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Run for It All
When both his moms take an offer for a year of employment in Europe, fifteen-year-old David Martin has no choice but to head to Connecticut to stay with his dad and his dad’s partner. Not only is he leaving behind the life he loves in New York City, he’s unsure how he feels about staying with a father he barely knows, one who has been far from supportive during David’s life.
If he doesn’t have enough on his plate, David is also confused and wrestling with his burgeoning sexual feelings… toward other boys. Running with his dad’s partner takes the edge off, but training with the hot—and openly gay—track team captain, Kevin Ringer, produces a different kind of rush.
An assault on David and Kevin in the locker room gives David a new perspective on his own identity, his feelings for Kevin, and his relationship with his dad. Life is very different from what David is used to, but he’s determined to carve out a place for himself.
If he doesn’t have enough on his plate, David is also confused and wrestling with his burgeoning sexual feelings… toward other boys. Running with his dad’s partner takes the edge off, but training with the hot—and openly gay—track team captain, Kevin Ringer, produces a different kind of rush.
An assault on David and Kevin in the locker room gives David a new perspective on his own identity, his feelings for Kevin, and his relationship with his dad. Life is very different from what David is used to, but he’s determined to carve out a place for himself.
- GenresM M RomanceYoung Adult
207 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 22, 2016
1 person is currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Carolyn LeVine Topol
14 books18 followersBorn in Brooklyn, Carolyn LeVine Topol grew up just outside New York City. Three passions dominated her life: reading, writing, and theater. Having always dreamed of writing her own version of The Great American Novel, it took her many years to discover her most heartfelt stories took their form in the creation of M/M romances. Sharing her writing with a small circle of online friends, Carolyn received advice, encouragement and joy from their feedback.
Spending her days working as an executive assistant in a synagogue, Carolyn relishes the quiet wee hours of the morning to lose herself in writing of the loves, passions, and adventures driving her characters.
With the backing of a supportive husband and two young adult children, Carolyn continues to explore the fabulous world of gay romance with the philosophy "Every person deserves their happy ending."
Visit Carolyn's blog at http://carolyn-l-topol.livejournal.com. You can contact her at cstopol@gmail.com.
Spending her days working as an executive assistant in a synagogue, Carolyn relishes the quiet wee hours of the morning to lose herself in writing of the loves, passions, and adventures driving her characters.
With the backing of a supportive husband and two young adult children, Carolyn continues to explore the fabulous world of gay romance with the philosophy "Every person deserves their happy ending."
Visit Carolyn's blog at http://carolyn-l-topol.livejournal.com. You can contact her at cstopol@gmail.com.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 13, 2016
This is a story that features running, but I will admit I didn't expect it to spotlight it so much. I'm sure runners will probably find this far more fascinating than I did.
Additionally, it skewed quite a bit younger than I expected. I would have expected a fifteen year old, or sixteen year old, to behave a bit more maturely than David and Kevin do romantically. It's not that I was expecting Gossip Girl levels of drugs, sex, and drama...but this was far more chaste and innocent than worked for me as an adult reading.
What did work for me was the open communication between David and his dad and Steve. I loved David's relationship with Steve.
Look, some YA novels work for an adult to read, but I think this is one of those books that really is meant for a younger audience. If you're looking for a book and you're in your early teens, or if you're an adult looking for something for your younger teen, then I would definitely encourage you to check this out.
Advanced Review Galley copy of Run For It All provided by Harmony Ink Press in exchange of an honest review.
This review has been cross-posted at Gay Book Reviews.
Additionally, it skewed quite a bit younger than I expected. I would have expected a fifteen year old, or sixteen year old, to behave a bit more maturely than David and Kevin do romantically. It's not that I was expecting Gossip Girl levels of drugs, sex, and drama...but this was far more chaste and innocent than worked for me as an adult reading.
What did work for me was the open communication between David and his dad and Steve. I loved David's relationship with Steve.
Look, some YA novels work for an adult to read, but I think this is one of those books that really is meant for a younger audience. If you're looking for a book and you're in your early teens, or if you're an adult looking for something for your younger teen, then I would definitely encourage you to check this out.
Advanced Review Galley copy of Run For It All provided by Harmony Ink Press in exchange of an honest review.
This review has been cross-posted at Gay Book Reviews.
