YA LGBT

Review of What If It’s Us by Becky Abertalli and Adam Silvera

November 15, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

What If It’s Us is a collaboration by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera, two authors that I’ve enjoyed in the past, especially Adam Silvera’s They Both Die at the End and Becky Albertalli’s Simon vs. The Homo sapiens Agenda.

What If It’s Us follows two boys, Arthur and Ben. Arthur, who is from Georgia, is visiting NYC for the summer and is working as an intern in his mom’s law firm. Ben is recovering from a breakup with his boyfriend Hudson and attending summer school. The two meet one day at the post office, where Ben is mailing back his ex-boyfriend’s things. They chat, and the two immediately hit it off. Unfortunately, chaos erupts inside of the post office, and before Arthur can get Ben’s phone number, he has disappeared.

From there, we follow the two young men as they attempt to find each other, which of course, they do; otherwise, we wouldn’t have much of a novel, now would we? In fact, it almost seemed as though the Universe was conspiring in their favor to bring these two together — and the question of “destiny” comes up many times in conversation.

But it’s not a smooth ride for our two protagonists. The two of them go on a series of bad dates all fraught with drama, hurt feelings and a series of misunderstandings. There are all sorts of awkwardness and complications: strange relationships between their friends, the unusual relationships between each of the boys and their friends, there’s Ben’s ex-boyfriend Hudson who Ben may or may not be over, and both sets of parents.

Arthur and Ben do embark on quite a roller-coaster of a relationship with them both trying to “make it right” before Arthur has to leave at the end of the summer. What I found especially interesting was the friendship dynamics in the books. The authors did such a good job with them that I found them almost more interesting than the central romance. I especially enjoyed Dylan’s character, who was Ben’s best friend. In fact, I would love to see a book featuring him as the main protagonist.

The story is told in alternating points of view, so Arthur gets one chapter, Ben the next, then Arthur and so on. I found this more than a bit challenging at times as it was often difficult to tell the two boys apart. The problem is that I don’t think their characters were different enough and because of that, I often forgot who was speaking. So I had to flip back to the chapter heading to see whose chapter it was which annoyed me and yanked me out of the story on many occasions.

I know that a lot of people hate pop-culture references in their fiction novels so if you’re one of those people, you may want to stay clear of this one. There were numerous references to Hamilton, Dear Evan Hanson and lots of Harry Potter. Though pop-culture references don’t usually bother me, I think they may have overdone it a bit, especially with the Hamilton references. I found myself thinking a few times, “Okay, enough already with Hamilton.” In this way, the book became a tad repetitive in places.

But all in all, “What If It’s Us” is a super-sweet coming of age YA romance about two boys finding love and in so doing discovering themselves. So I ended up liking this story a lot — but not loving it as I had hoped. I don’t know; perhaps I was expecting a little more from these two authors. It was cute with likable characters but not really earth-shattering. I enjoyed the romance between these two boys but outside of the romance, there wasn’t a whole lot going on — there weren’t any additional plot lines.

So though it was an enjoyable story and I am glad I read it, I didn’t love it as much as I had hoped. Now to be fair, I’m not typically a fan of romancey contemporaries so I’m probably not the ideal target reader. But if you enjoy YA contemporary novels that are heavily focused on the romance, then you may very well enjoy this book more than I did.

Purchase So What If It’s Us at Amazon

Purchase So What If It’s Us at The Book Depository

Review of Running with Lions by Julian Winters

September 5, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

First off, the cover is gorgeous. In fact, it’s what initially attracted me to this book.

The Story

Running with Lions revolves around a soccer team called The Lions, and pretty much the entire book takes place while the players are at summer sports camp. The main character is Sebastian Hughes, the team’s star goalie who has aspirations of becoming captain. Sebastian is bisexual, and several of his other teammates are also gay or bi. They are all fortunate in having a coach who provides a welcoming and safe atmosphere where the players do not have to hide their sexuality.

So Sebastian is all set to have an epic summer at sports camp when he is blindsided by his childhood friend, Emir Shah, who shows up to camp, planning on joining the team. The problem is that something happened between the two of them years ago and Emir now hates Sebastian, and he doesn’t go out of his way to hide his dislike.

