gay

Top 10 LGBT YA Novels I Recommend

~ natehopp ~ 3 Comments

Before you read, I’d like to dedicate this post to all the families and victims hurt in this morning’s tragedy. For those who for some reason haven’t heard, a lone shooter mercilessly massacred fifty people and injured just as many at a gay nightclub (called Pulse) in Orlando, Florida. Police are still investigating into further detail, but it is a known fact that this wasn’t just a random shooting. This was a hate-fueled attack meant to kill and harm innocent people.

If anyone is reading this, don’t pray for repentance or hate, but pray for the families and friends that have been affected by what many are calling the worst mass shooting in United States history. Do not call for gun control. Reports are coming in that the gunman was posing as a security guard and guns were not allowed in the club. If there is anything we should call for, it’s for the acceptance of LGBTQA+ people everywhere, and to fight homophobic attacks like this with love and understanding.

To everyone affected by the shooting, everyone is hearing your cries. And to everyone else, I have a quote for you from a Holocaust survivor named Henry Golde, “Hate is nothing, and love is everything.”

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          Gay literature is an iconic part of the LGBTQA+ community, especially towards teenagers and young adults, so in celebration of LGBT Pride Month, I’ve decided to make a Top 10 list for the best gay young adult novels I wholly recommend. Now, there are a few rules to this for anyone who’s reading. The first rule is that these entries have to have an LGBT person as the protagonist and not just as a side character. Second, it cannot be explicit and must be readable for anyone from fourteen to even nineteen years of age. And third, having no more than two of an authors’ works is acceptable by my standards because granted, I haven’t read every gay book for young adults; heck I’m even including ones I’ve reviewed on here already. And keep in mind that this is a recommendation list and not a list of the greatest LGBT young adult novels.

With that said, here’s the Top 10 List of LGBT YA Novels I Recommend.

Continue reading →

Review: “Breaking Sky” by Cori McCarthy

~ natehopp ~ Leave a comment

If you ever grew up in the 90’s and early 2000’s like I have, you might also look at fighter-jet/plane action movies like “Top Gun”, “Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow” or even a bad Michael Bay film like “Pearl Harbor” the same way I do. They are fun and seem like okay films, but there comes certain times where you want to see yourself in a jet or fighter plane like an action hero. With “Top Gun” I remember the video game more than the movie, since it focused more on interactions with characters rather than dogfights.

In Cori McCarthy’s “Breaking Sky”, it feels more like a futuristic “Top Gun” if the setting and characters were more interesting. Is it a good young adult book though, as well as a good thrill for literary thrill-seekers?

In the far future, it is the Second Cold War (technically aren’t we in one right now?) and  Continue reading →

Review: ‘In a Dark, Dark Wood’ by Ruth Ware

~ natehopp ~ Leave a comment

Whenever I read books about a group of strangers meeting in an isolated place and being thrust into a horror story, I often can’t help but roll my eyes. If you remember my review of ‘The Rules’ in October, you may recall it kind of left a foul taste in my mouth. It was by no means terrible, but it left me wanting more variety and depth. I wanted an original story with new characters, a sense of chilling atmosphere, and be genuinely scared and care for the characters.

Well…Ruth Ware’s chilling novel ‘In a Dark, Dark Wood’ is that book. Continue reading →

Review: ‘Forest Gods’ by Ryan Campbell

~ natehopp ~ 1 Comment

At last! At long, long last! After waiting for a couple years, I’ve read the latest instalment of Ryan Campbell’s ‘Firebearers trilogy’, confusingly called ‘Forest Gods’. I’m telling you that ever since I finished reading ‘God of Clay’ some months ago, I have been itching to know what happened in the cliffhanger I was left on, and what will happen to our main character. Is it better than the first book, and can Ryan Campbell continue making a romantic relationship between a leopard deity and a young human man less uncomfortable than it would sound at first? Read on to find out.

In the wake of the last book, the god of the forest Kwaee has turned his entire domain against the human villagers outside his jungle, killing anyone whom he believes to be allied with the demonic fire god Ogya. And after running for the savanna in the wake of all this, Kwaee’s son Doto and his human lover Clay must embark into the neighboring savannas in search of a god whom they believe will help them find out the truth. Both will have to sacrifice their morals, risk their lives, and maybe even the happiness they may or may not be able to have.

