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Option Four
It's 1997, and seventeen-year-old Donn Carhart wants to come out. There are four ways it could reject, tolerate, accept, or they'll say 'me too!'
But his parents don't like gay people, and he doesn't know any other gay kids.
After meeting Alex, an openly gay transfer student, and learning a little bit about gay history in the United States, Donn starts the Acceptance Project club at school. The club is about addressing discrimination, and it draws a lot of student members, including Thad - the most popular guy in his class, who just so happens to be Donn's crush.
After Donn comes out, a group of parents try to shut it down as a 'gay club' - a danger to their children and the community. With his family, community, and classmates pushing back on his decisions, will Donn push forward or will he opt out?
But his parents don't like gay people, and he doesn't know any other gay kids.
After meeting Alex, an openly gay transfer student, and learning a little bit about gay history in the United States, Donn starts the Acceptance Project club at school. The club is about addressing discrimination, and it draws a lot of student members, including Thad - the most popular guy in his class, who just so happens to be Donn's crush.
After Donn comes out, a group of parents try to shut it down as a 'gay club' - a danger to their children and the community. With his family, community, and classmates pushing back on his decisions, will Donn push forward or will he opt out?
196 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 25, 2017
8 people are currently reading
41 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
May 28, 2017
Option Four
It's warm outside and I'm sitting inside and can't put this story away even not to get a refreshment....I just can't...
The way of writing.....it swallowed me in.....a journal, a logbook..(just don't like the word diary)
When Donn opens up to Alex, more the way how he did, it made my blurry...
Everything he sees, observes, notices, this knowledge is amazing put down. To see everything through his eyes and mind....it's touching.
It was funny, heartbreaking, endearing, painful and revealing.
Donn member of the school Astronomy Club:
"Somehow looking at the stars just isn’t as interesting as it used to be before I discovered boys"
Isn't that just the sweetest line ever?
What a wonderful personality Donn has, the steadfastness omg that was amazing...
The thorough investigation about history of gay...his commitment with the Acceptance Project club....it's all powerful. His concerns and considerations....clear, honest and again powerful
Goshhh this read is a 'best, better, bestest'
This journal so real, even lines are strikethrough....talking about how not capable to write at some moments.....
In the beginning there are his parents, (there are family secrets)...., his outcoming, his friend Alex, his big crush Thad and the AP club.
Very important in this story is the AP club where beautiful things are blossom....and where students are more mature then most parents.
But to see him grow into a confident person, helping others and himself. Being flawed and
investigative and accepting with it... Reflecting and discussing his relationships with his boyfriend(s)....Going from almost none to a whole of bunch friends. To see his beautiful and explosive character To see how he handles all the problems To see him making the difference....and that a seventeen almost eighteen......
The Board meeting case chills you to the bone. Adults, lies, religion... all horrible
But the club is solid...
Fascinating way of writing....it captured me from the first line..How the personalities pictured out through Donn's voice is just extremely real and close to my heart, I wish I was that confident and open at that age.... but the lesson here is everyone is different and we have to accept ourselves and others and....you can't blame yourself for the past.
It's maybe exceptional to do but I want to say: another amazing read from my favorite Publishing House: Beaten Track Publishing
This review is published on Divine Magazine
https://www.divinemagazine.biz/option...
It's warm outside and I'm sitting inside and can't put this story away even not to get a refreshment....I just can't...
The way of writing.....it swallowed me in.....a journal, a logbook..(just don't like the word diary)
When Donn opens up to Alex, more the way how he did, it made my blurry...
Everything he sees, observes, notices, this knowledge is amazing put down. To see everything through his eyes and mind....it's touching.
It was funny, heartbreaking, endearing, painful and revealing.
Donn member of the school Astronomy Club:
"Somehow looking at the stars just isn’t as interesting as it used to be before I discovered boys"
Isn't that just the sweetest line ever?
What a wonderful personality Donn has, the steadfastness omg that was amazing...
The thorough investigation about history of gay...his commitment with the Acceptance Project club....it's all powerful. His concerns and considerations....clear, honest and again powerful
Goshhh this read is a 'best, better, bestest'
This journal so real, even lines are strikethrough....talking about how not capable to write at some moments.....
