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C MA VIE
William
Just before his last year in high school, Will's best friend Julie inadvertently outs him at an end-of-summer party. Now Will feels lost and alienated at Chilliwack high school and strangely distant from his friends. The only other gay kid at school is so not his type, so Will looks online for more meaningful connections. There he meets Riley, a twenty-three-year-old living in Vancouver, and they develop a relationship that seems almost too good to be true. It isn't until after Will loses his virginity to Riley that he discovers Riley is HIV positive.
- GenresYoung AdultLGBTQueer
Paperback
First published August 13, 2012
1 person is currently reading
80 people want to read
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Michael Harris
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
April 18, 2013
I received a copy of this book as an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed this book, and for very different reasons that I ever expected too. I didn't know anything about this book going in, and in a way I'm glad. I started reading without any sort of expectations, or notions about what this book should be or where it was going to go.
I many ways Will is far from a perfect character. He is selfish, cold, distant, uncaring, judgmental, and unsupportive. He pushes his family away, and is pretty horrible to his friends. He becomes involved with an older man who introduces him to hard drugs, and sex. Will's feelings toward this man are pretty mixed, and he understands that he is being used, but fails to end it. He, in short, is a teenager, and it was nice to read such a honest story about the mess those years can be. Will isn't a bad person, but he is making some bad choices in his life. He is so wrapped up in how hard things are for him he fails to see how difficult things are for others, and in the end he is forced to see who his actions, and lack of action have real consequences both in his life, and the lives of others. He learns some hard lessons, and comes out a changed person in the end.
I think too often high school stories are this idealized world where the love you have at 16 lasts forever, and sex is always perfect (not that there is anything wrong with that), but it's nice to see the challenges many kids face addressed in a more honest fashion. I think characters like Will encourage us to look at ourselves, and our own actions much more so that any sort of too perfect high school student from another story might.
I really enjoyed this book, and for very different reasons that I ever expected too. I didn't know anything about this book going in, and in a way I'm glad. I started reading without any sort of expectations, or notions about what this book should be or where it was going to go.
I many ways Will is far from a perfect character. He is selfish, cold, distant, uncaring, judgmental, and unsupportive. He pushes his family away, and is pretty horrible to his friends. He becomes involved with an older man who introduces him to hard drugs, and sex. Will's feelings toward this man are pretty mixed, and he understands that he is being used, but fails to end it. He, in short, is a teenager, and it was nice to read such a honest story about the mess those years can be. Will isn't a bad person, but he is making some bad choices in his life. He is so wrapped up in how hard things are for him he fails to see how difficult things are for others, and in the end he is forced to see who his actions, and lack of action have real consequences both in his life, and the lives of others. He learns some hard lessons, and comes out a changed person in the end.
I think too often high school stories are this idealized world where the love you have at 16 lasts forever, and sex is always perfect (not that there is anything wrong with that), but it's nice to see the challenges many kids face addressed in a more honest fashion. I think characters like Will encourage us to look at ourselves, and our own actions much more so that any sort of too perfect high school student from another story might.
April 21, 2013
I have to say, I sort of hated this book.
While the story was interesting, I hated, HATED, the main character. He is a odious person. I don't think I have ever read about a more self-involved, narcissistic character. He is a total dick to his poor parents (without a shred of remorse), is a total douche to his best friends, and only thinks about himself. I can't even count the number of times he said he zoned out when someone else was talking. I loathed him.
On to the plot. Basically this book is about a gay 17 year old guy in Canada who wants out of his small town life. He ventures into the world of online dating and discovers the Vancouver gay scene. What I liked about the story was that it wasn't romanticized at all. For example, when he has sex for the first time, he is afraid to look at the condom in case it is dirty. That you don't see in many M/M books, folks. For those types of moments alone I gave this book the second star. But what I didn't like about the plot is that it is riddled, and I mean riddled, with gay stereotypes. It was just painful to read at times and it made the book seem really dated.
I still can't get over how much I hated Will. When he . The way he ignored Julie when she was talking about her alcoholic father, and the way he blamed everything on his parents (who were very cool BTW. I wanted to kiss his mom when she told him that she herself watches porn)... I just grew to hate Will more and more. If the writer wanted a bigger reading base, he should have made a character less sociopathic.
**Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
While the story was interesting, I hated, HATED, the main character. He is a odious person. I don't think I have ever read about a more self-involved, narcissistic character. He is a total dick to his poor parents (without a shred of remorse), is a total douche to his best friends, and only thinks about himself. I can't even count the number of times he said he zoned out when someone else was talking. I loathed him.