Emir is also somewhat of a loner — kind of a misanthrope — as he doesn’t get along with anyone at school, including the other team members. So he keeps everyone at a distance and makes no effort to close the gap between him and the other guys on the team, even at camp.

Sebastian decides to try to reconnect with Emir for the sake of the Lions, and he sets out to regain Emir’s trust. But in spite of Emir’s increasingly lousy attitude, Sebastian finds himself not only attracted to Emir but also developing feelings romantic feelings for him.

So as you can probably guess, a romance develops between the two of them, but it’s not easy going and there are several obstacles they’re going to have to overcome.

What I Liked

I really liked the relationship between the team members — there was a strong bond between all of them which kind of made me think of how we often choose our own families, and those bonds of friendship can sometimes be stronger than families bound by blood.

That’s the feeling I got from the team — that they were one big inclusive family. This was especially true with these guys, I think, in that they were able to express their sexuality without any judgments. All in all, I thought that a novel about an LGBTQ inclusive soccer team was brilliant, though I was thankful that the book didn’t go into too much detail about the logistics of the sport. Some books go a little too far with game play-by-plays which can be annoying for me as I’m not much of a sports person.

Sebastian’s character growth was also something that resonated with me. Initially, he lacked self-confidence and had rather a negative self-image no doubt due to the bullying he experienced at school.

There was his struggle with feeling unworthy to be team captain. He was also not happy with his body, feeling that nobody could be attracted to him. I found it refreshing that this story handled body image issues from the point of view of a boy as this isn’t something we often see in YA fiction.

I enjoyed seeing Sebastian progress and grow throughout the story to a more self-assured and confident character. His relationship with Elmir helped to boost his self-confidence, especially in regards to body acceptance.

I thought the romance between Sebastian and Elmir was sweet and well-done. I am kind of a sucker for the frenemies to lovers trope so this especially worked for me. Well, this was more of a best friends to enemies to reluctant teammates to lovers, which still worked nicely IMHO.

What I Didn’t Like

There was one female character in the book, Gray and she was treated horribly by Mason, the boy she had a crush on. He was rude and mean to her throughout the book, and there were never any consequences to the way he treated her.

Yes, his behavior was explained as “he’s mean to her because he really likes her” but this old clichéd trope doesn’t work for me; in fact, I hate this trope. Gray was also kind of a cardboard cutout of a character, and all we see is her almost desperate one-sided crush on a boy who isn’t very nice to her. This whole thing kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

Another thing I didn’t like was that the story was told in the third-person present tense: “Mason replies, “No.” Elmir takes another dip at the ball. He looks at him. Bastian beams. etc., etc.” I never like this tense in a book, and I’ve DNF’d books because of it. I personally find it jarring, and it tends to pull me out of the story, and sometimes I find it difficult to get past it.

I know many authors write in this tense and it doesn’t bother everyone; it’s just a personal preference of mine, and I tend to shy away from books that use this tense. So this might be why the writing felt stilted and disjointed to me from time to time.

There also wasn’t a whole lot that went on. There was some mild angst but no serious dramatic conflicts. I have to admit that I was waiting for some explosive event to take place but there wasn’t much to speak of. There were no surprises, no plot twists and it ended up being somewhat predictable. I hate to say it, but I did get a tad bored from time to time as the story progressed.

Verdict

This was an adorable character-driven story with a likable cast of diverse characters. Give that this was more driven by the characters than the story, there’s not a whole lot of action going on so if you like your novels to be nail-biting roller-coaster rides, you won’t find that here. Luckily, the characters were multi-layered enough to hold my interest, and I did find myself invested in what happened to them.

Running with Lions was a light, fluffy summer story about friendship and love that was a fun read. Though it was somewhat of a light-hearted romance, it also dealt with several other important issues such as bullying (both Sebastian and Elmir), homophobia and racism.

If you enjoy sweet summery romances or stories about gays sports teams or summer camp, then you’ll want to check out this book. Though it was a little light on plot, I ended up enjoying it, and I’m glad I read it. It’s a worthy effort for a debut novel, and I’m looking forward to seeing what Mr. Winters comes up with next.