In the beginning there are his parents, (there are family secrets)...., his outcoming, his friend Alex, his big crush Thad and the AP club.
Very important in this story is the AP club where beautiful things are blossom....and where students are more mature then most parents.
But to see him grow into a confident person, helping others and himself. Being flawed and
investigative and accepting with it... Reflecting and discussing his relationships with his boyfriend(s)....Going from almost none to a whole of bunch friends. To see his beautiful and explosive character To see how he handles all the problems To see him making the difference....and that a seventeen almost eighteen......
The Board meeting case chills you to the bone. Adults, lies, religion... all horrible
But the club is solid...
Fascinating way of writing....it captured me from the first line..How the personalities pictured out through Donn's voice is just extremely real and close to my heart, I wish I was that confident and open at that age.... but the lesson here is everyone is different and we have to accept ourselves and others and....you can't blame yourself for the past.
It's maybe exceptional to do but I want to say: another amazing read from my favorite Publishing House: Beaten Track Publishing
This review is published on Divine Magazine
https://www.divinemagazine.biz/option...
July 5, 2017
This is an excellent first novel. It’s young adult fiction, and as such, I’m going to focus on that aspect. I’m not the book’s target audience.
Too often, YA fiction makes the mistake of treating readers as either older or younger than they really are, especially when it comes to LGBT fiction. This book makes neither of these errors. What I love about Donn, and hope that other readers will too, is that he feels exactly right for a young man coming of age. He’s entirely likable even when he’s making mistakes. Donn feels real, especially when he’s fumbling over his words or getting ahead of himself in telling his story.
There are so many sweet, funny, and charming moments in the story. Donn has a lot on his plate, between coming out, having his first boyfriend, and balancing his budding activism with his relationships. There’s also a lot of heartache, and many serious issues come up in the book. The students at the core of the Acceptance Project bring to light more than just homophobia, but not in a heavy-handed way. This isn’t by any stretch an “educational” book, which I think would put readers off. Hopefully the understated, gentle way these issues are raised in the story will encourage readers to look into those things further.
Without giving spoilers, I will say that I was glad to see a bisexual character. That said, this read just a little to me like it wanted to be “gay for you” and ended up being a bisexual character instead. That reads a bit flat and like a throwaway line. However, having perfect representation is not possible, and it isn’t terrible By no means is it entirely bad characterization. It felt more like an incomplete understanding, and some of that is the result of first-person narration by someone other than the bi character.
There were two other things that made me pause. One is that I’m not sure if today’s youth will be able to entirely relate to it due to the setting. The story takes place 20 years ago, and there are some ways in which that shows. On the other hand, it does help for young people to understand our history and how things were for past generations. The other thing that I found puzzling was that in the club, which was about acceptance and various forms of discrimination, the club officers were all boys. There’s overt sexist language addressed in the story, but not the far more common ways girls are undermined (like not allowing them leadership).
I would feel comfortable giving this book to readers ages 13 and up. Although there is nothing I would label “mature content” in the story, I think the themes (in particular the couple of violent incidences, which are not described in detail) might be harder for younger readers to process through.
For likable characters, good work with social justice issues, and a compelling plot, this gets 4 stars.
Too often, YA fiction makes the mistake of treating readers as either older or younger than they really are, especially when it comes to LGBT fiction. This book makes neither of these errors. What I love about Donn, and hope that other readers will too, is that he feels exactly right for a young man coming of age. He’s entirely likable even when he’s making mistakes. Donn feels real, especially when he’s fumbling over his words or getting ahead of himself in telling his story.
There are so many sweet, funny, and charming moments in the story. Donn has a lot on his plate, between coming out, having his first boyfriend, and balancing his budding activism with his relationships. There’s also a lot of heartache, and many serious issues come up in the book. The students at the core of the Acceptance Project bring to light more than just homophobia, but not in a heavy-handed way. This isn’t by any stretch an “educational” book, which I think would put readers off. Hopefully the understated, gentle way these issues are raised in the story will encourage readers to look into those things further.