On to the plot. Basically this book is about a gay 17 year old guy in Canada who wants out of his small town life. He ventures into the world of online dating and discovers the Vancouver gay scene. What I liked about the story was that it wasn't romanticized at all. For example, when he has sex for the first time, he is afraid to look at the condom in case it is dirty. That you don't see in many M/M books, folks. For those types of moments alone I gave this book the second star. But what I didn't like about the plot is that it is riddled, and I mean riddled, with gay stereotypes. It was just painful to read at times and it made the book seem really dated.
I still can't get over how much I hated Will. When he . The way he ignored Julie when she was talking about her alcoholic father, and the way he blamed everything on his parents (who were very cool BTW. I wanted to kiss his mom when she told him that she herself watches porn)... I just grew to hate Will more and more. If the writer wanted a bigger reading base, he should have made a character less sociopathic.
**Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
May 15, 2014
So I really wanted to like this book,but the MC was a dick and his whining drove me insane. Also I had just read Breathless by Brigid Kemmerer and despite it being a novella found much more touching than this.
Thank you Natgalley for the ARC
Thank you Natgalley for the ARC
March 28, 2013
3.5 Stars
Also seen here on my blog PaperFantasies
This is a book that gives away way too much in the description. Will doesn’t even officially meet Riley until the halfway point, doesn’t sleep with him until the last third, and doesn’t find out he’s HIV positive until the last quarter. I think there’s only one real spoiler left to spoil. Don’t worry, I won’t give away this book’s one and only real secret, but I will say that I wish it had been given much more weight than it was.
Will’s story is very different than I’d expected going in. Based off the synopsis, I was expecting to be dealing with an identity crisis, excessive bullying, and one boy’s slow journey to accepting himself as a gay man. Yes, all of those themes were in it at some point and to some degree, but everything was overshadowed by Will’s online search for a boyfriend, and subsequent whirlwind romance with the older Riley. I almost wish this had been told in the only other gay boy in Will’s small-town high school, Daniel’s, point of view, because I feel like we would have felt much more of the gay teenager’s plight seeing it through his eyes.
Though this wasn’t everything I had been hoping for, it was still a pretty good read. There were a few instances of real wisdom and insight into the life of a newly-outed gay boy that, while I wish had been more numerous, did lend a deal of heaviness and empathy to the novel that I appreciated. I’m not sure if Harris is gay himself or not, but my biggest fear with anything dealing with LGBT themes is that they’ll overdo it or feed into the clichéd idea of what it means to be gay, inadvertently belittling it, but that never happened in Homo (though Daniel’s first real appearance did seem just a bit over-the-top to me).
I do like the realism portrayed in this novel, and I don’t even mean in regards to the homosexual theme. Will dates Riley who, at 23, is much more experienced than the seventeen year old narrator. Will gets swept up in belonging with Riley and his group of friends, and makes some poor choices in the name of fitting in and feeling older. I love how Harris didn’t try to soften this or make anyone out to be this big, bad villain because of some of the things they chose to do in their spare time. I am NOT advocating these behaviors, but I hate it when stories try to make everyone who does recreational drugs out to be a pressuring a-hole. Though I would caution the younger YA audience away from this one for this very reason.
Homo was my first Netgalley read, and while I wasn’t wowed by it, I’m ultimately very happy with my reading experience. I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone, but definitely to those intrigued by the blurb. It really is a quick, entertaining read.
Also seen here on my blog PaperFantasies
This is a book that gives away way too much in the description. Will doesn’t even officially meet Riley until the halfway point, doesn’t sleep with him until the last third, and doesn’t find out he’s HIV positive until the last quarter. I think there’s only one real spoiler left to spoil. Don’t worry, I won’t give away this book’s one and only real secret, but I will say that I wish it had been given much more weight than it was.
Will’s story is very different than I’d expected going in. Based off the synopsis, I was expecting to be dealing with an identity crisis, excessive bullying, and one boy’s slow journey to accepting himself as a gay man. Yes, all of those themes were in it at some point and to some degree, but everything was overshadowed by Will’s online search for a boyfriend, and subsequent whirlwind romance with the older Riley. I almost wish this had been told in the only other gay boy in Will’s small-town high school, Daniel’s, point of view, because I feel like we would have felt much more of the gay teenager’s plight seeing it through his eyes.