Meanwhile, back in Clay’s home, Laughing Dog has returned in ways too different to explain. His and Clay’s father, King First Claw, has died under mysterious circumstances, and their grieving but slow-minded brother Great Ram has taken the throne in these dark times. Little does anyone know however, that Ogya has taken possession of Laughing Dog, and is using the agnostic believer’s naïveté to cause tension among the other villagers through acts of framing, hoping to rile them into attacking the forest and finally reignite the ancient war with Kwaee.

The only two people who see through the young prince’s actions are the tribe’s elderly healer named Cloud, and the prince’s promised fiancé named Ant With a Leaf. Determined to save their people from unknowingly killing themselves, Any and Cloud must throw aside their status as women and challenge the prince and puppet king before it’s too late. Will they both succeed and save humanity, or will Ogya’s fire consume the village and everything in its path?

It’s very clear in the first several that real shit will go down as the book progresses, and Ryan Campbell brilliantly allows the scenery and emotions to drip together with the narrative. There’s more drama, much darker moments between the line, and I had to stop myself from skipping ahead several times to keep reading each page. As you guess, I absolutely loved it.

The best thing about this book is both the theme and how it has heavily impacted the characters, and it is change. From the last book to this one’s cliffhanger, ‘Forest Gods’ does the right balance of commenting on change while we read about our characters’ journeys. Everyone in the novel talks about how they miss the old days, and feel like an impending doom is coming to their way of life. It is an understandable feeling, as many people in today’s world have the same feeling whether they’re religious or not. However, the novel isn’t preaching to abandon beliefs, but to adapt to the change in order to survive.

Doto and Clay go through a similar situation on their new journey, except it starts to turn into a romantic relationship between a god and a mortal. You might remember from my review of the last book that they both had a sex scene, and I must inform you there are a few in ‘Forest Gods’ as well. However, the book doesn’t go into intimate detail, and focuses more on the story and relationship between the two. Granted, the idea of a human and anthropomorphic leopard being in a sexual relationship sounds very disturbing still, but then again if authors can get away with werewolf romances, why not this? Besides, werewolf romances these days are crap compared to this.

Clay is still the optimistic human from the first book, but learns how the gods have abused their power. He’s emotional, but quick on his feet while keeping good morals. He’s noble, but will challenge kindness when it is needed. And despite his devotion to Doto (both spiritually and romantically), Clay has limits to how far the leopard would go to hurt others in their way.

In ‘God of Clay’, Doto originally treated his human companion as though he’s nothing more than a subordinate worshipper. In ‘Forest Gods’, he still cares for Clay, but slowly learns to consider him an equal. He’s still impatient and serious, but will protect Clay from anything. He’s determined, but learns humility from Clay. He also learns how to have emotions, and doesn’t know how to feel about them, especially in dramatic scenes. The one that tugs at my heartstrings is when Doto finds out someone about his legacy he never know, and how it ties him into the war between Kwaee and Ogya. I won’t give anything away, but you feel the weight that Doto feels once it’s discovered.

Aside from the two couple, but I was strangely surprised to have Cloud and Ant, two minor characters from the first book, become the secondary characters in the novel. I barely even remembered them in ‘God of Clay’, but reading the newest book and getting to know them better has made me wonder why Ryan Campbell didn’t give them more focus? I absolutely love them, as they remind me of some people I knew growing up in my family. Cloud is an elderly woman that’s strong and has a clever wit despite her old age, is independent but knows when to ask for help, and she perfectly mirrors Ant’s will to do what is right for the village. In fact, I remember ‘Bookworm Reviews’ on Youtube mentioning that his only problem with the first book as that Ant didn’t have a personality. This highly makes up for it, and she’s thoroughly entertaining (and David Popovich, if you’re reading this, I highly recommend this for a future review).

That reminds me. The only complain I have regarding characters is this one that popped out of nowhere and wasn’t mentioned again in detail. It was Adanko, the God of Hares and Lies who seemed too amusing to be a background character. At first it seems like he’ll be the comic relief of the story, but he comes and goes without a second though.

Then we have Laughing Dog, who has turned from an agnostic child who whines and complains in the last book into an unpredictable beast with his older brother’s kingly position wrapped around his finger. I love and fear how he manipulates the King so easily just by being related to him, showcasing how Laughing Dog isn’t just a tough guy with a knife. He’s a conniver and a plotter, trying to keep a façade of honor and charisma to his people while willingly working for Ogya. The way he puts blame on Kwaee, frames Cloud, twists others words against them, it’s like you’ve entered the infamous McCarthy Trials!