You can check out Running with Lions HERE

Review of We Are The Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson

June 26, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

Before you ask: no, the sluggers have never probed my anus. I’m fairly certain they reserve that special treat for people who talk on their phones during movies, or text while driving. ~ Henry Denton

THE STORY

We Are The Ants follows Henry Denton, a teen who for years now has been periodically abducted by aliens, whom Henry refers to as sluggers, because they resemble slugs to him. There’s been no probing though — or at least that’s when Henry tells us (see quote above).

So after these abductions have been going on for quite some time, the aliens finally communicate to Henry that the world is going to be destroyed in 144 days. But not all hope is lost. All Henry has to do is push a big red button to stop it and Wham! Earth saved.

The kicker is that Henry isn’t sure he wants to.

You see, Henry’s not all that pleased with his life at the moment. A year ago, Henry’s boyfriend and first love Jesse committed suicide, for which Henry seems to be blaming himself. He is continuously tortured and bullied at school, with one of the bullies — a popular jock named Marcus — using Henry for sex (though he tries to assure Henry that he genuinely does care for him — but it’s up to the reader to decide whether to believe him or not).

Then there are the constant taunts at school with the students referring to him as Space Boy because Charlie, his jerk of a brother, told everyone at school about the abductions. But there’s more: Henry’s grandmother has Alzheimer’s, and Henry recognizes her less and less as each day passes — and his mother is an alcoholic.

So the more Henry thinks about it, the more the idea of wiping the slate clean sounds like a pretty good choice to him because right now, he’s not feeling like the world deserves to be saved. Though he doesn’t explicitly say it, I felt that perhaps Henry found the idea of finally escaping from his daily suffering alluring. But he hasn’t made his decision yet. He’s desperately trying to find a good reason for saving the earth and thus far, has been unsuccessful.

And then one day, a new boy named Diego Vega arrives at school. Henry and the boy connect, and an unusual relationship develops between the two of them.

Up to this point, Henry was almost certain he wasn’t going to press the button. But now, there’s someone he can confide in, someone to support him. So Henry begins to weigh his pain with his happiness as the days count down to when he has to make the ultimate decision.

So does Henry push the button?

WHAT I LIKED

I really liked Henry’s character — he was sarcastic, witty, and funny, and you couldn’t help but fall in love with him. He had a way of adding a light and humorous twist to otherwise serious situations such as his alien abductions. I also liked how relatable and believable Henry’s character was. I think many readers can relate to the bullying that Henry went through in high school as well as some of the difficulties Henry had to deal with in his troubled home life.

No doubt most of us have experienced a grim view of the world from time to time when we’re going through tough times, like our protagonist. I felt that the author did an excellent job of portraying Henry’s struggles and I liked how brutally honest Henry is with himself through the process. Perhaps many of us have even wondered at times whether the world is worth saving. While reading this story, I wanted so badly for Henry to find some beauty in the world, to discover the peace he longed for — and the reader can’t help but empathize with him.

I’ve read a few Shaun David Hutchinson books, and as is typical, things get a lot worse for the main character before they get better — which means that things do get better for Henry once Diego enters the picture. He’s a bright light in Henry’s dark world, and I couldn’t help but love this charming, lovable character. But Diego doesn’t end up saving Henry; it’s up to Henry to save himself. So though this story is heartbreaking in places, it heartwarming in others, and ends up being a hopeful story at the end of it all.

What I also liked about this book was that though Henry was gay, he was not struggling with his homosexuality. In fact, he was quite comfortable with who he is, which I found refreshing.