Though this wasn’t everything I had been hoping for, it was still a pretty good read. There were a few instances of real wisdom and insight into the life of a newly-outed gay boy that, while I wish had been more numerous, did lend a deal of heaviness and empathy to the novel that I appreciated. I’m not sure if Harris is gay himself or not, but my biggest fear with anything dealing with LGBT themes is that they’ll overdo it or feed into the clichéd idea of what it means to be gay, inadvertently belittling it, but that never happened in Homo (though Daniel’s first real appearance did seem just a bit over-the-top to me).
I do like the realism portrayed in this novel, and I don’t even mean in regards to the homosexual theme. Will dates Riley who, at 23, is much more experienced than the seventeen year old narrator. Will gets swept up in belonging with Riley and his group of friends, and makes some poor choices in the name of fitting in and feeling older. I love how Harris didn’t try to soften this or make anyone out to be this big, bad villain because of some of the things they chose to do in their spare time. I am NOT advocating these behaviors, but I hate it when stories try to make everyone who does recreational drugs out to be a pressuring a-hole. Though I would caution the younger YA audience away from this one for this very reason.
Homo was my first Netgalley read, and while I wasn’t wowed by it, I’m ultimately very happy with my reading experience. I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone, but definitely to those intrigued by the blurb. It really is a quick, entertaining read.
September 16, 2015
Will has grown up in Chilliwack British Columbia with dreams of a new life in Vancouver after his senior year in high school. There is a problem with life in this otherwise idyllic suburban community, Will is not like everyone else, he likes guys. The only other gay student in his high school is Daniel, and Daniel is out and the one who is taking the heat at school. Will is not sure how he fits in because he’s not like everyone else and he does not want to be like Daniel either.
After watching “The Boys in the Band” Will is convinced that he is not like the characters he sees there and he does not want to become like them either. There is something or someone like him, where he can be himself and still fit in. Will is outed on Facebook by his best friend. In an effort to find himself Will makes his way to Vancouver where he meets Riley, someone who he thinks he can relate to, someone like himself.
Growing up gay is never easy and growing up gay in a small community can be even more difficult. The resources and support groups often don’t exist in the same way as they do in a large urban setting. This is a great read and a very realistic portrayal of these dichotomies.
After watching “The Boys in the Band” Will is convinced that he is not like the characters he sees there and he does not want to become like them either. There is something or someone like him, where he can be himself and still fit in. Will is outed on Facebook by his best friend. In an effort to find himself Will makes his way to Vancouver where he meets Riley, someone who he thinks he can relate to, someone like himself.
Growing up gay is never easy and growing up gay in a small community can be even more difficult. The resources and support groups often don’t exist in the same way as they do in a large urban setting. This is a great read and a very realistic portrayal of these dichotomies.
April 10, 2013
Wow. 144 pages of gay stereotypes. The gay kids get bullied at school and at a party. They almost don't get invited because the hosts are Christians who hate gays. One of the gay kids attempts suicide. The other one hooks up with a random guy who he later learns is HIV positive. The HIV positive dude tells the teen, "Don't look for a deep, long-lasting relationship. Hookups are all we get."
The message I got from this book is that gay guys should not "act gay" so they won't be bullied and that they should accept a sub-par existence because that's all they'll ever have. How depressing.
I am glad I got this book on the Kindle so I can't donate it to the library, because I wouldn't want anyone to read this.
The message I got from this book is that gay guys should not "act gay" so they won't be bullied and that they should accept a sub-par existence because that's all they'll ever have. How depressing.
I am glad I got this book on the Kindle so I can't donate it to the library, because I wouldn't want anyone to read this.
April 24, 2013
I found this book to be depressing. Will is a high school senior in a small town where the only other homosexual boy at his school, Daniel, is picked on relentlessly. Will looks online for a boyfriend and finds an older man in a nearby city. In the meantime, he is not a good friend to Julie and Daniel, his only friends, he lets his grades slip and he lies to his parents. The older man he met online gives him drugs and only after they have sex, with a condom at least, does he tell Will that he is HIV positive.
Then there are some websites listed in the author's note at the end of the book that are support networks for queer teens, which is probably good because if they were not depressed before they read this book, they may be by the time they finish it.
Then there are some websites listed in the author's note at the end of the book that are support networks for queer teens, which is probably good because if they were not depressed before they read this book, they may be by the time they finish it.
December 22, 2017
It was really difficult for me to decide whether to give this book 3 or 4 stars. There were parts I truly liked and parts I didn't. I loved Will's family dynamic and how he viewed them. It seemed so real and relatable. I liked his first attempts at dating and how he handled it. I didn't like Julie. She seemed to be there just so there was someone to rain on Will's parade. They were supposedly best friends but she never acted the part. It was also very unclear how the entire school came to find out Will was gay. The back cover description says his best friend outed him on Facebook but that was never said in the book itself. Background characters made overheard comments about a video but that was never elaborated on, either. The ending also didn't mesh and was unrealistic. It's been months and Riley and his friends just welcome Will back like he never left? Sure. While there were positives and negatives enough was positive that is be interested in reading more books by the author.
