Smooth

by Matt Burns

Kevin’s acne is horribly, hideously bad. Can a risky treatment fix his face — and his entire life? A witty and sharply observed debut.

Fifteen-year-old Kevin has acne, and not just any acne. Stinging red welts, painful pustules, and massive whiteheads are ruining his life. In an act of desperation, he asks his dermatologist to prescribe him a drug with a dizzying list of possible side effects — including depression — and an obligatory monthly blood test. But when he meets Alex, a girl in the lab waiting room, blood test day quickly becomes his safe haven — something he sorely needs, since everyone, including his two best friends, is trying his last nerve. But as Kevin’s friendships slip further away and he discovers who Alex is outside of the lab, he realizes he's not sure about anything anymore. Are loneliness and self-doubt the side effects of his new acne meds? Or are they the side effects of being fifteen?

Told in a bitingly funny first-person narration, this debut novel crackles with wry and wistful insights about the absurdities of high school, longing and heartbreak, and a body out of control. A surefire hit for teen boys and reluctant readers, Smooth gets under the skin of a tenth-grader who is changing — inside and out.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Humor, Young Adult Contemporary

368 pages, Hardcover

First published June 16, 2020

About the author

Matt Burns grew up in Alpharetta, Georgia and wrote his book Smooth in New York. He currently works as an animation producer in New York City.

Reviews

[Alex Nonymous · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thanks to Candlewick Press for providing an E ARC of Smooth in exchange for an honest review.

Very few books have made me feel this uncomfortable.

Have you read/seen You? The majority of Smooth reads like that. Kevin is creepy. He decides he's in love with his love interest after making eye contact, steals her earbuds before exchanging a word, and spends the next month obsessing over her and collecting as much information as possible so that he can quote a movie the song she was listening to is from. He decides who Alex is from 2 seconds of eye contact and willingly ignores any detail to the contrary. It's an obsession.

Technically, the last act of Smooth realizes this. All at once he seems to realize Alex is actually a human being and apologizes to everyone and everything's okay. He was on medication after all, and it made him depressed. He knows better now. But does he? Technically, Kevin doesn't get the girl, but I argue he still does. He kind of apologizes but mainly for being jealous, not all the weird stalk-y stuff and Alex reveals that she wanted to be his friend in the first place because she guessed at his depression. Kevin remarks that he knows she'll always be there for him. He might not romantically end up with Alex, but he still gets the girl. I think its telling that the only part of that conversation that is told through narration instead of speech is when Kevin supposedly is listening to Alex talk about her own life and problems.

The fact is, despite what this book tries to achieve, I don't see many readers getting this far unless they relate with Kevin. He's an impossible to root for character unless you to get angry when people don't live up to your mental image of them while you creepily watch them from afar. And if you get to the whole "I realize I was wrong" part, it honestly read more like Kevin getting absolved. The message isn't "don't be a creep" its "as long as you're nice enough after being a creep, you can still hang out with your crush". Which... yikes.

[Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is weird, in the best way. It can be vulgar at times and certainly isn't for everyone. But for teenage boys, anyone who was once a teenage boy, or anyone with a sense of humor similar to that of a teenage boy, it is a really funny and quick read.

[Sarah Paolantonio · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wolfed down this novel in three days. As an anxious mind, I've never felt so understood and seen. (Ironically, the book was a distraction from a personally uneasy week.) The voice perfectly encapsulates what it's like to be stuck inside your own head, an all-too familiar feeling. Just reading it made me feel less alone because someone else is out there. Burns has a way with voice. The way he made time pass, with monthly trips for blood work, was seamless. He has a great sense of humor and I was chuckling from page one right through the end. Even though Kevin is a high school kid, I related to his worries and social anxieties as a thirty-two year old woman. It reminded me how confusing high school can be and, quite frankly, how unpleasant the whole experience is for everyone. (Shout out to that one weird, hippie English teacher. He inspired me to read and write too. I'll never forget you, Paul Steltz.) You never know what other people are dealing with. And the sooner we all learn that, the easier life can get.

While I was rooting for Kevin and Alex to get together in the end, I'm glad Burns didn't reach for the typical, easy romantic ending. Kevin's reckoning with his own problems was a much more satisfying ending: staying inside your own head only keeps you there. Alex said it best, "If you want pizza, you call the piazza place. If you're feeling really down, you call this guy and get an appointment. It's as simple as that." What Kevin learns is a hard lesson for any teen, anxious or not, to learn (and for any adult to learn. Hi, it's me!).