I find aspects like this the most terrifying in a villain, because it makes us wonder when they can be threatening, whether they’re about to strike you down or not. Both are unpredictable, overconfident in their goals, and will not hesitate to kill anyone, even family and loved ones, in their way of success.

Once again, Ryan Campbell astounds me in a fantastic novel of family, beliefs, and love. Enriched with African culture, vast in journeys across landscapes, and seeded with an addictive plot, I highly recommend reading this after taking a gander at the first book.

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Review: ‘God of Clay’ by Ryan Campbell

~ natehopp ~ 1 Comment

‘God of Clay’ is the first book in Ryan Campbell’s ‘Firebearers trilogy’, and a personal favorite of mine. This is an intriguing YA(ish?) novel for those like me that love diversity, especially if it’s in African tribalism. I mentioned this book before in my review of ‘The Golem and the Jinni’, and how amazing it was in feeling like a legend or a fairytale, except it has modern story telling with fleshed out characters, a simple storyline, and a mythos that feels too genuine to be fiction. With that said, there are a few things in ‘God of Clay’ that may turn a few heads. It’s not a problem or anything, but it is worth talking about later on.

In a vast African land of animal deities and spirits, a tribe of humans have settled near the edge of a massive jungle next to their savanna home. After losing their lands to a wrathful god of fire named Ogya, they hope to start anew while praying for miracles. And in this nomadic tribe are Clay and Laughing Dog, two brothers (and sons of the tribe’s King) more polar opposites than mine. Clay devotes himself greatly to the gods and worships without hesitation while Laughing Dog believes them to be nothing but ancient legends. After both brothers make a bet that end up with Clay having an injured foot, Laughing Dog ends up being banished by his father as punishment and for endlessly mocking the gods. Clay soon becomes depressed, and prays for a miracle.

That miracle comes to him one night in the form of an anthropomorphic leopard named Doto, the son of the forest god Kwaee, who has been tasked by his despicable father into kidnapping a human and finding out why they have come to his forest. Kwaee loathes humanity, and sees them as vermin who burn and destroy in the name of Ogya. After Doto manages to convince Clay that he himself is (technically) a god, the reverent human ventures with the leopard on their journey. At first, Doto mirrors his father’s views on the human, until he begins to realize how similar he is to Clay, and that they may share a bond that transcends taboo in their world. However, little do they know that the two of them have a shared destiny that will change both them and their worlds forever.

In the three years that this has come out, I am absolutely shocked that this has not gotten that much attention or reviews by other critics. Granted it isn’t published by a massive publishing company, but it doesn’t excuse the fact that this is an intelligently written book that I frankly believe deserves to be adapted into a film someday (I said it, so believe it!).

Let’s firstly talk about the two main characters Doto and Clay. Clay is presented as a meek but confident human who worships his gods with great devotion. He may not be strong or intelligent in the wilderness, but he’s very optimistic when he wants to be. This highly contrasts to Doto who is basically a self-righteous little child that sees Clay as nothing more than subordinate. Even so, he has this fragile belief that he’ll gain the love and attention of his uncaring father by following his bidding. This allows us to understand his mindset and know why he acts the way he does toward Clay, and we begin to warm up to him more as the both of them tear down the barriers of god/mortal to survive on their journey. This eventually leads to both the leopard deity and human mortal wondering why there’s a divide between gods and humans and if it can and should be broken.

Laughing Dog’s story is also very wonderful to read. Here we have a young man who’s convinced that the gods are nothing but myths and legends, and is angered and bitter that the people and elders of his village do not see his point of view. However, he’s not a stick in the mud or an asshole; you understand that he only wants to help his tribe survive in the harsh environment and sees the reliance on gods as an obstacle for progress towards a better life. What I love about this is that Laughing Dog isn’t a one-sided villain who hates religion for the sake of it, he only wants his tribe and the rest of humanity to rely on themselves and not in faith. ‘God of Clay’ wonderfully touches on issues such as the separation of church and state, belief vs. faith, tradition vs. change, and it makes you question (in the words of the novel):

“How far would you go to follow your gods? And how hard would you fight to defy them?”