December 29, 2017
Plus corsé que Béatrice et Olivier, avec des scènes plus dures. S'adresse vraiment aux 14+, alors que les autres romans de la collection peuvent se lire à 11-12 ans.
Ce que je trouve toujours étrange dans les romans traduits, c'est le rapport au religieux, qui est loin d'être le même ici que dans l'ouest canadien, par exemple.
N'empêche, un roman que j'ai bien aimé. Y'avait un petit air d'un roman de Simon Boulerice là-dedans, j'ai trouvé.
Ce que je trouve toujours étrange dans les romans traduits, c'est le rapport au religieux, qui est loin d'être le même ici que dans l'ouest canadien, par exemple.
N'empêche, un roman que j'ai bien aimé. Y'avait un petit air d'un roman de Simon Boulerice là-dedans, j'ai trouvé.
November 8, 2020
Very real story of how terrifying growing up and finding yourself can be.
April 19, 2022
A nice short tale.
March 12, 2013
This book could have been so much more than it was. I was incredibly hopeful about it, but it seemed too short and underdeveloped, and I thought that it was also very misleading in terms of plot and blurb. Everything happened at rapid quickfire pace and although an attempt at resolution was provided, nothing actually felt "resolved". For me, this was more of an "issues" book and not an actual novel. I didn't connect to the characters and I was interested on a more academic, kinda distant level then I was in the actual immediacy of the plot.
Step 1: Main character is accidentally outted by his best friend (but really himself) right before the beginning of the new school year.
Step 2: Main character feels alienated by being outted, and is not comfortable with the only other gay boy in the school.
Step 3: Main character starts making dating profiles on websites mentioned by only other gay boy.
Step 4: Main character meets someone and because he is feeling alienated from friends and family decides that this relationship is super serious and ignores lots of warning signs in an effort to feel that he belongs somewhere.
Step 5: Main character loses virginity to new guy. MC learns NG is HIV+. MC gets mad at NG too and now has no one he really connects to.
Step 6: Only other gay guy tries to commit suicide because people are awful to him, esp. MC who doesn't want to have too much "gay" camaraderie. Cause ... that's not what defines him. And stuff.
Step 7: MC is not HIV+. MC sticks up for OOGG. Main character patches things with old best friend. MC rekindles friendship, but not relationship with his HIV+ first.
Thus ends the novel.
What isn't covered:
1) Why the MC is so fricking unlikable and mean to everyone around him and why anyone still likes him even though he is essentially a snotty jerk.
2) That there are actually more than three kinds of gay people.
3) MC's actual transformation into a better person, which one constantly assumes is coming, but is wrong to assume.
4) That HIV isn't really a "homosexual issue" the way it once was.
5) That the drugs were probably just as much of a threat to MC's wellbeing as this other stuff.
6) That romance and love are not dead ideas.
7) That your "first time" is important and shouldn't be given up lightly
8) That you can't just run away from your problems
9) That parents may not be fully supportive, but if they try, that should probably be acknowledged.
I got caught up in my list. Anyways, there was a lot missing. And I wasn't asking for an HEA (not with that title and blurb), but I did come away feeling like this was a book about HIV, and not really about the MC. It showed some of the trials that a homosexual youth can go through, but it didn't delve into them. It more seemed to flit from issue to issue. Oh, now I've been outted. Now my friends are irritated with me. Now I am lying to my parents. Now I am doing drugs. Now I am having disappointing and unfulfilling sex. Now I am learning about things I should have known before. etc. I don't know. I wanted to like this book, but I didn't. There was something missing. For lack of a better word, I will call it "soul".
I don't think I would recommend this to a young person struggling with sexuality. It's not that kind of book, and it certainly doesn't resolve itself into any useful lessons, or at least, none that the MC is aware of. What readers take for themselves is probably a different story.
Step 1: Main character is accidentally outted by his best friend (but really himself) right before the beginning of the new school year.
Step 2: Main character feels alienated by being outted, and is not comfortable with the only other gay boy in the school.
Step 3: Main character starts making dating profiles on websites mentioned by only other gay boy.
Step 4: Main character meets someone and because he is feeling alienated from friends and family decides that this relationship is super serious and ignores lots of warning signs in an effort to feel that he belongs somewhere.