September 23, 2016
Growing up is not easy at the best of times, and the main character of this book, David, faces a few extra hurdles. He has to move to a new place and go to a new school because his mothers have a great assignment abroad and don’t want to drag him with them. David will suddenly live with his biological father, a man he likes well enough but has only seen for the occasional family event so far. Not to mention that David is gay and has not yet told anyone. The resulting story is full of teenage angst and a few initial tantrums, new discoveries David makes about himself and what he wants out of life, and a new and different relationship with not just his father, but his father’s future husband as well.
David is a typical teenager. There are things he takes in stride and is very grown up about, like the fact that he doesn’t want to stand in his mothers’ way when their chance for a great career move comes. But there are things he is not so okay with and gets pretty bratty about, like his father’s initial hesitance to become a fully present parent. But David isn’t stupid, and he is excellent at taking a step back and thinking about things once they have happened. It’s all a learning process, and David learns a lot about assuming responsibility for his actions.
As David begins to get to know some of the people in his school and makes new friends, and as he finds out that he likes Kevin, the captain of the track team David joins, he begins to build his social circle from scratch and surprises himself with how well that goes. Coming out to his father is not an issue, but some of the guys David and Kevin meet during inter-high school competitions are far less understanding. While nothing outright brutal happens, the encounter they have with a few bigoted bullies is enough to shake up David and Kevin – if in somewhat different ways. The relationship with Kevin progresses slowly, but I thought it was just the right pace, considering it is David’s first time dating someone.
If you like young adult romances that focus on the inner growth of the main character, if you want to see a slightly lost teenager grow into a self-confident young man who knows what direction he wants his life to take, and if you’re looking for a young adult read that is realistic as well as encouraging, then you will probably like this novel.
NOTE: This book was provided by Harmony Ink Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
David is a typical teenager. There are things he takes in stride and is very grown up about, like the fact that he doesn’t want to stand in his mothers’ way when their chance for a great career move comes. But there are things he is not so okay with and gets pretty bratty about, like his father’s initial hesitance to become a fully present parent. But David isn’t stupid, and he is excellent at taking a step back and thinking about things once they have happened. It’s all a learning process, and David learns a lot about assuming responsibility for his actions.
As David begins to get to know some of the people in his school and makes new friends, and as he finds out that he likes Kevin, the captain of the track team David joins, he begins to build his social circle from scratch and surprises himself with how well that goes. Coming out to his father is not an issue, but some of the guys David and Kevin meet during inter-high school competitions are far less understanding. While nothing outright brutal happens, the encounter they have with a few bigoted bullies is enough to shake up David and Kevin – if in somewhat different ways. The relationship with Kevin progresses slowly, but I thought it was just the right pace, considering it is David’s first time dating someone.
If you like young adult romances that focus on the inner growth of the main character, if you want to see a slightly lost teenager grow into a self-confident young man who knows what direction he wants his life to take, and if you’re looking for a young adult read that is realistic as well as encouraging, then you will probably like this novel.
NOTE: This book was provided by Harmony Ink Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
December 31, 2016
3.5 Hearts
This was a sweet, low angst YA novel with some great supporting characters. Rob, David’s biological father, is a news reporter, and in the beginning he did a pretty craptastic job of being present for his son. Rob was missing the opportunity to really connect meaningfully with David, and David was becoming resentful. The saving grace was Steve, Rob’s partner of seven years, and the Track and Field coach at the high school David was attending for the year. They developed a close relationship of trust, and respect, and this made it easier for David to settle into his temporary home.
I appreciated that with Rob’s failings as a parent on display, this wasn’t fixed quickly. It took time for David and Rob to bond. It wasn’t fluffy, or rushed to resolve. The characters had to work for it, and eventually get their footing under them to start to bond. Steve, being a high school coach, and having the background working with teens, facilitated this relationship building, and he was an important part of this family unit. He was also forever supportive and loved Rob unconditionally through his own unfulfilled wants and needs. That kind of loyalty is both a show of strong character, and a modelling of a strong relationship. I appreciated that there was no real drama with the parents. It made the transition into this new life more believable for David. There were some minor problems along the way, but it didn’t turn into an angsty or melodramatic storyline.
Kevin and David had some interesting and tense moments. David has the curse of his father, of overthinking and jumping to conclusions. Thankfully he toned it down when it was important, but it was how the drama points were set up. It was both frustrating and believable. Teen angst varies. There are some who turn into emo brats, with over the top reactions to minor issues, and some just cruise along in life, taking the hits as they come. Kevin was definitely a cruisy guy. He was the perfect balance to David’s overreactions. I appreciated them as friends and as a couple. Their relationship building was paced well throughout the story.