Much like another small personal favorite of mine named ‘Things Fall Apart’ by the late Chinua Achebe, ‘God of Clay’ makes itself timeless and beautifully descriptive by telling the culture and daily life of this tribe, which it helps us connect to the characters. Campbell even incorporates actual African tribal culture into their world. For example, Clay mentions to his companion that whenever a woman gives birth, it’s tradition for her to name the child after the first thing she sees. Reading the novel, you hear every mosquito buzz by your ear and feel the heartbeat of the African landscape through every page that your fingers touch. Combine all of that with a good plot and complex characters, and it’s an addictive read.

Before you go buy this book (which I still highly recommend), I should probably warn you of a scene that comes up later in the book. It’s not a major spoiler, since it is highly hinted at early on in the novel, but this may be a huge turn-off for a few readers. Remember how I mentioned that the main character’s bond transcends taboo in their world?

See…Doto and Clay have a physical attraction for each other. Yes, a physical attraction between a walking-talking leopard deity and a human. There’s especially a scene in the third act where they get sexually intimate, but only for half a page. Going in, I didn’t know and thought it’d be a general friendship, but Ryan Campbell went the extra mile. And honestly, it could’ve been kept hidden, but I didn’t mind there being a romantic relationship between Doto and Clay, since it makes them even more interesting and makes you wonder if gods in their world are allowed to fall in love with humans, especially if both of them are male. Did a sex scene need to be in there? Probably not, but it didn’t last a whole page and I’ve read MUCH MORE mature content that’s allowed in school libraries.

Overall, ‘God of Clay’ is a perfect novel for the bookworm interested in cultural commentary and the perfect novel for fantasy-lovers. With a twist on African lore and a fictional realm you’ll never want to escape, go read Ryan Campbell’s first book in surely a phenomenal trilogy.

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Review: ‘One Boy’s Shadow’ by Ross A. McCoubrey

~ natehopp ~ 1 Comment

It really surprises me how I haven’t ever heard of ‘One Boy’s Shadow’ since it was published a few years ago. Granted, it isn’t as famous as recent young adult novels on Bestsellers lists, but it really surprises me it isn’t more well-known, especially since it involves three very popular demographics: supernatural, gay, and coming-of-age literature. The author, Ross A. McCoubrey, meshes together these three topics into a novel with amazing characters, a heartfelt story of love and loss, and made me want to appreciate those who I love and love me.

So what’s the story? Caleb Mackenzie is a fifteen year-old boy whose family recently moved to a small town in Ontario, Canada. Instead of missing his old home in Halifax, he quickly makes some new friends, one of them being a boy his age named Shane. As their friendship quickly becomes more than that, Caleb learns from him that his new house has a secret.

You see, Caleb’s family’s new home is a cottage on the outskirts of town called the Wakefield House, and it has a grim past. In 1943, the Everett family owned the house, and one of the sons there, another closeted teenager named Toby, disappeared without a trace. Over the decades, various future owners of the house have reported strange noises and sighting, and it isn’t long before our main character begins hearing his name, “Caleb”, along with unknown gunshots. Wanting to know more, Caleb, his older brother Blake, Shane, and another friend of theirs named Ryley, must band together to dive into the mystery of Toby’s disappearance, learn who murdered him, and possibly lay the young ghost to rest.

Whenever I hear about romance novels involving ghosts and demons, there’s always the catch of either a sappy love triangle, misunderstanding clichés that cause the couple to break up, cheesy dialogue that stems on ‘Twilight’ bad, or even all three combined. ‘One Boy’s Shadow’ doesn’t have any of that. First of all, the characters in this are one of the most genuine people I wish were real. Almost every word, every bit of dialogue, and every action and reaction they have are what make this novel great. Our main couple in this treat each other like a real couple should, whether it be in fiction or even with a real significant other. Both are trusting, empathetic to their feeling and the feelings of others, and work off of their personal interests like bread and butter. They tease each other, go on long walks by themselves, and support each other when they’re down.

My most favorite side character would go to Caleb’s older brother named Blake. I like Ryley and how good of a companion he is for our main leads, but it’s Blake whose stood by his younger brother throughout his life. He’s the older brother that has a smart tongue and is a ladies man but McCoubrey went the extra mile and created one of the most compassionate, caring, kind-hearted brothers of a main character. If I ever wanted to have an older brother, it would definitely be Blake Mackenzie.