Step 5: Main character loses virginity to new guy. MC learns NG is HIV+. MC gets mad at NG too and now has no one he really connects to.
Step 6: Only other gay guy tries to commit suicide because people are awful to him, esp. MC who doesn't want to have too much "gay" camaraderie. Cause ... that's not what defines him. And stuff.
Step 7: MC is not HIV+. MC sticks up for OOGG. Main character patches things with old best friend. MC rekindles friendship, but not relationship with his HIV+ first.
Thus ends the novel.
What isn't covered:
1) Why the MC is so fricking unlikable and mean to everyone around him and why anyone still likes him even though he is essentially a snotty jerk.
2) That there are actually more than three kinds of gay people.
3) MC's actual transformation into a better person, which one constantly assumes is coming, but is wrong to assume.
4) That HIV isn't really a "homosexual issue" the way it once was.
5) That the drugs were probably just as much of a threat to MC's wellbeing as this other stuff.
6) That romance and love are not dead ideas.
7) That your "first time" is important and shouldn't be given up lightly
8) That you can't just run away from your problems
9) That parents may not be fully supportive, but if they try, that should probably be acknowledged.
I got caught up in my list. Anyways, there was a lot missing. And I wasn't asking for an HEA (not with that title and blurb), but I did come away feeling like this was a book about HIV, and not really about the MC. It showed some of the trials that a homosexual youth can go through, but it didn't delve into them. It more seemed to flit from issue to issue. Oh, now I've been outted. Now my friends are irritated with me. Now I am lying to my parents. Now I am doing drugs. Now I am having disappointing and unfulfilling sex. Now I am learning about things I should have known before. etc. I don't know. I wanted to like this book, but I didn't. There was something missing. For lack of a better word, I will call it "soul".
I don't think I would recommend this to a young person struggling with sexuality. It's not that kind of book, and it certainly doesn't resolve itself into any useful lessons, or at least, none that the MC is aware of. What readers take for themselves is probably a different story.
March 25, 2013
I truly had anticipated a good read from this book but was highly disappointed. I was highly interested in this book because of the topic and genre. Usually a catchy title or beautiful cover peaks my interest but this book has neither. The storyline had great potential but the delivery fell very short. The target audience for this book is young adults, as well as adults, but yet the writing, context, and lingo was so “old school” I couldn’t help but do anything but shake my head. Being the mother of young adults, I can only imagine the ridicule my kids would make about the slang/lingo used in this book. I felt absolutely no connection to any of the characters as they all seemed very one dimensional and there was very little descriptions about their characteristics, feelings or looks. The setting was pretty much the same. There were no painted visualizations to make the reader “see” or “feel” as if they were actually there. Not anything to really draw the reader in. The dialogue was seriously lacking. A sentence here, then a few lines later another one. No actual serious interactions/conversations amongst the characters which made the story a little dull. It seems as if the author tried too hard to write like a young adult would think or talk which in turn made the writing seem forced.
One thing I despise in a book is repetition. I noticed that the term “like” “know” and “cool” was used frequently, with the term “like” and “cool” being old school slang terms. A thesaurus could have been used to help with this. I also noticed the repetition of phrases and then there would be a series of periods and then the phrase again which is very annoying. Once is enough for the reader to get the point. Parentheses and italics were also overused in the story which is also an annoying characteristic to a reader.
As short as this book was, I should have been able to read it in a short period of time but this was not the case. I had to go back and re-read lines, paragraphs and pages to comprehend or make sense of what I had just read. A book should flow so smoothly that a reader gets sucked in and doesn’t have to re-read, but this book required a lot of re-reading. I noticed that words were omitted, there were lots of typos, words used in the wrong context, and even some words should be taken out as it serves no purpose.
With a lot of editing and hard work this could turn into a wonderful book. The storyline was realistic and could be very interesting. At this time because of all the issues I struggled with, I am giving this book a one star rating which also means I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.
I received a free e-book copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my free and honest review. I received no form of compensation for this review. All thoughts and opinions written in this review are mine.
One thing I despise in a book is repetition. I noticed that the term “like” “know” and “cool” was used frequently, with the term “like” and “cool” being old school slang terms. A thesaurus could have been used to help with this. I also noticed the repetition of phrases and then there would be a series of periods and then the phrase again which is very annoying. Once is enough for the reader to get the point. Parentheses and italics were also overused in the story which is also an annoying characteristic to a reader.