Now though it might sound as though this is a grim, somewhat dark book, it’s not. It’s actually quite funny in places, so in spite of the serious subject matter, it isn’t all doom and gloom. Along with the darkness, there is light. There is levity, and there is lightheartedness, which makes the story all the more unique and likable in my opinion. This is the kind of story that will make you laugh, make you cry, make you happy and make you angry, and only a truly talented author can pull this off with the adeptness that Mr. Hutchinson does.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE

There’s not anything that I didn’t like about this story. The only thing I was a teeny-tiny bit disappointed with was the sci-fi aspect of it — or should I say the lack thereof. Going in, I thought there would be a more significant focus on the alien abductions, but they actually played only a minute role in the plot line. This wasn’t really a science fiction novel at all and once I realized that, I was fine with it. Just a warning to those who are going in expecting a science fiction story — it’s not.

FINAL VERDICT

We Are The Ants ended up being quite an emotional rollercoaster of a book, so it was a tough one to read in places, as it dealt with some serious and complex issues such as violence, bullying, self-harm, abuse, rape, dementia and more. It’s also quite evident that Henry is broken — he’s depressed, grieving for his boyfriend and keeping every traumatizing experience he’s going through bottled up inside. So in this way, a lot of heartbreaking things happen to our hero, and it becomes clear that Henry’s not just some angsty teen, but he’s going through some serious shit. As a reader, I could feel Henry’s desperation pour out of the pages and because of this, the story was quite cringe-worthy at times as it veered off into some painful places.

But in spite of the serious themes of this novel, it ends with hope, reminding us that things won’t always stay the way they are now and that we shouldn’t allow the bad things to overshadow the good. It also illustrated nicely how it’s up to us to pull ourselves up out of the darkness by making the conscious decision to let the past go and to move on.

This is a beautiful, unique and memorable book and is so worth the read, IMHO. I ended up loving it. It’s beautifully written, and it asks some super tough questions, giving the reader plenty to think about well after the last page of the story. Additionally, all the characters in this book are phenomenal: complex, multilayered with each one being relevant to the story. I can state pretty truthfully that I will without a doubt be rereading this book in the near future.

Once again, Shaun David Hutchinson hit a home run for me. This was a brilliantly written, refreshing and unputdownable novel and I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

You can check out We Are The Ants here at Amazon or at The Book Depository.

Review of The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth

May 16, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

Miseducation of cameron post book cover The Miseducation of Cameron Post was on quite a few banned books list so it immediately attracted my attention (I love me some banned books!).

This story takes place in the early 1990’s follows a young lesbian teen named Cameron Post whose parents are suddenly killed in a car crash. As it turns out, Cameron, who was 12 years old at the time, had been kissing a girl — her friend Irene— hours before her parent’s death. So she ending up linking these two events in her mind creating some major guilt and in her preadolescent mind, wonders whether the death of her parents just might be God’s way of punishing her for her forbidden kiss.

And all this takes place right off the bat in the story.

So Cam is then sent off to live with her grandmother and her ultra-conservative and ultra-religious Aunt Ruth in Miles City, Montana. As Cameron steps into her teenage years, she comes to accept that she is a lesbian and makes another gay friend (ahem…a friend with benefits), Lindsey who teaches her the “gay” ropes and who lovingly refers to Cam as a baby dyke, which always gave me a chuckle

So I thought this was going to be sort of a coming-of-age tale of a young lesbian girl figuring out who she is.

But then the story took quite a surprising and disturbing turn — Cameron is outed to her Auth Ruth, and as a result, things don’t end up too well for our heroine, as Aunt Ruth takes drastic action, intent on “fixing” her niece. She sends to her God’s Promise church camp, one of those “pray away the gay” compounds.

And our story gets quite interesting from there.

WHAT I LIKED

I loved the character of Cameron as she was quite the firecracker. One author’s blurb on the back of the book said “If Holden Caulfield had been a gay girl from Montana, this is the story he might have told” — and I definitely have to agree, given that I just read Catcher in the Rye and Holden is still fresh in my mind.

Like Holden, Cameron was so realistically portrayed and she felt so real to me that she almost jumped off the page as I read about her adventures…and misadventures.

So though she did have somewhat of a strong ego and independent streak, it was these qualities which allowed her to reject the judgment of those authority figures in her life and maintain her self-esteem through it all.

This was especially true when she realizes that often, the people who are supposedly in charge really don’t have a clue about what they’re doing and are just winging it as they go along. That’s pretty much adulthood in a nutshell.

