Boy Meets Boy

2.5 stars. With 1.5 of those being given because I am a sentimental sop.

The unrealistic utopia depicted in this book does not make the lived experiences of queer people around the world any easier. This book panders, in my opinion, and focuses on a very privileged section of the LGBTQ+ society. Every single character in this book is privileged, even the character with church-going, God-fearing Bible belt-ish parents who do not immediately accept his sexuality.

When this is contrasted with the realities of this world - gay detention camps, homosexuality being illegal (and punishable by death), childhood traumas due to homophobic or transphobic bullying, this book appears almost farcical.

The only aspect that resonated with me was the depiction of emotions. Most of us have experienced young love, and the toe-tingling, butterflies-in-your-stomach, heady feeling that accompanies this. The book quite decently navigates this minefield of emotions. Or perhaps just forces you to come over all nostalgic.

Not really recommended, this.

Paul is a sophomore in a high school unlike any other. He meets Noah, and thinks he is the one, the person he will spend the rest of his life with. That was until he blew it, the school bookie has the odds 12 to 1 against him. But Paul is determined to not let this get him down; he knows what he wants and will go after it.

This is your typical romantic comedy done in a different way. I want to talk about the world first; in this utopian world sexuality is not an issue. Even in the high school, the homecoming queen is also the quarterback (Her name Infinite Darlene, but her parents called her Daryl) and every click is divided into gay stereotype, except for the straight people who seem to be bunched into an (almost outcast) group. The school has a gay-straight alliance which was formed to teach the straight people to dance. Everything is too perfect; no one struggled with their sexuality or identity.

I’m not sure if it is just me improving as a reader but I spent most of this novel questioning everything and not enjoying the clichés and ease of these people’s lives. No one seemed to have any major issues and for a high school that seems too fake; this is why I’m convinced they live in the utopian world where everything is perfect. These students are highly intelligent and seem to have everything worked out, the only struggles they have are the ones needed to drive the typical romcom plot.

My first experience with David Levithan was his co-written novel Will Grayson, Will Grayson with John Green and while I enjoyed that book enough to try his novels there was just too much that bothered me about this one. I’m assuming this is bad news for any other John Green books that I might read, their styles are very similar but I just couldn’t get past of the unanswered questions that I asked.

I’m glad there are romantic comedies between two guys and I think more GSM (Gender and/or sexual minority or LGBT if you prefer) novels are needed. I just don’t like that no one seems to have real struggles; I want this in all characters. I never expect a teenager in particular to have everything worked out and with their budding sexuality there are so many complex emotions that could be dealt with in a book like this.

One other thing that really bothered me in this book was the excess of nods. I began to think of all the characters as bobble heads rather than humans. It is like excess winking in novels, no human nods or winks that much in real life, why do they do it in books? I know with nodding it is just a way to show that a character agrees but if it is used too much it just feels too unrealistic.

This is an entertaining book that I just had too many issues with, not enough to never try Levithan again (still want to read Two Boys Kissing) but it really bothered me. I know many people loved this book and his style still feels similar to John Green, so I think it’s just me. I will love to know what worked or didn’t work for the people that have read this book. I don’t think I’m missing anything, so why is this much loved YA novel so difficult to enjoy.

This review originally appeared on my blog; literary-exploration.com/2013/10/17/book-review-boy-meets-boy/

Paul’s had plenty of boyfriends but when he meets Noah, he knows they could be something special. They’ve both been hurt in the past but this is the perfect new beginning. But Paul’s friends' lives are in disarray. Can he help them and have time to date? Will this be the one to last?

Boy Meets Boy is a sweet little high school story but not a lot more. Its main draw is that it doesn’t make homosexuality an issue, it just exists and it’s a story about a boy meeting a boy that he likes. And then promptly goes and screws things up. Just like any other high school crush story. I really started to dislike Paul; in his effort to help everyone, he ends up in awkward situations. It just felt like he didn’t think much about his actions beyond the moment.

There were quite a lot of supporting characters and none of them were covered in depth. I liked Tony’s story; the gay son of religious parents who believe his sexuality is damning him to hell and therefore like him hanging out with girls. I thought there were some really lovely moments with him. I didn’t quite get Joni’s motivation to date Chuck, a character who just oozes nobbiness. There are some wonderful little observations too that would make me pick up something else of his.

“The first time I met you,” he says, not directly to me, not directly to the floor – somewhere in between, “I honestly couldn’t believe that someone like you could exist, or even a town like yours could entirely exist.”

I’m with Noah on this. It’s a lovely utopian vision of a school where everyone is accepted, with a high percentage of gay kids and even a drag queen on the football team. I can sort of see Levithan is saying, look this is normal, but it all came across a little twee. And what on earth is that bit about a teacher telling a five year old that he (the boy) is gay about? I don’t think anyone at that age knows their sexuality; the opposite sex is generally considered weird and to be avoided. It’s hard to believe in these kids’ lives when you don’t quite believe their world.