This was a feel good story, about a teen settling into a new life, making new friends, and finding a passion for something he never thought he would try. I liked the central theme of running. It was exciting and gave the story something extra. There was passion in both sport and the life David was building in Connecticut. I felt that passion throughout the story.
Some minor problems that I hope were picked up on the final edit before release. As I received an Advanced Reader Copy, there are sometimes minor errors beforehand that I expect and ignore, but in Chapter 26 Loc 2124 and Chapter 26 Loc 2176 of my mobi copy, there were two repeated sentences which drew me out of the story. If this was picked up, ignore my remark, it certainly didn’t diminish the story, but I would feel horrible if I didn’t point it out and it hadn’t been polished in the final release.
Overall a lovely YA story, and I look forward to seeing more work from this author.
A review copy was provided for an honest opinion
This was a sweet, low angst YA novel with some great supporting characters. Rob, David’s biological father, is a news reporter, and in the beginning he did a pretty craptastic job of being present for his son. Rob was missing the opportunity to really connect meaningfully with David, and David was becoming resentful. The saving grace was Steve, Rob’s partner of seven years, and the Track and Field coach at the high school David was attending for the year. They developed a close relationship of trust, and respect, and this made it easier for David to settle into his temporary home.
I appreciated that with Rob’s failings as a parent on display, this wasn’t fixed quickly. It took time for David and Rob to bond. It wasn’t fluffy, or rushed to resolve. The characters had to work for it, and eventually get their footing under them to start to bond. Steve, being a high school coach, and having the background working with teens, facilitated this relationship building, and he was an important part of this family unit. He was also forever supportive and loved Rob unconditionally through his own unfulfilled wants and needs. That kind of loyalty is both a show of strong character, and a modelling of a strong relationship. I appreciated that there was no real drama with the parents. It made the transition into this new life more believable for David. There were some minor problems along the way, but it didn’t turn into an angsty or melodramatic storyline.
Kevin and David had some interesting and tense moments. David has the curse of his father, of overthinking and jumping to conclusions. Thankfully he toned it down when it was important, but it was how the drama points were set up. It was both frustrating and believable. Teen angst varies. There are some who turn into emo brats, with over the top reactions to minor issues, and some just cruise along in life, taking the hits as they come. Kevin was definitely a cruisy guy. He was the perfect balance to David’s overreactions. I appreciated them as friends and as a couple. Their relationship building was paced well throughout the story.
This was a feel good story, about a teen settling into a new life, making new friends, and finding a passion for something he never thought he would try. I liked the central theme of running. It was exciting and gave the story something extra. There was passion in both sport and the life David was building in Connecticut. I felt that passion throughout the story.
Some minor problems that I hope were picked up on the final edit before release. As I received an Advanced Reader Copy, there are sometimes minor errors beforehand that I expect and ignore, but in Chapter 26 Loc 2124 and Chapter 26 Loc 2176 of my mobi copy, there were two repeated sentences which drew me out of the story. If this was picked up, ignore my remark, it certainly didn’t diminish the story, but I would feel horrible if I didn’t point it out and it hadn’t been polished in the final release.
Overall a lovely YA story, and I look forward to seeing more work from this author.
A review copy was provided for an honest opinion
October 6, 2016
I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.
Run for It All was a very enjoyable M/M young adult romance. I liked watching the transformation that took place in David as he went from the sullen teen who reluctantly agreed to spend a year with his father in a small town in Connecticut to a confident young man who embraced life with two dads, developed a love of running, and fell in love. Admittedly, I doubt that many 15-year-olds are capable of falling in love, but Topol has created a believable romance between David and Kevin by not making it the focal point of the book, but rather giving readers a look at David as whole – as a son, as a friend, as a runner, as a teammate, and, eventually, as a boyfriend. So as David grows as a person, it makes the feelings he develops for Kevin and the progression of their relationship believable.
Even though it’s clear at the beginning of the book that he agreed to it, David is unhappy with his new living arrangement. But as he is being raised by two moms and his biological father is also gay, he understands the importance of what his mothers are doing for gay rights and the need for him to spend the year with Rob and Steve (his father and father’s partner), so he plans to grin and bear it, all while hoping that he won’t die from boredom as West Hartford has almost nothing to do, especially when compared to New York City. Considering his age, David does an admirable job of not taking out his dissatisfaction with the situation on Steve, who David doesn’t know very well despite being his father’s partner of seven years. Oddly enough, it is Steve who makes the transition go smoothly and plays a vital part in David’s growth over the course of the year.