Now while Cameron certainly can be snarky at times, she’s also intelligent, strong, surprisingly adaptable and brave, and she’s able to maneuver through any shit storm that comes her way.

There really is so much to like about this story. I loved the vivid, detailed descriptions and the author brought the location to life. The storyline was also gripping with wonderfully snappy dialog and unique characters that were not clichés or cardboard cutouts, with all of this leading to a marvelously done story.

And speaking of the characters, I also enjoyed the varied cast of secondary characters, most of which were nicely developed and each relevant in their own way to the plot.

Now to the author’s credit, she doesn’t portray the Christians in this story has mean-spirited hateful bigots. In fact, there weren’t any real villains in the story per se. The counselors like Rick and Lydia, and even Cameron’s Aunt Ruth, all felt that they were doing the right thing and believed that what they were doing was in Cameron’s ultimate best interest (though I have to say that I despised Aunt Ruth).

Still, in general, I have a difficult time reading stories about these ”gay conversion therapy” camps whose goal it was to cure teen girls and boys of homosexuality. Thankfully, this type of therapy seen these days as a form of child abuse and these types of institutions are on the decline, at least to my understanding.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE

I felt that the book was a little on the long side. I remember thinking a couple of times, “this is really dragging” so in this way, it could have used a little snipping here and there.

I also was not a fan of the ending. You know, if you’re one of those folks who likes things nicely tied up at the end, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. In fact, I found the ending rather abrupt. It’s not that it ended on a cliffhanger or anything – there just didn’t seem to be a whole lot of resolution at the story’s finale.

For instance, I would have loved to find out how Cam got on about six months down the road. I also would have loved to see how Cam’s future relationship with Ruth, her Grandma, or even Coley developed. I think a nice little Epilogue of 20 pages or so would have been lovely, maybe with a little glimpse into Cam’s future. I admit that I’m somewhat of a closure junkie so a little more resolution would have been nice.

I should also mention that though this is classified as a Young Adult novel, there is drinking, drug use, shoplifting, and blatant sexual situations, elements which some people might not like to see in their YA books.

FINAL VERDICT

This book was quite an emotional roller coaster ride and there are some dark moments in the story that are challenging to get through.

Your heart can’t help but break for Cam as she struggled to make the best out of a bad situation — and then there’s Mark’s story, which is also quite disturbing and heart-wrenching.

That being said, this isn’t a fluffy YA book at all; rather, it deals with some serious topics such as betrayal, love, loss, self-acceptance, religion and sexual confusion. I don’t mean to imply that this is a grim story because it’s not — it definitely has its fun, light and humorous elements as well.

In summary, I absolutely loved this story, and while it was heartbreaking in places, it was also a beautiful coming-of-age story with a riveting plot, a strong narrative and compelling, well-fleshed out characters, especially Cameron, whom I bonded with right from the get-go. I found the courage and adaptability Cam shows throughout the novel to be praiseworthy and impressive.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post was an amazing book, and I’m so glad that it crossed my path, though it did leave me wanting more at the end of it all. I ended up giving this novel 4 stars.

You can check out the book here at Amazon or at The Book Depository.

Review of Just Between Us by J.H. Trumble

March 3, 2014 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

Awhile back, I wrote a review of J.H. Trumble’s book “Don’t Let Me Go” during which I expressed how much I loved that book. I was delighted to see that the Goodread’s Young Adult LGBT fiction group featured another of her books, Just Between Us” for February’s read – not that I needed an excuse to read another of this wonderful author’s books.

Luke is Back!

I was pleased to see a familiar face – seventeen year old Luke Chesser, who served as a secondary character in Don’t Let Me Go. This time, he gets his own book…well, sort of….he shares it with Curtis Cameron (more on him in a bit). While it certainly can be helpful to have read Don’t Let Me Go, it is not necessary – this book stands entirely on its own.