And then we have the ghost himself, Toby. Much like Caleb and Shane, Toby’s personality shines in every paragraph and sentence. At first we don’t know much about him at the beginning of the story save for him saying Caleb’s name and an occasional strange occurrence, but we want to know more about him as the novels continues. We later learn that he had a secret relationship with another boy when he was alive. Without giving too much away, I felt unbelievable sorrow in my stomach as I read on.

That’s what I probably like about ‘One Boy’s Shadow’ so much. The teenagers in this talk like real teenagers, the adults in this talk like real adults, and the mystery kept me reading through until I finished the final page. I wanted to know what happened to the poor boy, wanted to know if he’d find peace, and know if Caleb and Shane’s coming out would be met with welcome arms not just to Caleb’s parents, but to their school.

Ross A. McCoubrey is a Canadian author I’ve never heard of before, but after reading ‘One Boy’s Shadow’, I guarantee I’ll read his next novel. Ross, if you’re reading this, I cannot wait.

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If you have any questions or already have an opinion on the novel, feel free to leave any comments. Thanks!

Review: ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D. Salinger

~ natehopp ~ 2 Comments

I can’t think of a book that divides people more than ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D. Salinger. Almost everything about this book is both praised and controversial over the decades since it was published. I’m not going to go that much into the controversy of this book, especially about the bit involving John Lennon’s murder, but I will talk about the split arguments with this. This is a book that readers either love or hate. Some people call the main character a classic icon of teenage rebellion, while others despise him and his personality all together. Some call this novel a perfect look into the teenage mind while others see it as a trashy, preachy waste of paper. Some even call ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ a masterpiece of American literature, and by God, others don’t even want to mention this book exists.

So what did I think of it? Well…

‘The Catcher in the Rye’ is set in the middle of the 20th century, just after the Second World War. We follow a young sixteen year-old boy named Holden Caulfield, who isn’t upset that he’s been kicked out of Pencey Prep academy. He decides to skip staying until Christmas for his wealthy parents to find out, and runs to the nearby New York City. We follow him walking and sleeping around the city…and that’s about it. Yeah the book is basically about Holden being cynical toward everyone he meets.

Probably the biggest problem with ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ is that there’s basically little to no plot in this. We follow a teenager with a cynical attitude, he roams New York, tries to find a person to hear about his ‘problems’, and it takes 250 pages for me to want to die of boredom. I wouldn’t mind so much if Holden were made more interesting and were put in more interesting environments. Yeah he does risqué things like paying a prostitute to have a conversation with, and even walking through Manhattan when it is pitch black out, but we never see his personality being affected by it. He walks down a street, calls a random person a ‘phony’ (one of many memorable terms he uses), and monologues about how shitty his life and the world is while reminiscing about his brothers and sister. Good god, I was waiting for something different to happen.

Fans of ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ say that this book is the epitome of teenage rebellion and is ahead of its time. However, some readers don’t fully understand what teenage rebellion is. Some see it as a teenager being a douchebag to everyone, but there’s more to it than that. Teenage rebellion is a phase that helps a young man or young woman grow as a person, and helps them create their own identity through breaking the mold they grew up in.

It has been presented well in other novels published recently. Margo from ‘Paper Towns’ by John Green breaks the rules because she’s lived in a suburb house that’s strictly about keeping a façade. Alek from ‘One Man Guy’ by Michael Barakiva breaks the rules because he wants to know who he is outside of being a perfect son in a traditional Armenian family. And in the end, they know their identity.

With Holden Caulfield, he doesn’t even change as a character.

Speaking of which, let’s talk about the iconic symbol of teenage rebellion shall we? To be fair, Holden does have a personality that can be likeable to some people. He’s extremely cynical to phonies, but is kind to the people he cares about. He’s smart, but doesn’t apply himself. He loves his little sister, and even makes promises he tends to keep. However, so many reviewers and readers also say that Holden is very whiny, and…yeah I have to agree that he is very annoying to listen to whenever he monologues about all the phonies and everyone he hates.

So what is it that catches people’s eyes with ‘The Catcher in the Rye’? To the novel’s credit, it has a fantastic grip on imagery. Whenever Holden isn’t being cynical, he describes New York City in a way that almost feels like a beautiful music video. I like the scene where he’s in Central Park, and you can feel the atmosphere dripping around him. Even a few characters in this seem like they have interesting pasts, but we don’t see them very long.

