney has crafted a beautifully assured and insightful debut novel detailing the heightened surreality and emotionalism of teenage life. This book is full of heartbreak, humor, and most importantly a deep humane sense of empathy."-- William Johnson, editor, Lambda Literary Review and publisher of Mary Literary Quarterly
"Craig Gidney's debut novel, Bereft, shows the vicious and often violent underside of junior high with boys being hurting each other every way they can to see who survives and who doesn't. Gidney gets it right-the sexual tensions, bullying, surprising friendships. Rafe is a character everyone can relate to." - Greg Herren, 2011 Moonbeam Award Gold Medal recipient for Sleeping Angel

Genres: LGBT, Mental Health

164 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 2013

About the author

Author of SEA, SWALLOW ME & OTHER STORIES (Lethe Press) ;BEREFT (Tiny Satchel Press), . SKIN DEEP MAGIC (Rebel Satori Press), THE NECTAR OF NIGHTMARES (Dim Shores Publications); A SPECTRAL HUE (Word Horde). Plus numerous short stories. 3-Time Lambda Literary Award Finalist. NPR’s recommended books of 2019. Current novel, HAIRSBREADTH, is being serialized.

Reviews

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know Craig Gidney (the author), so I was excited to see this book come to fruition. There is a nice balance of lyrical and less ornate prose working in tandem, as Rafe's (the protagonist) day dreams of myth and fantasy give way to the reality of dealing with a new prep school. At the school he is besieged outwardly by racist fellow students and his own unconscious realizations that he might not be straight. At home Rafe is equally forced to confront the physical and the ephemeral, as his mother falters between religious ecstasy and mental breakdown, and his estranged father deals with an unspoken homelessness. Ultimately the novel is about balances: between Rafe's persona of the shy fantasy geek and the teenager inwardly deciding he might be gay, angry at the injustice around him, the spiritual beliefs of a Christian mother (symbolized by opaque angels) and the cultural beliefs of a father (symbolized by the mall kiosk Dan masks), the predators both virulently open and cunningly hidden in the prep school, and Rafe's own decisions of balancing who he will become in his own life. In a welcome change from YA novels where everything builds to an exacting conclusion, Gidney recognizes that the years of being a teenager are never wrapped up in a tidy package. Instead they have continuing ramifications in life, existing moment to moment. Rafe learns how to accept his future and embrace the best aspects of his reality to deal with the ongoing challenges of a repairing family and a flawed educational and religious system.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bereft is the story of a boy dealing with harsh realities. It is simply told in a voice that tries very hard to stay strong in a world that seems mostly against him. This is not today's typical YA novel full of suspense that seems to be popular. It is a simple easy read delving into a story that is not usually discussed, being homosexual and a minority.
I felt an immediate kinship with Rafe, even though I am a white 35 year old woman. I wanted his world to be fixed but knew that he had to face his demons and grow from experiences. I was so proud of how far he had come in the end.
If you're looking for an ending wrapped up in a pretty bow, the resolution will not make you happy. Life is never perfect but things can get better, when you are able to overcome some obstacles and see the silver linings.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am quite torn because I really enjoyed myself and the main character is well developed and I think his story is very important. But it was far too short and tried to pack about five major plots into a book that didn't even reach two hundred pages. Every plot point was engaging and I almost wished each were explored in their own individual novel.

Glad I read it though.