Without giving spoilers, I will say that I was glad to see a bisexual character. That said, this read just a little to me like it wanted to be “gay for you” and ended up being a bisexual character instead. That reads a bit flat and like a throwaway line. However, having perfect representation is not possible, and it isn’t terrible By no means is it entirely bad characterization. It felt more like an incomplete understanding, and some of that is the result of first-person narration by someone other than the bi character.
There were two other things that made me pause. One is that I’m not sure if today’s youth will be able to entirely relate to it due to the setting. The story takes place 20 years ago, and there are some ways in which that shows. On the other hand, it does help for young people to understand our history and how things were for past generations. The other thing that I found puzzling was that in the club, which was about acceptance and various forms of discrimination, the club officers were all boys. There’s overt sexist language addressed in the story, but not the far more common ways girls are undermined (like not allowing them leadership).
I would feel comfortable giving this book to readers ages 13 and up. Although there is nothing I would label “mature content” in the story, I think the themes (in particular the couple of violent incidences, which are not described in detail) might be harder for younger readers to process through.
For likable characters, good work with social justice issues, and a compelling plot, this gets 4 stars.
June 5, 2017
A beautifully written account of a young man coming of age. Donn is 17, a junior, and is gay. Written in journal form we see his life unfold...from a new boyfriend, coming out to his parents, to the establishment of the Acceptance Project, a club to fight discrimination in all its forms. But such as high school is...one has to face the big hurdles: lack of parental support, peer pressure, right-wing bible-toting conservatives. And then there are his friends and supporters. There is no flowery speech here, just "honest" feelings that probably most of us experienced at some point in our lives. Maybe high school, maybe college, maybe even later with our first job. Discrimination is alive and well, and we should all adopt the Acceptance Project's mission statement for, at its most basic, it is The Golden Rule.
July 29, 2018
What would you write in a journal?
Donn decided to write about his junior year in high school. Author Jon Eliot Keane gave us a window into Donn’s life. His coming out, first boyfriend, school projects, fighting bigotry and learning about his own family.
I found the conversations in the journal a bit odd, but it didn’t pull me out of the story. 3.75 for teachers.
Donn decided to write about his junior year in high school. Author Jon Eliot Keane gave us a window into Donn’s life. His coming out, first boyfriend, school projects, fighting bigotry and learning about his own family.
I found the conversations in the journal a bit odd, but it didn’t pull me out of the story. 3.75 for teachers.
May 31, 2017
Review to come.
May 25, 2017
Editor's Review
What readers might notice first is how incredibly well crafted this novel is. Indeed, several of those who read Option Four during the publishing process asked the same question:
Is this really Jon Eliot Keane's first novel?
This isn't necessarily to assume that all first novels are bad, or even not that great, but they often have a rawness, a feeling of newness, and a slight sense of uncertainty that wears off as the author's confidence grows.
Jon Eliot Keane writes with confidence, giving the feel of a seasoned author with a few previous works under his belt, perhaps, in part, because he did what all authors should do: sought feedback from other authors and let the story mature a little before casting it out into the publishing pond.
That confidence transfers to us readers and confers trust in the author to guide us through the story, which is crucial to a story like Option Four.
Told from a first-person perspective, the story is written in continuous prose (i.e. it's written like a novel, in titled chapters) but it takes the form of the journal entries of the main character:
These 'asides' provide sometimes humorous, always poignant insights into the events that unfold in the story, which centres on Donn's 'coming out / coming of age':
Through his journal entries, Donn shares with us readers his thoughts and feelings about significant moments, his crush, his boyfriend, his friends, his parents, school tests, and so on. But what drives this story is Donn's search for acceptance - from his peers, his parents, the school and the community as a whole. He's pragmatic and confident; he sees a problem and comes up with a solution.
Donn's decision to set up 'The Acceptance Project' - an in-school club for tackling all forms of discrimination - is driven by this pragmatism, which is awesome, but it's also at the heart of many of the interpersonal challenges he faces. He's a flawed narrator, a young guy just starting to deal with the 'big stuff' of life and not always getting it right.