So what’s the verdict on ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D. Salinger? I don’t regret reading it at all, and loved the style that the author gave this unique character, but teenage rebellion isn’t all about complaining for an entire novel-length book. If Holden Caulfield were put in a better story with an actual plot, it would’ve worked. For me it didn’t work, but I like to think of ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ as a Rorschach test for classic literature. While I see this novel as a misunderstood look at teenage rebellion, others may see it as a masterpiece, and I don’t have a problem with it, as long as they don’t kill anyone in the name of J.D. Salinger’s most well-known novel.

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If you have any questions or already have an opinion on the novel, feel free to leave any comments. Thanks!

Review: ‘Seconds’ by Bryan Lee O’Malley

~ natehopp ~ 1 Comment

Scott Pilgrim fans rejoice as I read a graphic novel* made by the famous cartoonist named Bryan Lee O’Malley. I personally never read his ‘Scott Pilgrim’ series, but after reading one of his newest graphic novels recently, I’m a little curious. The one I’m reading today is a timeless yet modern supernatural graphic read simply known as ‘Seconds’ by Bryan Lee O’Malley.

Katie is the owner of a popular restaurant in town named Seconds, and dreams of owning another restaurant after spending four years of her life renting the place. She tries to renovate a run-down spot named Lucknow, but has trouble coming up with the money after so many things start to get in her way, like her boyfriend breaking up with her, contractors paying too much, and realizing both Lucknow and Seconds have house spirits that guard their homes.

After a new waitress at Seconds named Hazel gets badly burned, a guilt-ridden Katie suddenly find a mysterious girl in her room with a mushroom in her hands along with a notebook. The girl reveals herself to be the house spirit of Seconds named Lis, and tells Katie to eat the mushroom, write down a mistake, and wake up to the mistake being erased. She write down that Hazel never got burned, and to her shock, Katie wakes up the next day to see Hazel’s burns gone.

Suddenly, after finding more of the mushrooms under the restaurant’s floorboards, Katie begins eagerly making massive changes to her life, despite Lis’s warning not to tamper too much with her life. Of course Katie ignores her, and soon finds her life and her world spiraling out of control. With the help of the waitress Hazel (who tells Katie of house spirits in the first place) and Lis, it’s up to Katie to make things right.

Main characters are an important piece of writing, and Katie here is probably the highlight of ‘Seconds’. She has everything a memorable character should have. She’s optimistic, sarcastic, a goofball, quirky as a twenty-something woman, and selfish, but never to the point of being an anti-hero. She’s shown to have a good heart, be very determined to construct her new restaurant, and knows when she’s made a mistake that needs to be fixed, even if it may not need to be fixed. In fact, Katie often reminds me of an older version of the protagonist in ‘Coraline’ by Neil Gaiman.

The drawing in this is nothing short of spectacular. The artist’s favorite color in this is obviously red, but the angles and coloring in this gives way to wonderful designs and characters with personalities. The style even allows for good comedic edge without making the characters look like something out of the funnies in a newspaper. A good example would be with the waitress Hazel, who’s considered to be the most beautiful in the restaurant, yet is unbelievably shy and awkward to the point where her reactions always made me grin. Even the design given to Lis is pretty neat, as she comes off as creepy and intriguing at the same time.

It is amazing how much detail and imagination is in ‘Seconds’. Not just the restaurant, but also the book feels like an otherworldly modern place. The climax alone rarely uses words from the narrator, and constructs a visual medium for what the lesson is: we cannot fix everything that is broken, and the past is in the past.

Are there flaws? A few. But they’re more humor-wise where a couple of jokes felt inconsistent or unnecessary. For example, I found it weird how the narrator of ‘Seconds’ sometimes broke the fourth wall with Katie, yet she ignores him/her throughout most of the time until the end. It’s still funny with her reactions, but feels like something from another book.

Also, I’m gonna sound unfair, but I didn’t think Katie’s ex seemed interesting.

Back in the 20th century, graphic novels weren’t considered a form of art yet because of them being seen as childish and innocent. Then came works such as ‘Maus’, ‘Nordguard: Across Thin Ice’, ‘Blacksad’, and even ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’. And much like ‘Seconds’, they came with clever writing, a solid sense of humor, wonderful artwork, good storytelling, and likeable characters. And while ‘Seconds’ has a few basic flaws, and I never read O’Malley’s ‘Scott Pilgrim’ series, I may thanks to the second thoughts ‘Seconds’ gave me.