One of the things I enjoyed about Run for It All was the supportive attitude and reasonableness of the parents involved. Granted, David and Kevin demonstrate repeatedly throughout the book that they’re both responsible young men who have goals they’re willing to work hard to achieve. But rather than trying to block their attempts to have time alone with one another, both David’s fathers and Kevin’s parents make it clear that their son’s safety is the most important thing to them – so they insure the boys have some time alone in their respective homes occasionally. The parents are realistic enough to understand that there’s little they can do to prevent the boys from being together when they decide to take that step and, instead, chose to concentrate on providing a safe environment for them. In my opinion, it not only sent the message to the boys that their safety was important, but that their parents trusted and respected them enough to know that they wouldn’t rush the physical aspects of their relationship. Fortunately, Kevin and David validated that trust by taking their time to get to know one another before taking that next step, and when they’re relationship did become physical, neither of them allowed it to interfere with their other responsibilities – then again, training for long-distance running events didn’t give them a lot of time to get into any trouble. While there’s not an athletic bone in my body, I enjoyed how the running stayed central to the storyline as it was what played an important part in David’s growth. I quite enjoyed Run for It All and look forward to reading more of Topol’s writing.
Age Recommendation: 14 and up. While it is obvious that the main characters eventually “go all the way,” it occurs off the page with a fade-to-black setup. The on-page sexual contact is limited to kissing and mutual masturbation.
Run for It All was a very enjoyable M/M young adult romance. I liked watching the transformation that took place in David as he went from the sullen teen who reluctantly agreed to spend a year with his father in a small town in Connecticut to a confident young man who embraced life with two dads, developed a love of running, and fell in love. Admittedly, I doubt that many 15-year-olds are capable of falling in love, but Topol has created a believable romance between David and Kevin by not making it the focal point of the book, but rather giving readers a look at David as whole – as a son, as a friend, as a runner, as a teammate, and, eventually, as a boyfriend. So as David grows as a person, it makes the feelings he develops for Kevin and the progression of their relationship believable.
Even though it’s clear at the beginning of the book that he agreed to it, David is unhappy with his new living arrangement. But as he is being raised by two moms and his biological father is also gay, he understands the importance of what his mothers are doing for gay rights and the need for him to spend the year with Rob and Steve (his father and father’s partner), so he plans to grin and bear it, all while hoping that he won’t die from boredom as West Hartford has almost nothing to do, especially when compared to New York City. Considering his age, David does an admirable job of not taking out his dissatisfaction with the situation on Steve, who David doesn’t know very well despite being his father’s partner of seven years. Oddly enough, it is Steve who makes the transition go smoothly and plays a vital part in David’s growth over the course of the year.
One of the things I enjoyed about Run for It All was the supportive attitude and reasonableness of the parents involved. Granted, David and Kevin demonstrate repeatedly throughout the book that they’re both responsible young men who have goals they’re willing to work hard to achieve. But rather than trying to block their attempts to have time alone with one another, both David’s fathers and Kevin’s parents make it clear that their son’s safety is the most important thing to them – so they insure the boys have some time alone in their respective homes occasionally. The parents are realistic enough to understand that there’s little they can do to prevent the boys from being together when they decide to take that step and, instead, chose to concentrate on providing a safe environment for them. In my opinion, it not only sent the message to the boys that their safety was important, but that their parents trusted and respected them enough to know that they wouldn’t rush the physical aspects of their relationship. Fortunately, Kevin and David validated that trust by taking their time to get to know one another before taking that next step, and when they’re relationship did become physical, neither of them allowed it to interfere with their other responsibilities – then again, training for long-distance running events didn’t give them a lot of time to get into any trouble. While there’s not an athletic bone in my body, I enjoyed how the running stayed central to the storyline as it was what played an important part in David’s growth. I quite enjoyed Run for It All and look forward to reading more of Topol’s writing.
Age Recommendation: 14 and up. While it is obvious that the main characters eventually “go all the way,” it occurs off the page with a fade-to-black setup. The on-page sexual contact is limited to kissing and mutual masturbation.
October 22, 2016
ARC provided by the publisher through Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words in exchange for an impartial review.
David Martin isn’t happy when he finds out he has to go live with his father and his father’s partner while his mothers are overseas on a work-related project during his sophomore year. But his tune changes after he gets to know Kevin Ringer, the captain of the track team—the young man who will eventually be David’s lover.