As short as this book was, I should have been able to read it in a short period of time but this was not the case. I had to go back and re-read lines, paragraphs and pages to comprehend or make sense of what I had just read. A book should flow so smoothly that a reader gets sucked in and doesn’t have to re-read, but this book required a lot of re-reading. I noticed that words were omitted, there were lots of typos, words used in the wrong context, and even some words should be taken out as it serves no purpose.
With a lot of editing and hard work this could turn into a wonderful book. The storyline was realistic and could be very interesting. At this time because of all the issues I struggled with, I am giving this book a one star rating which also means I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.
I received a free e-book copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my free and honest review. I received no form of compensation for this review. All thoughts and opinions written in this review are mine.
July 29, 2013
I did not like this book. Didn't like the book, didn't like the main character. This is one of these books that is supposed to be written for gay youths, but is actually written for gullible straight adult. There is no other reason, that I can see, why Will is written the way he is.
Will is a newly out of the closet gay teenager. His parents are trying to understand, but they try a little too hard and Will doesn't believe their acceptance. His best friend has no idea how to relate to him and the only other gay teen in town is a little too over the top for Will's liking. He feels completely alone and worst he thinks that no one will ever like him. He dreams of going off to the big city and immersing himself in the gay society found there. This dream leads to him joining the more PG dating site and meeting up with a more worldlier gay man.
That's all fine. Here's the thing, Will sucks as a person. He thinks that he is the only one with issues. Judges others and refuses to accept when people accept him. The amount of times that he thought "do you have to be so obvious?" about the other gay teenager at his school made me want to slap him. When it comes down to it, Will's transition from in the closet to out is seamless. His parents don't quite know how to relate, but they are trying, his best friend could care less and the guys at school leave him alone, because they have a better punching bag.
Yet, all Will does is complain. DO NOT GET ME WRONG. It's extremely hard to be a teenager, add being gay or of color in a white bread world and you have even more drama. The issue for me is that Will has the opportunity to have a great support system and he shuns them. He prefers to sulk over trying to be a good person and showing his family and friends the love that they show him.
He's selfish and self absorbed and at no point is he redeemed. He does not change or get hit with a great revaluation. He learns some life altering information about his boyfriend and you would think that he would take some life lesson from that. But he really doesn't. People still have to tell him Will it's not all about you or Will you are not trying. He doesn't wake up and say, oh, no I've been a shit.
I just could not get into this book, because I couldn't get into Will.
Will is a newly out of the closet gay teenager. His parents are trying to understand, but they try a little too hard and Will doesn't believe their acceptance. His best friend has no idea how to relate to him and the only other gay teen in town is a little too over the top for Will's liking. He feels completely alone and worst he thinks that no one will ever like him. He dreams of going off to the big city and immersing himself in the gay society found there. This dream leads to him joining the more PG dating site and meeting up with a more worldlier gay man.
That's all fine. Here's the thing, Will sucks as a person. He thinks that he is the only one with issues. Judges others and refuses to accept when people accept him. The amount of times that he thought "do you have to be so obvious?" about the other gay teenager at his school made me want to slap him. When it comes down to it, Will's transition from in the closet to out is seamless. His parents don't quite know how to relate, but they are trying, his best friend could care less and the guys at school leave him alone, because they have a better punching bag.
Yet, all Will does is complain. DO NOT GET ME WRONG. It's extremely hard to be a teenager, add being gay or of color in a white bread world and you have even more drama. The issue for me is that Will has the opportunity to have a great support system and he shuns them. He prefers to sulk over trying to be a good person and showing his family and friends the love that they show him.
He's selfish and self absorbed and at no point is he redeemed. He does not change or get hit with a great revaluation. He learns some life altering information about his boyfriend and you would think that he would take some life lesson from that. But he really doesn't. People still have to tell him Will it's not all about you or Will you are not trying. He doesn't wake up and say, oh, no I've been a shit.
I just could not get into this book, because I couldn't get into Will.
December 22, 2015
I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ll notice that I have a huge interest in LGBT lit, especially for teens. I don’t think there’s enough of it out there, and a lot of it is published by smaller presses, so those don’t get as much of a marketing push as books published by huge publishing houses. Because of my interest, I try to read every teen LGBT book I can get my hands on. That’s what led me to request Homo.
Homo is about Will, a young boy who is outed the day before school starts, and spends his senior year dealing with aftermath and trying to figure out who he really is.