Option Four is a young-adult novel, written with young-adult readers as the intended audience, but it's a novel that can be enjoyed by readers of all ages, LGBT+ or otherwise. Adolescence is an experience we all share, and there are many moments in this story that will strike a familiar chord for most of us, but there are also the unique insights into what it was like to be seventeen and gay in 1997.
What readers might notice first is how incredibly well crafted this novel is. Indeed, several of those who read Option Four during the publishing process asked the same question:
Is this really Jon Eliot Keane's first novel?
This isn't necessarily to assume that all first novels are bad, or even not that great, but they often have a rawness, a feeling of newness, and a slight sense of uncertainty that wears off as the author's confidence grows.
Jon Eliot Keane writes with confidence, giving the feel of a seasoned author with a few previous works under his belt, perhaps, in part, because he did what all authors should do: sought feedback from other authors and let the story mature a little before casting it out into the publishing pond.
That confidence transfers to us readers and confers trust in the author to guide us through the story, which is crucial to a story like Option Four.
Told from a first-person perspective, the story is written in continuous prose (i.e. it's written like a novel, in titled chapters) but it takes the form of the journal entries of the main character:
My name is Donner Charles Carhart.
Sometimes, in my more cynical moments, I wonder what possessed my parents to name me that. I mean, Donner's a great name, sure - for a reindeer.
These 'asides' provide sometimes humorous, always poignant insights into the events that unfold in the story, which centres on Donn's 'coming out / coming of age':
Ready for a shock?
Brace yourself. Okay. I'm going to write it down now. First time in my life I'll have ever written this down.
Writing it down makes it real.
That may be why I haven't written it down yet. I've been sitting here with the pen hovering over the paper for five minutes, gearing up for it.
Okay. Here goes.
I think I'm gay.
Well, actually, I'm pretty sure I'm gay.
There's some margin for maybe in there. I had a girlfriend once, but she came out as a lesbian about three months after we broke up, so I'm not sure that that counts. I mean, if she was a lesbian when we were dating, then were we really dating?
I suppose it doesn't matter.
Through his journal entries, Donn shares with us readers his thoughts and feelings about significant moments, his crush, his boyfriend, his friends, his parents, school tests, and so on. But what drives this story is Donn's search for acceptance - from his peers, his parents, the school and the community as a whole. He's pragmatic and confident; he sees a problem and comes up with a solution.
Donn's decision to set up 'The Acceptance Project' - an in-school club for tackling all forms of discrimination - is driven by this pragmatism, which is awesome, but it's also at the heart of many of the interpersonal challenges he faces. He's a flawed narrator, a young guy just starting to deal with the 'big stuff' of life and not always getting it right.
Option Four is a young-adult novel, written with young-adult readers as the intended audience, but it's a novel that can be enjoyed by readers of all ages, LGBT+ or otherwise. Adolescence is an experience we all share, and there are many moments in this story that will strike a familiar chord for most of us, but there are also the unique insights into what it was like to be seventeen and gay in 1997.
March 20, 2018
Starts slow and rolls into a lovely story
Donner is a believable character and a true mensch who slowly blossoms throughout the story. There is a wonderful love triangle, a couple of all too familiar external threats, and a little bit of social justice 101 thrown in. Highly recommended forgay, bisexual, and questioning teens.
Donner is a believable character and a true mensch who slowly blossoms throughout the story. There is a wonderful love triangle, a couple of all too familiar external threats, and a little bit of social justice 101 thrown in. Highly recommended forgay, bisexual, and questioning teens.
October 30, 2017
YA is not my thing, but this one was good. It was a little preachy, not in a religious way, more of an imparting knowledge/the right thing to do kind of way. I expect that with YA. It obviously wasn't that much or I wouldn't have liked the book.
April 9, 2018
A wonderful coming out
All gay youth should read this story. It dealt with the fears and rewards of coming out and things to think about
All gay youth should read this story. It dealt with the fears and rewards of coming out and things to think about
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March 3, 2023great first book
Good writing on a sensitive subject. I feel that the author used life experience to produce this excellent and insightful book!
Good writing on a sensitive subject. I feel that the author used life experience to produce this excellent and insightful book!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews