All American Boy

by M. Scott Peck

Offers an account of the relationship between a father and son that received national media attention when Colonel Fred Peck revealed that he loved his gay son but did not think he belonged in the military

Genres: Nonfiction, Teen, LGBT, Romance, Gay, Queer, Memoir

240 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1995

About the author

Morgan Scott Peck was an American psychiatrist and best-selling author who wrote the book The Road Less Traveled, published in 1978.

Reviews

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

goodreads u have the wrong author listed but anyways this book is so good go read it

[Mediaman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horribly written book that's infuriatingly bad. Not even worth wasting time on. Just know that if you, like me, are looking for a good gay memoir then this isn't it.

Peck (who is Scott Peck and not M. Scott Peck) is supposedly gay but 80% of the book is him wandering around fighting off abusive parents and trying to live as an evangelical Christian. The rest of the book kind of talks about his decision to sleep with guys after he is done with college but there only a few minor gay encounters that are hinted at with no details.

The whole thing is frustrating because the guy doesn't know how to write a simple narrative story. Instead we get impressionistic writing. "Literature" that doesn't say anything other than five-dollar adjectives which leave us hungering for facts. I have no idea what really happened in his life and got to the point where even minor details were confusing because this is so poorly written.

He tries to make a few profound points but misses. He claims being gay is "preordained nerves and cells and chemistry" that is reordered DNA. No proof or data given (because there isn't any) but like most of the statements he makes in the book he just tosses out wild concepts that we're supposed to accept because of the rough childhood he had. Sorry, but Christianity and parents and God and even homosexuality are not all as bad as he makes them out to be here.

Near the end his military dad goes before Congress to slam gays in service and the two of them go on TV shows, but again few facts are given. Who knows what to believe because all of what he writes is so vague that there's no way to confirm it.

I ended the book not knowing much more about Scott Peck and really not caring. The title is sarcastic--there's nothing all-American about this guy who makes a lot of bad choices and tries to blame it all on his horrible family. He's a bad role model for the gay community and other than what some will take as offensive mocking of those that feel the need to act like women or march in flamboyant parades, there's nothing worth reading in this book.

[Jen Burgess · Rating 1 out of 5]

Poorly written. Most of the book is about an abusive childhood laced with Christianity... A lot of it. Only the last 30 pages are about what the synopsis, the reason you picked it up, the meat and potatoes of the story. Disappointed, especially since this author wrote brilliant books that I enjoyed in the past.

[Tom Musbach · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this memoir during Pride month. His childhood experiences with a zealous Christian upbringing and resulting struggles with being gay were familiar and painful. It’s fascinating to see how he (and others) navigate the pressure and the wounds and come through it, hopefully with some grace and wisdom. My quibble with this book is the relatively small emphasis on his adulthood. (8)

[Cbernard3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent memoirs!! Reads like a novel. It is incredible what this young man went through.

[Roger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I wish I'd read it when it was published, back in 1995. Might have helped me avoid some mistakes.