A fabulous debut novel. I think this would make a fantastic screenplay!

[Ben Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't recall a YA book that accurately delves into the psyche of the suburban, nerdy, anxious, afflicted mind as this one. Reading it nearly two decades after my own struggles with being a teenager with cystic acne surrounded by friends and family I no longer recognized was unsettling at times, hilarious at others.

Although I'm not the target demo of this book, I wish I had found it when I was that age, to not feel so alone. But aside from the deep levels of pathos in Kevin's characterization, this book moves quickly, is laugh-out-loud funny, and feels real—to a particular period in time, but also to the universal experience of teenage boyhood.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very funny and entertaining book that I think a lot of guys will relate to. This should be mandatory reading material for all teenage boys. Can’t wait to read more from this author.

[Ian Purcell · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was going somewhere and then it went nowhere.

[Brooke Shackelford · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best YA novel I’ve read in a while. The main characters voice felt authentic and real as he was struggling with acne, taking Accutane, navigating normal teen friendships and possibly showing signs of anxiety and depression. Lots of language and teen situations in this one, so definitely for HS students. I always have boys looking for realistic fiction that’s not sports or war related (which are harder to find than you would think), and this is a great choice.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smart, extraordinarily funny, and extremely well-written Smooth is a modern Judy Blume novel from a guy’s perspective. The journey through the high school sophomore’s thoughts over the year doesn’t feel much like a YA novel. The content relatable to any teenager, male or female, or any one who has ever been a teenager, and Its form makes it suitable and entertaining for both novice and experienced readers; it experiments with generic conventions and populates each page with throw-back references and allusions. Smooth also resists the YA genre’s tendency to indulge in an overly sentimental plot with unrealistic characters (even the minor characters feel real in the moments we meet them) and it challenges, in its own way, the expectations of masculinity. I laughed and smiled through the entire book and would recommend it to anyone unequivocally.

[Ziqin Ng · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved how raw and utterly relatable this was even though the first three-quarters were essentially Diary of An Incel. I liked the happy ending.

[Michelle Govatos · Rating 5 out of 5]

A more realistic take on what ACTUALLY happens in the average teenager’s life.

[Elizabeth Chang · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmm....

You know how sometimes you get a book narrated by a teenager, but the writing is so sophisticated, you're like, "NOPE, there's no way this is a teenager, but gosh, the writing is still so beautiful"?

Yeah, this is that. But opposite.

I know the story is written in the point of view of a fifteen-year-old boy, but so many times, I was taken aback by how...crude the language was, and how immature the boys are! Guess it's been a while since I've been around 15 year-old boys. Or maybe I was lucky and never encountered these particular genre of boys.

I will admit that some of his jokes/comments were kinda funny in a shocking way, but most of the time, they just made me cringe. They were inappropriate, yes...but CHILDISHLY inappropriate. Like, I'd expect this level of childishness from my brother in sixth grade.

And Kevin. He has SO many issuessssss. I honestly don't know where to start.

For the majority of the book, it never really occurred to me that his medication might actually be the cause of his delusions. Oversight on my part, I guess. It's crazy and more than a little frustrating to read about how quickly he moves on from one outlet to another.

And from the start, writing seemed to be an important thing to him...so it's kinda sad how quickly he abandoned it.

And something else? He gets fixated on something, puts all his hopes and dreams and life's purpose into ONE thing SO quickly, that I'm not even surprised at how quickly it backfires. Still annoying though.

The ending almost made up for some of it though. If Goodreads let me give .5 stars, I'd have given this book 2.5 stars. It was kinda sweet at the end when Kevin finally realises how RIDICULOUSLY weird he's been acting. And makes up for it in a sweet way. If only we started on that a little earlier in the book.

Anyways, I suppose I'm not really the target audience for this book though. I'd like to say that if I WERE the target audience, I'd definitely enjoy this more, and maybe even find some relief knowing that all my awkward body and mental issues aren't familiar to just me. I still feel like the writing could still be nice AND still give me relief though.

[S.C. Yung · Rating 3 out of 5]

This gets extremely bleak in the middle, to the point where I waffled between 2.5-3 stars—eventually, I decided to round up because it's a debut, and Kevin's voice is consistent and genuine.

Kevin begins to intensely spiral and disconnect from his friends and family and puts women on this weird pedestal where a single interaction causes a desperate cycle of idealization, to the point where you eventually start wondering whether he’s going to die by suicide and/or become a 2007-version of a 2020 incel.