In theory, Homo is a great book. It’s relatable for teens going through the same thing. I’m sure almost everything that he feels and goes through happens to most gay kids. So, if there’s something I praise Homo for, it’s being authentic. Unfortunately, that’s as far as I get. Will is almost unbearable. I don’t expect to like every character I read about. Everyone is screwed up and imperfect in their own ways. My problem with this character is that he was hard to sympathize with. He would treat some of his friends like crap and then come whining to them when his life turned to shit. I don’t really know that he ever learned from it either, and that bothers me. It wasn’t so much the issues that I didn’t like, it was the execution. The characters weren’t developed enough to get me invested. I had no idea what the setting was, and that bothered me. For some reason, it felt like an older book; realistic, but not contemporary. These were things that just bothered me the whole time I was reading. I considered putting it down a few times, but I just kept reading. In the end, I’m not sure I gained anything from it, and that’s never a good thing to me.
I won’t say that I you shouldn’t read Homo, but I’m also not going to recommend it to anyone coming to me for LGBT books. If you had a different experience with Homo, please let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear another perspective.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ll notice that I have a huge interest in LGBT lit, especially for teens. I don’t think there’s enough of it out there, and a lot of it is published by smaller presses, so those don’t get as much of a marketing push as books published by huge publishing houses. Because of my interest, I try to read every teen LGBT book I can get my hands on. That’s what led me to request Homo.
Homo is about Will, a young boy who is outed the day before school starts, and spends his senior year dealing with aftermath and trying to figure out who he really is.
In theory, Homo is a great book. It’s relatable for teens going through the same thing. I’m sure almost everything that he feels and goes through happens to most gay kids. So, if there’s something I praise Homo for, it’s being authentic. Unfortunately, that’s as far as I get. Will is almost unbearable. I don’t expect to like every character I read about. Everyone is screwed up and imperfect in their own ways. My problem with this character is that he was hard to sympathize with. He would treat some of his friends like crap and then come whining to them when his life turned to shit. I don’t really know that he ever learned from it either, and that bothers me. It wasn’t so much the issues that I didn’t like, it was the execution. The characters weren’t developed enough to get me invested. I had no idea what the setting was, and that bothered me. For some reason, it felt like an older book; realistic, but not contemporary. These were things that just bothered me the whole time I was reading. I considered putting it down a few times, but I just kept reading. In the end, I’m not sure I gained anything from it, and that’s never a good thing to me.
I won’t say that I you shouldn’t read Homo, but I’m also not going to recommend it to anyone coming to me for LGBT books. If you had a different experience with Homo, please let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear another perspective.
April 28, 2013
Ok, yeah, I've been busy.
But thats okay, because as usual, that means you get an absolute flurry of new material to dig through all at once, and isnt that fun‽
Meh.
And sadly, "meh" is really all i've got to describe this novel.
I wanted to like this. It's meant to be targeted at the YA audience, and it's an interesting concept. Young gay male, entering into sexual maturity in the new age of homosexuality of the post-AIDS generation. This is my generation, and those who follow, where nothing is as it once was, but it's not necessarily better. Just... different. More open, but more confusing. Fewer predefined roles, but replaced with a bewildering spectrum of options. The process of defining yourself, and where you fit into this brave new world, where straightedge types mix publicly with screaming queens, but casual sex is off the menu.
But sadly, it's just flat. The writing is competent, but only that. The characters are one dimensional shadow puppets. The small town setting feels realistic enough, but it just doesn't work when the place is populated solely by stereotypes: the young Mary-type, the only other queer in town (think Kurt from Glee) the irritatingly clingy outcast fag-hag/best friend (which would be yours truly), The Jock /Town Bully and the overly quiet, concerned yet baffled parental units. All represented. The slang is also out of date, but the author doesn't bother to backdate his setting to match it, which means most teens will be rolling their eyes within five minutes.
It's a good attempt, but the execution is just flawed enough for me to recommend leaving it on the shelf.
January 18, 2014
I received this novel from NetGalley.
This novella follows a young teen through his transition to being open about his sexuality, as you could probably guess from the title. Although, for the most part, it is touching and allows the reader a glimpse into the lives of those who are afraid to be who they are, it also shows the horrible ways that homophobic people, those who can’t accept people for who they are, and cause harm to those people, not realising just how lasting that harm is.
Harris has created a novella that touches on a controversial subject, one that many authors have written about, but never in this calm and explanatory way, he has done his research that’s for sure. This novel would be perfect in a school library or perhaps if you, yourself are going through the process of ‘coming out’. It goes through the health issues, mental and physical and also the way friends can react, new loves and loss. A great little novella.
Only receiving three stars because it seemed rushed, like it was written in several parts and they were just shoved together in what seemed like a good sequence. That aside, a good little fast read, with only one R rated scene. Perfect for any young adult to adult reader.