That being said, in “Just Between Us” we see Luke, still freshly heartbroken from the Adam/Nate debacle in the first book, now living in Texas with his mother (I was relived to see his abusive father out of the picture – at least for the time being). He is still very much involved with the marching band at his new high school and during practice, notices the handsome and charming nineteen year-old Curtis Cameron, the new band field tech who had graduated from the same high school. Luke plays hard to get at first but it doesn’t take long before Curtis’s charming way digs right into Luke’s heart and he find himself falling hard for Curtis – and Curtis for him. The two become inseparable….for awhile.

Curtis

Curtis attempts to convince himself that Luke is too young, that he doesn’t want to get involved with a high school student. But he can’t help himself…Luke is just too darned sweet and shy. But before their relationship has a chance to get off the ground, Curtis receives a shocking phone-call while at a family gathering from his ex-lover who accuses Curtis of infecting him with HIV.

Curtis blows it off, not taking the call seriously although it is still in the back of his mind. He finds himself reluctant to take his and Luke’s relationship to the next level just in case. Luke, realizing that Curtis is avoiding physical intimacy, begins pressuring Curtis even more. Curtis finally breaks down and gets tested so he can, with a clear conscience, begin a relationship with Luke.

The World Comes Crashing Down

Curtis discovers he’s HIV Positive. Ashamed and horrified, he refuses to begin treatment, living in what can best be classified as a state of denial. His life spirals downward and he inadvertently cuts himself off from Luke and his supportive family because of his own shame and self-loathing. But moreover, he decides that he cannot – and will not – ever consider having a relationship with Luke. He simply cannot risk infecting this sweet young man with this terrible disease. So before it even begins, their budding relationship is over as Curtis erects more and more impenetrable walls between him and Luke.

This is where the reading gets tough. As a reader, I found it excruciating at times to take this journey with Curtis, watching him self-destruct before our eyes. Being a product of the 80’s, I lost many dear friends to AIDS so I found this book exceptionally difficult to get through in places, as it brought up memories of people whose lives were cut way too short. Luckily, times are different these days and if the patient begins treatment in time, most can expect to live a long life. I applaud the author for presenting timely, well-researched information on HIV and attempting to clear up the many misconceptions surrounding this disease.

Everyone Finds Out

Luke learns the truth about why Curtis had practically cut him out of his life and lashes out in anger and hurt at Curtis. It is about this time that Curtis makes it very clear that they will never have a relationship together. Against his better judgment, Luke promises not to tell Curtis’s family about the illness. We continue to witness Curtis’s slow decline, which is utterly heartbreaking in and of itself, but equally upsetting to watch is his complete rejection of Luke, who is willing to stand by his side no matter what, throughout the good and the bad.

Finally, due to circumstances out of the control of Curtis’, the cat is out of the bag – his family learns the truth.

The Verdict

This was an incredibly touching portrayal of a young man who finds out he is HIV positive. The characters are extremely well-developed and I felt that the reader could really relate to everything Curtis was going thorough – including his shame, fear, disgust, self-pity and self-hatred. While one may not agree with Curtis’s methods, one can certainly understand his fear of infecting the young man that he had grown to love with a potentially life-threatening disease. The character of Luke, who was portrayed as clingy and somewhat needed in Don’t Let Me Go ended up being the adult in the relationship and was called upon to make some tough decisions.

This story made me laugh in places, cry in places and often, wished I could wring Curtis’s neck until he came to his senses. The characters in this novel, including the secondary ones, truly come to life on the pages in all their tenacity, shame, love, hate, fear and human follies. This compelling and powerful character-driven story tackled a sensitive issue with expertise and compassion .

My only niggle with the book – and it’s a personal preference niggle – was that it is written using multiple first point of view; that is to say, one chapter is told from Curtis’s first person perspective while the next is told from Luke’s. I found this a little bit distracting and a couple of times, had to peek back at the beginning of the chapter to refresh my memory on whose mind we were seeing the world through.

Just Between Us is not a light and fluffy feel-good type of read but rather is a heartfelt and at times, raw & gritty peak into the life of a college student recently diagnosed with HIV and the young man who chooses to love him regardless. Recommended!!