I recognize the point of this section is to foster empathy with teen readers who are anxious / depressed, but it feels like a lingering gut punch in an almost irresponsible, 13 Reasons Why way. Kevin's subsequent "wake-up" call from depression is a traumatic car accident and reading his sister's Judy Blume books, and the wrap-up just feels too neat for the heaviness of the middle chunk.

[Hayley Kayla · Rating 1 out of 5]

The dude is creepy, in a Joe from you sorta 'his gonna break into your bedroom to sniff your dirty underwear' way, but unlike with you, the author doesn't seem aware to how the character is creepy. Like with you, that was the premise, with smooth it's supposed to be a charming friendship without boundries thing. Nothing anybody can say will convince me that he didn't lick the earwax off her headphones or rub it where the sun don't shine in pleasure. Nothing. This is what happens when you put edginess over good story telling and writing.

[Hayley · Rating 3 out of 5]

After Kevin is prescribed Accutance for his severe acne, his relationships with his friends and family deteriorate as his life spirals downwards. The author gets teenage solipsism on the nail, but I found the pacing a little off. See my full review here.

Thanks to Candlewick for the ARC.

[Jan Raspen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whoa. There is a lot going on inside Kevin's head in this book. It's told in first person, so we are privy to every self-destructive, second-guessing thought the boy has. It was EXHAUSTING. The ending was satisfying, but man, it took a lot of work to get there.

[Stephanie Tournas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fifteen year old Kevin is tormented by his severe acne. And to be fair, he is tormented by a lot of other things too – especially girls. This story is his experience with taking Accutane, a strong acne drug which is only prescribed for recalcitrant cases like his, and which comes with many side effect warnings. As he starts the monthly blood tests which are required to take the medicine, he meets a girl in the waiting room. She becomes the subject of a huge fantasy relationship, which the reader sees unfold in Kevin’s mind as the story evolves. In his mind he imbues her with tastes in movies and music which cause him to let his friendships lapse with his best buds. The first person narration is really hilarious at times. Burns really gets inside the head of a self conscious adolescent, and readers will alternately laugh out loud at Kevin’s self deprecating sarcasm and cringe viscerally at his awkwardness. I like the focus on a boy’s sensitivity about his skin. People with acne are usually the disliked supporting characters, but this book brings the affliction to front and center. The story is nearly completely inner monologue, so older teens who like long, self searching psychological character driven stories will identify with Kevin and his really difficult tenth grade year.

Kevin’s obsession with Alex goes on for a really long time (200+ pages) and it’s clear to me that he is suffering from a deep depression. I wish the author had made his parents more attuned to his plight. Also, he has a very abrupt turn-around in mood at the end, which is hard for me to believe, but perhaps teens will find it more gratifying.

[Reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

Join Kevin on his epic quest to become the world’s most pretentious douchebag. In his efforts to impress a girl, Kevin creates a new persona for himself—one that’s into super classy stuff like poetry and foreign films and listening to REAL music like Elliott Smith. After reading a couple books and watching a few Wes Anderson flicks, Kevin decides he’s cultured af and that everyone else are uncultured swine. To prove his superior knowledge, Kevin constructs a fictional narrative for his hopeful smash-partner and is hashtag shook when he discovers that she has an actual personality. The story arc is that Kevin eventually discovers he’s the real pos and tells everyone he’s sorry at a big old-fashion basement pizza party.

This book could have been cool, but spent too much time devoted to demonstrating MC’s complete lack of self-awareness and complete douchenozzlery.

Official rating: Cold Oatmeal

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Candlewick Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced reader copy of this book. It is such a valuable gift you offer educators!

I really enjoyed Matt Burns' story. He's got a gift for humor, and there were many times I really did snicker/snort/chuckle/laugh out loud. How DO you know if you're a teenager like Holden Caulfield or just a run-of-the-mill pompous jackass? Matt does a beautiful job of explaining the inner (over) workings of a teenager's mind. His descriptions, especially of young people's discomfort and bodily function, are so spot on - often gross, but spot on!

While the teen stuff is honest and authentic - lots about boys masturbating and dares around penises - I wouldn't go to bat to stock it in my classroom. If a student reads it, I'll be glad to know ho I might talk with them about it.

The end wraps up pretty neatly, but I think it works. After a long angst-filled journey, it was a satisfying pay off.