During the first six months or so, living with his dad and his dad’s partner, Scott, who also happens to be his high school track coach, he’s shocked by how much he comes to appreciate Scott. So much in his life changes within such a short time that he finds himself wishing for even more time with Kevin, Scott, and his dad, who has now become very important to him. It surprises them all when he reveals how much he now respects Scott and even loves him, and he makes Scott’s day when he announces he’s decided to call Scott Pop.
There’s plenty of drama throughout the story as his father learns the meaning of being a full time parent and acquires the skills to express his love and respect for his son; there’s also an ongoing issue with the track team member who was previously involved in an attack on Kevin. And, of course, there’s the love story developing between David and Kevin and David’s angst over whether or not he has to leave behind everything and everyone he’s grown to love.
It might have been a good story, but I didn’t care for the author’s writing style, including the portrayal of David’s character and personality, which I comment on further below. But—here’s one of my biggest quirks with the writing—when the author first used the phrase “(he) rolled his lips,” I thought it was supremely awkward, but then it was used again and I started to squirm. The third time, I began to highlight the instances on my app and ultimately found it was used 8 times! I’m sorry, but no. First, it’s too weird to picture, and second, that’s way too many times to use a term like that in one story. I’m surprised the editor didn’t pick up on it.
Another issue, and granted, I may be very old-fashioned, but I found the way David spoke, whether with family or friends, to be extremely mature and somewhat formal. Yes, he’s a smart kid and was raised by intelligent women, but I just felt his language and behaviors were over-the-top too formal and mature for a fifteen year old. And speaking of fifteen—I also found it odd that both sets of parents saw no issue in letting the boys stay overnight in each other’s homes, knowing they were having sex. I may have lost touch with today’s reality, but there wouldn’t be full, penetrative sex in my home and condoned by me if my child was that age. Thankfully, the sex was off page, but I’m still surprised because most YA books I’ve read have held off mentioning having full sex until both boys were eighteen.
So, although the book was okay, and I liked a few parts, primarily the relationship between David and his two “dads,” I wouldn’t recommend it.
David Martin isn’t happy when he finds out he has to go live with his father and his father’s partner while his mothers are overseas on a work-related project during his sophomore year. But his tune changes after he gets to know Kevin Ringer, the captain of the track team—the young man who will eventually be David’s lover.
During the first six months or so, living with his dad and his dad’s partner, Scott, who also happens to be his high school track coach, he’s shocked by how much he comes to appreciate Scott. So much in his life changes within such a short time that he finds himself wishing for even more time with Kevin, Scott, and his dad, who has now become very important to him. It surprises them all when he reveals how much he now respects Scott and even loves him, and he makes Scott’s day when he announces he’s decided to call Scott Pop.
There’s plenty of drama throughout the story as his father learns the meaning of being a full time parent and acquires the skills to express his love and respect for his son; there’s also an ongoing issue with the track team member who was previously involved in an attack on Kevin. And, of course, there’s the love story developing between David and Kevin and David’s angst over whether or not he has to leave behind everything and everyone he’s grown to love.
It might have been a good story, but I didn’t care for the author’s writing style, including the portrayal of David’s character and personality, which I comment on further below. But—here’s one of my biggest quirks with the writing—when the author first used the phrase “(he) rolled his lips,” I thought it was supremely awkward, but then it was used again and I started to squirm. The third time, I began to highlight the instances on my app and ultimately found it was used 8 times! I’m sorry, but no. First, it’s too weird to picture, and second, that’s way too many times to use a term like that in one story. I’m surprised the editor didn’t pick up on it.
Another issue, and granted, I may be very old-fashioned, but I found the way David spoke, whether with family or friends, to be extremely mature and somewhat formal. Yes, he’s a smart kid and was raised by intelligent women, but I just felt his language and behaviors were over-the-top too formal and mature for a fifteen year old. And speaking of fifteen—I also found it odd that both sets of parents saw no issue in letting the boys stay overnight in each other’s homes, knowing they were having sex. I may have lost touch with today’s reality, but there wouldn’t be full, penetrative sex in my home and condoned by me if my child was that age. Thankfully, the sex was off page, but I’m still surprised because most YA books I’ve read have held off mentioning having full sex until both boys were eighteen.
So, although the book was okay, and I liked a few parts, primarily the relationship between David and his two “dads,” I wouldn’t recommend it.
September 17, 2016
This book just blew me away. I was taken completely by surprise by how much I really enjoyed this book. Don't get me wrong I was looking forward to reading it but most young adult books are not truly about the connection but more about lust for their partner. Not this book. I really feel like one of the main characters grew up right before my eyes while reading this book and went from a child to a very confident young man with a very bright future ahead of him.