Review of The Order of the Poison Oak by Brent Hartinger

February 24, 2014 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

The Russel Middlebrook Series Continues

Last week, I posted about The Geography Club book and movie by Brent Hartinger, and about how much I loved it. Imagine my delight when I discovered that there are now a series of books featuring Russel. So I snatched up the second one in the series: The Order of the Poison Oak and read it in one sitting. Though this book is geared towards Young Adults, I feel that this is a book that anyone can enjoy, regardless of age. As with The Geography Club, I found it an excellent read.

School’s Tough

(Geography Club spoilers below)
At the end of the last book, Russel, who just joined the Gay/Straight Alliance group at school, is outed to the entire school. In the beginning of The Order of the Poison Oak, things are not easy for our hero at Robert L. Goodkind High. Told through the perspective of Russel, we learn that he is the brunt of anti-gay slurs, gets his locker defaced on a regular basis and receives anonymous bullying e-mails. In regards to the old “Sticks and Stones adage, he writes:

”..did it ever occur to whoever wrote that stupid adage that hurtful words might be a pretty good indication that stick and stones are on the way?”

When his friend Gunnar asks Russel if he’d be interested in being a counselor at summer camp with him and their friend Min, Russel jumps at the chance. The idea of being somewhere where nobody knows about him sounds pretty good to him. So off they go….

Off to Summer Camp

Russel, Min and Gunnar arrive at Camp Serenity where they’ll be spending the rest of the summer. During an orientation meeting, Russel notices fellow counselor and strikingly handsome Web, who, as Russel describes him, “was much prettier than any postcard.” When the camp director pairs up counselors who will be working together, Russel plans on working it so he’ll be paired up with hunky Web but to his surprise and dismay, his friend Min cuts him off and pairs herself with Web. Later on, an argument ensues as to whether Web is gay or straight? Russel takes this as a challenge. So who gets him? Ah, but you’ll have to read the book to find out.

Monsters and Hellions and Brats, Oh My

The counselor gig turns out to be much more challenging that Russel had originally thought. The first group of kids who will spend two weeks at camp are disfigured burn survivors and the counselors are given two days of Burn Survivor Sensitivity Training to prepare them. But nothing could prepare Russel for the cabin full of 10-year-old monsters for whom he is to be responsible for the next couple of weeks. They refuse to listen to him and defy him at every opportunity. To make matters worse, it appears it is only Russel who has unruly kids – everyone else’s seem to be fairly well-behaved. Russel finally gains control and the respect of his kids, only to lose it later on through a careless inaction on his part. But he does end up redeeming himself later on through a delightful story he tells the kids and the “secret order” that develops from that story. This was an especially touching and heartfelt section of the book which made me like Russel all the more.

Love on the Rocks…

Russel develops a relationship with someone at camp, only to realize later that it is someone else that he had fallen in love with – he just doesn’t see it at first. Min’s relationship falls apart as well because of Russel’s actions and for a good portion of the book, the two are not on speaking terms. And Gunnar? Well, he decides that he is not going to date anyone at all and declares that he has completely given up on girls. A couple of embarrassing yet comical mishaps (ie. Gunnar tripping on a fish in front of the girl who like him) entrenches his decision even further. Funny that…it seems that love tends to find us especially when we try with all our might to push it away. At one point, things look pretty bleak for Russel, Min and Gunnar. But eventually, it all comes together (well, for most of them).

Learning and Growing

This is one of those books where the reader feels as though he or she is on an emotional roller-coaster – at times I was laughing, at times I teared up; at other times I cringed, while a few times I was angry – all of which indicates a story well told. While Russel certainly does his fair share of screwing up, he also learns and grows throughout the story and is a much different person at the end than he was on Page 1. Through his mistakes, he learns the importance of doing the “right thing” and ends up discovering that we are all special and unique, no matter what our outward appearance or how hard we think we have conformed. I found the characters to be well-developed and for me, they really came to life throughout this book. For me personally, this story brought back fond memories of the many summers that I spent as a 4-H camp counselor. The Order of the Poison Oak contains all of the things that makes a story great: adventure, struggle, friendship, redemption and yes, even romance – and is an exquisite addition to the YA/LGBT genre. I look forward to reading the next book in the series. Recommended!!