It is 1978 in the Twin Cities, and Kevin Doyle, a high school senior, is a marginal student in love with keggers, rock and roll, and-unbeknownst t...
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Dec 03, 2007
Marcelo
rated it: 
I don't want to rave too much about this book, lest I hype it up too much for a potential reader. But I will say that I really took an intense personal liking to this book for numerous reasons. The writing is excellent. It is one of the best written coming-of-age story about a gay boy that I've encountered. I found myself relating so naturally to the protagonist, as when he thinks about his high school crush, "standing next to my locker. I don't know how to look at him anymore. I'm afr
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Jul 16, 2009
Duane
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This is a difficult book for me to review for a number of reasons. To begin with, the author does a masterful job of describing the characters to us through actions and words. By the end of the book, you have a complete visual image of who they are and what they look like. Having said that, I didn't enjoy the lack of focus that the story keeps going through. The author will start a story sequence and then quit in the middle. I understand why he did it, but it's not to my liking. A warning that t
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Nov 25, 2011
Hofdude
rated it: 
Being my first gay novel looking for inspiration, I was severely disappointed. I ended up hating the main character. The story was told from his point of view with his thoughts on things, which, being gay, would be extremely interesting, right? Nope. All it was was his fantasies which beg for pity, but the way he treats people in reality, makes you not care! He's a jerk to his dad, his dad's girlfriend, even his crush because he wants to act straight? I'm sorry, that's too much. Maybe that was t
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Jul 21, 2010
Thai
rated it: 
I was pretty excited to read this book at first cause I was pretty young. The audience follows the life of Kevin Doyle and one of the stand out things is that he isnt a gay stereotype which is refreshing. His life is a mess and it seems realistic enough and you come to actually care for him.
The plot definitely has its good points but in the latter half it became a bit tiresome? The events seemed a bit plain? You just seem to follow Kevin's life as he grows up and how he deals with f More...
The plot definitely has its good points but in the latter half it became a bit tiresome? The events seemed a bit plain? You just seem to follow Kevin's life as he grows up and how he deals with f More...
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Oct 10, 2009
Jeff
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Kevin Doyle is an eighteen year old high school senior from Minneapolis. It is 1978, and Kevin lives at home with his widowed father. Kevin's mother died two years prior in a tragic automobile accident when her car hit a patch of ice and careened off the highway over an embankment into the Mississippi River.
Kevin has a secret which he shares with no one...no one except his imaginary boyfriend Jon. Actually Jon is a real person that goes to school with Kevin, but the real Jon is strai More...
Kevin has a secret which he shares with no one...no one except his imaginary boyfriend Jon. Actually Jon is a real person that goes to school with Kevin, but the real Jon is strai More...
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Jan 31, 2012
cor ad cor loquitur
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God, what a treat.
There's novels written in the point of view of teenagers and then there's this book: a novel written from inside a teenager's head. I've read loads of books, all filled with all knowing narrator's who are much too advanced for their own good, but this book stunned me. A whirlwind of just perfect writing and angst, a lot of angst.
You won't regret reading this book, despite the heartbreak it may leave you with. It will be a book to stick with you and I won't forget ab More...
There's novels written in the point of view of teenagers and then there's this book: a novel written from inside a teenager's head. I've read loads of books, all filled with all knowing narrator's who are much too advanced for their own good, but this book stunned me. A whirlwind of just perfect writing and angst, a lot of angst.
You won't regret reading this book, despite the heartbreak it may leave you with. It will be a book to stick with you and I won't forget ab More...
Mar 08, 2009
Mark
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Oct 12, 2008
Chris
rated it:
Author Brian Malloy introduces the reader to Minnesota high school athlete Kevin Doyle, who is having as bad a senior year as Stephen King’s Carrie White. His mother, Eileen, was killed in a car accident; his father--who he never really got along with in the first place--has taken to drowning his sorrows; neighborhood women seeking entry constantly show up at his house bearing food, and he has an unrelenting crush on a male classmate, Jon, with whom he can’t even manage to fake a friendship. The
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May 13, 2008
Daniel
rated it:
A few things about this book irritate me; most of all, I am not sure the author is all that literate. Two examples: he writes "should of" to capture a teen's jargon, but not consistently; at some point he uses "immanently" instead of "eminently." I mention both cases because one has the impression he has heard more than he has read.
Having said that, this novel was interesting and has its virtues. Chief among the latter is that it manages to be a novel ab More...
Having said that, this novel was interesting and has its virtues. Chief among the latter is that it manages to be a novel ab More...
Feb 11, 2008
Heather
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I'm not a very fast reader, but this book sucked me. I read two-thirds of it yesterday (and if I hadn't had work today, I'd have just kept reading!) and the rest today. Now I'm a little sad that it's all over.
It makes an interesting contrast the book I read just before it, DOO-LANG LOVE. Both were about young gay men (Rex, 23, in DOO-LANG LOVE and Kevin, 17/18, in THE YEAR OF ICE) looking for love, and in both the main characters found something more than that, in family and/or frie More...