This novella follows a young teen through his transition to being open about his sexuality, as you could probably guess from the title. Although, for the most part, it is touching and allows the reader a glimpse into the lives of those who are afraid to be who they are, it also shows the horrible ways that homophobic people, those who can’t accept people for who they are, and cause harm to those people, not realising just how lasting that harm is.
Harris has created a novella that touches on a controversial subject, one that many authors have written about, but never in this calm and explanatory way, he has done his research that’s for sure. This novel would be perfect in a school library or perhaps if you, yourself are going through the process of ‘coming out’. It goes through the health issues, mental and physical and also the way friends can react, new loves and loss. A great little novella.
Only receiving three stars because it seemed rushed, like it was written in several parts and they were just shoved together in what seemed like a good sequence. That aside, a good little fast read, with only one R rated scene. Perfect for any young adult to adult reader.
September 21, 2013
I found this at the library in the YA section and of course had to read it.
First off I would not classify this as a YA read even though Will is a teenager. He is unlikable to an extreme, and I would not want my children to think acting like this is okay.
I enjoyed the first chapter, the honesty of it, but then the book began to fall apart for me. The writing was pretty decent, yet the protag was, well, a bastard. The author tries to make emends with the readers in the very end, but it is to little too late. As a reader we should have seem some decent part of Will in his thoughts, inner monologue, but we don't. He is nasty in his head too. Everything is about him, him, him and I didn't like the message at all.
This could have been a fantastic book had the author let us like the protage even a little.
I gave this 2 stars only because of the secondary characters. I loved Daniel and the book should have been written about him, in all honesty.
First off I would not classify this as a YA read even though Will is a teenager. He is unlikable to an extreme, and I would not want my children to think acting like this is okay.
I enjoyed the first chapter, the honesty of it, but then the book began to fall apart for me. The writing was pretty decent, yet the protag was, well, a bastard. The author tries to make emends with the readers in the very end, but it is to little too late. As a reader we should have seem some decent part of Will in his thoughts, inner monologue, but we don't. He is nasty in his head too. Everything is about him, him, him and I didn't like the message at all.
This could have been a fantastic book had the author let us like the protage even a little.
I gave this 2 stars only because of the secondary characters. I loved Daniel and the book should have been written about him, in all honesty.
July 5, 2014
I did not expect to like this book, but I did end up enjoying most of it. Sadly, it's a bit too gritty for my middle-school (cocaine, sex scene).
Even though Will was a most unlikeable character, the confusion and alienation he feels, and the general seediness of some of his encounters add a sense of reality. I'm left wanting more of an 'internal' journey by Will or more of Daniel's story. I'm not sure what demographic would read this -- likely reluctant high school readers. Both middle school and high school readers interested in LGBTQ issues deserve a bit more.
Even though Will was a most unlikeable character, the confusion and alienation he feels, and the general seediness of some of his encounters add a sense of reality. I'm left wanting more of an 'internal' journey by Will or more of Daniel's story. I'm not sure what demographic would read this -- likely reluctant high school readers. Both middle school and high school readers interested in LGBTQ issues deserve a bit more.
didn-t-finish
March 31, 2013I really really tried with this one, I made it about a quarter of the way through it. But I just couldn't do it. It felt weirdly rushed and like it was in a big hurry to get to something else. For such a short book, I shouldn't feel so rushed. It seems like it needs a lot of work, I had issues with typos in my version as well.
April 16, 2017
This could be bibliotherapy for a teen gay struggling to come to terms with his sexuality. While the story is not terribly exciting and a little gritty in some places, the events and sentiments echo things that I have heard from my gay friends. Not sure if the school library is the place for it . . . L
August 1, 2013
The blurbs are more interesting than the book itself. I thought this would be an interesting read but the first couple of chapters were not very challenging, at least not as challenging as this topic could have been. Dd not finish the book.
December 3, 2014
A thoughtful story about a boy bored with small town living and looking for his first love experience--the complication being that he's gay. Well, there are more complications. His internet dating shows us the seamier potential of online hookups, whether hetro or homo sexual.
March 12, 2013
No real complaint - fine writing, but this wasn't much of a book. One hundred and four pages? I just wanted more. More from the story, more from the characters ... more!
April 26, 2017
I give it 3.5, although that option is not present, therefore a four for not detailing settings all that well where I could understand what's going on and where, as well as character development and relationship. Overall, this was a good book. Not bad really, being that I am part of the LGBT community this gave me a smile due to the fact that most adolescents such as I discover our sexuality and gender identity as well.
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