*To answer your question, yes I will review graphic novels for Reader’s Boulevard, as long as it meets the criteria of being more than 150 pages in length.

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If you have any questions or already have an opinion on the novel, feel free to leave any comments. Thanks!

Review: ‘One Man Guy’ by Michael Barakiva

~ natehopp ~ 1 Comment

After hearing about the Supreme Court’s recent ruling, I thought I’d celebrate with everyone by posting my opinion on a book I read last month, but never got the chance to say my opinions on it. The book I’m talking about is a quirky gay romance novel that caught my attention with the cover and didn’t leave me disappointed. It is called ‘One Man Guy’ by Michael Barakiva.

Alek Khederian is a fourteen year-old Armenian teenager that lives in an Armenian family outside New York City. As his freshman year has come to a close, Alek’s parents want him to go to summer school in order to raise his grades up. Reluctant to give up going to tennis camp and bound by the wishes of his traditional parents, Alek expects the worst of spending three months with the same bullies and the same weird looks from other students.

However, he never expected to become friends with sophomore Ethan, the ‘cool’ kid at his school. Ethan is described by Alek as independent, confident, and very willful in his life. He hangs out with the troublemakers at school, dresses in whatever he wants, and doesn’t care about breaking rules once in a while At first, it seems as though Alek is invisible to him, until Ethan suddenly coaxes him to come with him to a Rufus Wainwright concert in New York City. From there, everything changes.

After a wonderful day with Ethan, Alek slowly starts to come out of his bubble and hang out more with his new friend, despite the fact that he reveals himself he is gay. Not only that, Alek himself may be starting to fall in love with him.

‘One Man Guy’ is the name of a song made by the actual Rufus Wainwright, and it tells not only about homosexuality, but also pertains to the loner and individual in us all. ‘One Man Guy’ is basically a book about an Armenian teenager discovering he likes boys, and starts to become more independent because of his first boyfriend’s support.

Alek and Ethan are one of the most adorable and well-written characters I’ve seen recently in YA gay literature. Alek is presented as a meek teen that respects his parents and is proud of his heritage, but wants to be accepted among his peers and be involved with what other teenagers do.

Ethan is also a very likeable as a character as well. I expected him to be just an average ‘cool kid’ with no defining personality to him like in other novels, but ‘One Man Guy’ took me by surprise and made an individual out of him. Ethan is portrayed just as Alek said he is, but also has a sense of direction and street smarts to him, which can make Alek the perfect foil for when they first meet. Bottom line, both of them make this book. Still, out of all the side characters, my favorite would have to go to Alek’s best friend named Becky, whom reminds me of a lot of teen girls I remember going to high school. She’s the kind of eccentric girl that is supportive and caring, even if she can be stubborn and selfish at times.

The only characters I have mixed feelings for have to be with the parents. Don’t get me wrong; they’re well-developed with the dynamics with their son. It is obvious Alek loves his parents, and they love him and want what they believe is best for him. However, they often feel less like characters and more like the type of strict parents you’d see on a family sitcom. In fact, Alek’s parents almost remind me of Fran Drescher’s fictional parents on ‘The Nanny’, even though it is weird considering Michael Barakiva is an Israeli/Armenian himself, and he doesn’t take this opportunity to dive more into the Armenian culture than he could’ve.

That doesn’t mean it ruins the novel, far from it. Another fun element of ‘One Man Guy’ has to go to the writing and sense of atmosphere. I love the quiet and calm moments, the moments when Alek comes out of his bubble and opens up more whenever he and Ethan go out on dates. My favorite scene that involved Ethan and Alek is when they visit New York City again, and a couple chapters are solely dedicated to them interacting with residents and shopping for a new look for Alek. There’s no bullying, no awkward moments, or no social commentary. It’s just both of them feeling freely and being themselves.

So what’s my opinion on ‘One Man Guy’? It’s a really good gay romance novel both fitting for gay and straight people. This gives a good depth into a part of the culture wars that still happen today, with Alek’s parents wanting him to keep with tradition, and Alek wanting to be a part of modern America, yet they need to find a common ground in order for him to live a full life on his own. What keeps it from being great are the few stereotypes and lack of explaining Armenian history, but there’s more than enough substance and Armenian cooking culture to pull people into the depths of its pages.

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If you have any questions or already have an opinion on the novel, feel free to leave any comments. Thanks!