It makes an interesting contrast the book I read just before it, DOO-LANG LOVE. Both were about young gay men (Rex, 23, in DOO-LANG LOVE and Kevin, 17/18, in THE YEAR OF ICE) looking for love, and in both the main characters found something more than that, in family and/or frie More...
Dec 20, 2009
Staci
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I'm always looking for well-written and HONEST gay/lesbian YA books. This one is both of those things and so much more. It's not just a story about a young man named Kevin who knows he's gay and just wants to find someone to love. It's about how his life is in such chaos since the death of his mother and finding out dark secrets about his father. It's about life and being a teenager on the brink of adulthood and feeling like you're ready to take on the world, but also wanting everything to stay
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Jun 24, 2010
Grant
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In gay lit you can't swing a cat without hitting a coming of age story. The reason this one stays with me is that Brian Malloy and I are about the same age, both from the midwest, both were closeted gay guys in high school in the late 70's. Not only does his journey speak to me, but the backdrop it unfolds against is much like my own.
Besides that, though, this is a book of deep emotion and beautiful language. There's a copy next to my bed. It's the only book I keep that close.
Besides that, though, this is a book of deep emotion and beautiful language. There's a copy next to my bed. It's the only book I keep that close.
Apr 20, 2008
Coffeeboss
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Kevin is a "foxy" senior at his small-town high school in 1970s Minnesota. He considers himself an "alpha" male, meaning he often uses his brawn to put other boys in his place, and all the girls want him. His mom died a couple years earlier, and his dad is being pursued by all the widows and single women in town. And Kevin just happens to know that he is gay, and doesn't know what to do about it. The Year of Ice was shelved in the adult fiction section of my library, probably
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Mar 24, 2009
Sara
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This book was okay; I guess I just kept hoping for more. More character development, more interactions, more sex, something! I did finish it, and I do think it resonates with the typical gay adolescent experience, but would probably be more enjoyed by younger readers.
Jan 16, 2011
Vfields
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In some way this was a coming of age novel, in others it was a family drama. A high school teen is dealing with his mother's death, his father's short comings and his own sexual awkwardness. It is a well written story with a satisfying, realistic ending.
Jan 12, 2010
Lorena
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This was one of the first gay fiction books I read, and what a way to start! It captured the struggle of realizing oneself is gay perfectly (in my opinion anyway). It was a heart-wrenching and completely consuming book and I'm glad to have read it.
Jan 26, 2009
Hillery
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One of my favorite novels of the past few years. Set in 1978, the author perfectly captures the voice of a teenage stoner who is also realizing he is gay. I laughed out loud in many places, though it is a novel of substance. Ending was not as strong as I had hoped.
Feb 29, 2008
Spoonbridge
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I liked this novel, a poignant depiction of a troubled young man struggling to come to terms with his sexuality in 1970s Minneapolis after the tragic death of his mother in the icy Mississippi. I felt that Kevin's personality and feelings were very well developed and the book spared no details in the course of the very rough year of 1978, though I felt that some plot points were left unfulfilled. I especially enjoyed the setting of the Twin Cities in 1978, recognizing things still in existence a
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Mar 01, 2010
Javier
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Wonderful book! The characters in this book feel so real even with their idiosyncratic behavior. This book has both touching moments and humorous moments and at times it makes you want to cry. You feel for the characters and what they are going through. Overall A+!
Jan 06, 2009
Wils
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Coming of age story of a gay teenager dealing with all family and friend issues that come up around him. Reminds me a lot of my high school years and always thinking, why is all of this happening? Ice is very much a part of the story...almost a character in itself.
Apr 06, 2009
Juan
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awesome, reader can really relate (at laeat, I did), funny, sad, and soooo entertaining. five stars
Dec 29, 2010
Very
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This is one of those books where you love the main character so much that you'd pretty much follow him anywhere. The writing is hilarious and economical (probably my favorite combination) and even the minor characters pop.
Jan 26, 2008
Margaret
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Brian Malloy's writing is quietly beautiful. Every scene or paragraph has a wonderful turn at the end, and can take an otherwise ridiculous or adolescent scene and make it meaningful. This is not to say that it's schmaltzy. The characters are incredibly believable (with the debatable exception of Aunt Nora) and I felt just incredible amounts of sympathy for the main character.
You will especially love this book if you are at all familiar with Minneapolis.
You will especially love this book if you are at all familiar with Minneapolis.
Aug 30, 2011
Jess
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When I bought this book, I was intrigued by the LGBT themes, but I didn't even know it was based in Minneapolis, which is a huge plus. This was a quick read and a good story, I could relate to Kevin, and I loved the setting. Sometimes the plot was a little far-fetched and full of cliches, but the writing was solid and it had a lot of heart.
Nov 30, 2011
Jose
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This was a great book! I love it! I picked it out from the library without really knowing what it was about. Then when I figured out that it was about homosexuality I feel in love with it. It show what a teen in the closet might go through high school and I related myself with the main guy/ =)