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rafael Fannen is indeed young (14 years old), gifted (recipient of a minority scholarship to an all-male Catholic preparatory school), and black. He is also caught in a world where everything he relied upon is changing as he himself is changing. Rafe must confront the strange culture of his new school while contending with a mother who believes she is talking to angels. On the weekends, he tries to relate to his ex-con father’s latest commercial venture involving selling African related masks and spiritual items.
And at school he repeats to himself the mantra: “No homo.”
The primary characters in Bereft are full-bodied and real. Rafe is a young man caught between multiple worlds. As Rafe’s mother, Ursele, succumbs to the images overcoming her reality, the reader can understand her needs and desires. His father develops into a real person, after his distance from being incarcerated. When Rafe is suspected of vandalizing the school and also of being homosexual, tension mounts, although not quite with the expected results.
Although it is difficult to determine where and when this novel takes place, Gidney’s descriptions are strong and vivid. Rafe’s experiences are full of sound, texture, and feeling. Gidney is masterful in his portrayal of the dichotomous elements of life – of light and dark; good and evil; black and white – and how Rafe must come to an understanding of the shades of grey.
Bereft tells the story of a black male teen living with a family becoming more dysfunctional over time, who does not want to succumb to the allure of the streets, and is suddenly submerged into a predominantly all-white male, religion-oriented, and strange, world. Gidney introduces multiple thematic issues including racism (from more than one perspective), mental illness, homelessness, religious/spiritual perspectives, parent-child relationships, and homosexuality. Given the number of complex, interrelated issues, which are indeed representative of an adolescent’s life, the reader desires more than Gidney provides in the 200 pages of the novel. Essentially, the one flaw of the novel is that there is simply not enough. Bereft might be more satisfying to the reader if it had included enhancements to the characters, settings, and history. Because of Gidney’s adeptness at characterization, description and emotionalism, there is a feeling this gifted author should – and could – provide more – that there is so much more Gidney wants and should say.
Gidney’s storytelling abilities, complemented by his deftness with words and strong writing skills, result in an outstanding contribution to the young adult genre. The believably realized characters, strong description, and relevant knowledge of the adolescent experience, when combined with his willingness to take on the “hard” controversial issues facing today’s youth’s marks him as an author to watch. Undoubtedly his future work will be even more rewarding for readers.

[A · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is great one. I'm not usually one for school settings but Gidney continues to impress. His prose is some of my favorite right now. As people have said, there are minor editing issues. However, I don't think it's too distracting for me.

[Jeff Hanson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bereft, is a young adult coming of age novel about a young black man, Rafael, who wins a scholarship to a private Catholic high school, just as he is trying to accept his own burgeoning homosexuality. As he struggles to fit in, he faces discrimination because of his race, his poverty, the neighborhood he comes from, and even his height, as well as for being gay. Amidst all this, he also has to deal with his mother's crumbling mental state as she becomes fixated with angels (or the lack of them), and his ex-con father's possible homelessness.

Despite the somber themes, Bereft is not a hopeless novel, but is full of some of the same magic that peppered Gidney's previous collection, Sea, Swallow Me and Other Stories, a short story collection full of dark fantasy and horror also dealing with themes of race, gender and identity. While some may argue the themes and content may be too explicit for a young adult novel, this is exactly the type of book that a young gay reader needs to find. It could be the same kind of lifeline that Rafael finds in some of the other characters of Bereft--the ones that show him small kindnesses and acceptance and help him feel less alone in the world.

Gidney also has a remarkable ability to mix music and cultural references into the story without feeling clichéd, and his imagery is vivid and resonant. One could easily see his work being adapted to film, replete with an excellent soundtrack.

[Nnhslibrarygmail.com · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rafe is a smart, 13 year old who has had many challenges to overcome in his short life. His mom and dad divorced and his father now lives in van. His hyper-religious mother pushes hard on Rafe to do well in school so that he can escape their difficult life in a dilapidated housing project. Rafe just tested into an academically rigorous religious high school and he is one of only a handful of students of color. He has to bus in everyday, has no friends and is gay. Everyday life is tough for this kid; will he make friends that will accept him for who he is? Will he let down his family?

I have not read anything quite like this in YA fiction. It's not the most well written piece of literature-- there were quite a few typos from beginning to end; but it's unique and short so I'd recommend.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

4 stars for covering niche topics - being a struggling black kid in a posh boarding school while also struggling with one's sexuality, and mental illness, homelessness

2.5 stars for actual execution - this had promise, but needed an editor. and a copy editor.

I think my favorite character was the dad. I wish he could have been more developed - we just got a glimpse of who he was. The whole book felt - foggy, like it was something the protagonist was remembering, instead of something immediate.

[Abby · Rating 2 out of 5]

I won this in a First Reads giveaway. I liked the story line; it encapsulated what it feels like to be a middle school outcast. I especially enjoyed the ending.

There were more than a few grammatical errors, which, because I'm an English teacher, detracted from my ability to enjoy the story. I also wish the characters of the father and mother were developed further as well as the angel aspect.

[Ray Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

too much going on