[Sampoorna · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was an emotional rollercoaster. Usually I enjoy these kind of books, but this one was not the one for me. It was very immature considering the age range of the characters in the book. The main character constantly had FOMO, but never did anything to avoid that feeling even when his friends invited him to join them. All the main character could think about was impressing girls and teachers, while his mother always praised him and he gave her shit for that.

The 2 stars I am giving this book are only because there were a few funny dialogues and the ending was satisfying.

2 stars.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why do editors allow YA authors to taint their books with ambiguous settings that seemingly modern day, but only have pop culture references and social media from the author's adolescence? This is such an annoying way to take me out of a story. I really liked a lot about this book, but while it can be funny and feels emotionally honest, it's also the year in the life of a depressed, kinda unlikable teen, and the conclusion comes say too neatly after many, many chapters of long rambling. A lot of promise here, but a lot that fell short, which is too bad.

[Gabby Hernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Smooth" turned out to be a grappling story about a high school boy who struggles with acne, fitting in, his own insecurities, and finding a suitable girlfriend. This story definitely makes sense that its for young adult readers. Anyone in high school or even junior high could enjoy this book as it touches on the changes and "norm" of growing up. The story contains many morals and self discoveries about Kevin (the main character) and how teenagers are supposed to and not supposed to act. It was a good read.

[tanvi · Rating 2 out of 5]

eeehhhhhh i felt like the book was an accurate look into a teenage boy but the way the narrator talks about women is kind of questionable. i can't tell if that was intentional to reflect how teenagers think or that the author just used his natural voice. i think it's the former. i'm okay with it though because at the end he kind of realizes that wasn't right. but otherwise the guy kind of annoyed me? like we're the exact same in that we romanticize loneliness and push people away but this man really thinks the height of scandal is him being on accutane??? lmao

[Melissa T · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure what originally drew me to this book. Maybe some desire to relive a bit of high school?

Kevin has severe acne, and is very self conscious about it. He's tried every medication there is (he thinks) and asks his dermatologist about Acutane. When he goes to the office for monthly blood tests, he meets Alex.

They form a friendship, whic he kind of overblows into some kind of fantasized relationship, complete with planning the things they'll do in the future.

I liked the look into a teenage guy's mind, and I did enjoy the dynamics between Kevin and Alex, in the beginning, and more at the end when he tries to right himself again. I also enjoyed that he tried to help his sister out with her issues, too.

The middle of the story is just repetitive, teenage boy stuff. Plus the gory horror obsession is just not my thing at all, so that put me off a tiny bit And I was kind of creeped out when he starts to get obsessive about Alex.

I could relate to some things, like going over and over conversations in your head, trying to say the right thing (I remember doing that, as a teenager, hell, sometimes I still do)

But on an overall level, this book just didn't work for me.

*I won a copy of this via a Librarything Giveaway*

[Nichole Batluck · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the darkest books I've ever read. Takes a very realistic look at the spiral of teen self doubt and depression. The events that start to create a positive turn are genuine, but it takes a long time to get there. The book is very well written, and this one is going to stay with me for a while.

[Ryann Beatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an unexpected like for me. I liked the synopsis but reading about a 15 year old boy on acutane doesn't sound interesting until you read it. It discusses, romantic interest, childhood relationships changing, shines a light on mental health. This book was overall very funny and I related to the main character Kevin quite a bit :)

[Ellie S · Rating 5 out of 5]

I honestly didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. But... I knew this would be a 5 star read about 25% of the way through and I was not wrong. I thought Kevin was a relatable and very well written character; it was easy to follow him through the story. I wish more YA books were as realistic as this one. I also found myself chuckling and straight up laughing out loud as I read.

[kasey s · Rating 5 out of 5]

i thoroughly enjoyed this book. the characters were interesting and it read like an actual teenage boy. the feelings were relatable and the challenges were too. the character growth is amazing and i definitely recommend it.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A humorous story about Kevin's horrendous acne, the treatment he tries, and the relationships he has with his friends and the girl (s) he's crushing on. Good boy perspective, but resolved a bit too quickly/neatly for me.

[Ina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very intriguing insight into a high school boy’s mind filled with fantastic humor, relationship anxiety, negative thoughts, and some wild fantasies. Highly enjoyable to read. I haven’t laughed out loud so much while reading a book before! Definitely reminds me of my high school days.

[Jon Finkel · Rating 2 out of 5]

A not very good book with a very good message. Unreliable narrator? Adolescent doofus? Decide for yourself whether it was worth wading through