David and Kevin are the main characters in this book in my opinion even though the book is is Davids perspective but there are also quite a few supporting characters in this book that deserve recognition also. Those supporting roles go to Rob (David's biological father), Steve (David's other father, pops), Jesse (Kevin's sister), and even John (you will have to read the book to find out his role in this book). Without these people this book would not have been half as good as it was.
David has not really had a relationship with his father ever except in passing. So when he has to go live with him for a year while his two moms are out of the country for work, David is NOT excited at all. But that soon changes the closer he and Steve get and even more so when he finally makes a friend in Jesse. Things start to fall into place after making friends with Jesse because he joins the track team and becomes friends with Jesse's brother Kevin, who is also the team captain. Both boys start to get closer and closer as the year goes on and become boyfriends. Things seem to being going grey for them, then trouble hits and David handles it all pourly. After learning from his mistakes and his fathers mistakes also, David starts to get his act together.
It seems no matter how good things are going trouble seems to follow both David and Kevin. The two boys have to not only navigate high school, being openly gay and a couple, but the have to figure out how to wade through all of the issues that seem to keep arising around them.
This book was such a wonderful read about young love. I found myself cheering on the characters in this book at every good thing that happened and sending them my support at all the bad. Carolyn LeVine Topol did amazing work on this book. It was not too sappy and it was not over the top, IT WAS JUST RIGHT!!!!
Was given this galley copy for free for an open and honest review
David and Kevin are the main characters in this book in my opinion even though the book is is Davids perspective but there are also quite a few supporting characters in this book that deserve recognition also. Those supporting roles go to Rob (David's biological father), Steve (David's other father, pops), Jesse (Kevin's sister), and even John (you will have to read the book to find out his role in this book). Without these people this book would not have been half as good as it was.
David has not really had a relationship with his father ever except in passing. So when he has to go live with him for a year while his two moms are out of the country for work, David is NOT excited at all. But that soon changes the closer he and Steve get and even more so when he finally makes a friend in Jesse. Things start to fall into place after making friends with Jesse because he joins the track team and becomes friends with Jesse's brother Kevin, who is also the team captain. Both boys start to get closer and closer as the year goes on and become boyfriends. Things seem to being going grey for them, then trouble hits and David handles it all pourly. After learning from his mistakes and his fathers mistakes also, David starts to get his act together.
It seems no matter how good things are going trouble seems to follow both David and Kevin. The two boys have to not only navigate high school, being openly gay and a couple, but the have to figure out how to wade through all of the issues that seem to keep arising around them.
This book was such a wonderful read about young love. I found myself cheering on the characters in this book at every good thing that happened and sending them my support at all the bad. Carolyn LeVine Topol did amazing work on this book. It was not too sappy and it was not over the top, IT WAS JUST RIGHT!!!!
Was given this galley copy for free for an open and honest review
April 16, 2017
Sweet story
David is unwillingly uprooted from his home in NYC to live with his dad in Connecticut whilst his moms spend a year in Europe for their work. David is a lot like his dad, a coward, talking before thinking. David has one other thing in common with his dad. David first bonds with his dads long-time partner, Steve, who is more of a fatherly figure than David's dad. That's where this journey begins.
The story felt a bit simple, but I enjoyed the read. Maybe another book is coming that takes on the college years? 3.5 for taking the gold -on and off the track.
David is unwillingly uprooted from his home in NYC to live with his dad in Connecticut whilst his moms spend a year in Europe for their work. David is a lot like his dad, a coward, talking before thinking. David has one other thing in common with his dad. David first bonds with his dads long-time partner, Steve, who is more of a fatherly figure than David's dad. That's where this journey begins.
The story felt a bit simple, but I enjoyed the read. Maybe another book is coming that takes on the college years? 3.5 for taking the gold -on and off the track.
March 24, 2017
Run For It All is the story of a gay high schooler, David, who must move from New York City to Connecticut for a year while his two mothers are away and stay with his Dad and his Dad's partner. It's about the pain of being uprooted and resettled, in the middle of high school, no less. But the focus is on navigating a relationship with a cute boy, Kevin, and trying to come to terms with his long-absent father while navigating the possibilities of true family there. The writing is crisp and solid, the characters are quite likable, and the story makes you continue turning the pages. This is a solid and enjoyable entry in the gay coming-of-age genre and I heartily recommend it.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews