Not Today

by M.C. Lee

After the death of his older brother in Iraq, Emmett Callaghan’s mother cracked under the stress and abandoned the family—saddling sixteen-year-old Emmett with the care of a father suffering from worsening dementia. Poor in a town where the lines between the privileged and the struggling are sharp and unmovable, Emmett has nowhere to turn, and he cannot let the authorities know his mother is no longer in the picture.

Then a light shines into his bleak life with the arrival of Noah Davis. Mixed race, liberal, worldly, and openly gay, Noah is like no one else in conservative Whitmore—and like no one Emmett’s ever met. Emmett is helpless to keep Noah and the happiness and support he offers out of Emmett’s dark and hidden world. But when secrets start to surface, will the obstacles the two young men face be more than love and good intentions can overcome?

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Gay, M M Romance

220 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 6, 2018

Reviews

[Joyfully Jay]

A Joyfully Jay review.

3.75 stars

This was such an interesting read. I really enjoyed the atypical character choices in a very typical setting. While Emmett and Noah are technically an interracial couple, is their difference in class that clearly sets them apart. The way Lee treats Emmett’s near destituteness is by-and-large excruciatingly and realistically portrayed through Emmett. He has a huge chip on his shoulder about affording things and accepting charity or hand outs (or the perception of such). At the same time, he’s been able to keep things together well enough to still be living in the house he grew up in. This was one point that I thought needed to be addressed more resolutely because he doesn’t have money for basics, yet the power is on at home, the TV works, he’s got a cell phone…where does the money to pay for that come from? (His in absentia mother sends some cash every month and Emmett’s father’s old work buddies float him some money, but that would not be enough to cover everything.)

As far as the dynamic between Emmett and Noah goes…I was sort of on the fence about this. We know Noah’s sort of just blown into town for the short term, so from the get-go, we know this isn’t a relationship that’s going to last. That said, I felt like there wasn’t really a spark between them. Emmett is pretty remote because he’s desperate to hide the fact that he’s basically a minor living alone (again, his mom skipped town, his father’s sinking into dementia, and his brother’s dead). He cuts himself off from everyone and he gives the same treatment to Noah. It wasn’t clear to me WHY Noah tries so hard to befriend and love Emmett, but that’s what happens. Given Emmett’s closed nature, however, it constantly felt like they were sort of always at the first-date stage of a relationship.

Read Camille’s review in its entirety here.

[Riina Y.T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it if YA is your jam.

Not Today isn't your typical book, I think?

Emmett is alone, caring for his father who is descending into dementia. His brother is dead and his mother out of the picture. I felt for him a great deal, especially after getting a better picture of his family dynamics, or rather how they used to be and what’s left of his mom and dad.

His classmates have turned their backs on him ever since he quit the football team. His closest friend Cal is pretty much the only person who treats him the same, although their friendship is strained and on the verge of breaking.

Emmett is very stubborn and thinks he has to handle everything himself, he’s also too proud to accept help, even from Noah, who brings a new light into his dark life.

But good things hardly ever last.

There is some love (first love, awww) and it's all very satisfying!

But... This felt more like Emmett's story, rather than Emmett's and Noah's. I say that because while Noah does have a great impact on Emmett's life, not everything works out the way we'd wish it would and Noah doesn't stick around.

So, be warned (if you need warming?) - The ending was a little sobering, not the HEA/HFN most of us long for, but it's Emmett's story and it's far from over. We can only hope M.C. Lee feels like revisiting Emmett and maybe Cal? again in the future! (Please, Maggie!)

There is hope though in the end for Emmett.

[Amneris Cesare · Rating 5 out of 5]

I sort of have mixed feelings about this book, but I think that this reaction is sort of an added value to this reading: the story is not one of the usual and so-expected type, since the social perspectives here are twisted. Emmett is a white but poor boy, Noah is a welthy rich boy praised from society. Emmett has a very difficult situation at home and is admirable in his stubborn resolve to not give up on what is left of his family. Noah is a kind, supportive kid that truly loves Emmett and stands by him despite all his explosion of pride. I loved reading the dynamics and the everyday life of this brave kid who at only 16 years old decides to keep on taking care of his loveless and sick father, and the light shadow of protection that Noah lays on Emmett's shoulders. This book is wonderfully written and even better characterized. The ending might be perceived as disappointing, since there's no classical HEA but maybe this is the right way to end a book like this: with no ending at all. Concluding with the two teen-agers living all their life in happyness in a situation like this would have been irrealistic. And this book is too realistic to deserve a half-assed solution. Maybe, and I don't even know if should be the right thing to do, just maybe a sequel would be in order. But I really am not so sure about this. Anyhow, 5 stars for the plot, the characterization and the whole book are deserved.

[Serena Yates · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Whitmore, Pennsylvania, the division between the haves and the have-nots are clearly marked by the train tracks running through town. Like in many modern cities, class is more important than race, so when Emmett (who is white and grew up poor) meets Noah (who is mixed-race, openly gay, and has wealthy parents) meet, it doesn’t seem likely that they’d be friends. This is a coming of age story, told by Emmett in first person. It focuses on the consequences of his coping mechanisms as well as the choices he makes – good and bad. Emmett grows and learns as he deals with his attraction to Noah, and while the ending is not what I hoped for, it is realistic and left me hoping for more.


Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

[Darina]

Зря я взялась за эту книгу посреди драмы с СХ, и так хреново, а тут еще автор со своей суровой реальностью. Главный герой в полной жопе, про продолжение в конце книги ни слова. Мораль этой истории: life sucks - deal with it.

[Don Bradshaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story about changes and priorities in life. I enjoyed the ending a lot.

[Pablito · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know these people, know the wasteland of their emotions, the shards of reality that reflect the sunlight the rest of the world embraces, the glimmers of hope after the rain when the game seems won, before the lead dwindles and the scoreboard is not your headboard anymore.

As heart-wrenching as Emmet's story is, I need to meet these characters, from both sides of the tracks, and I need the grit and the little ease of their lives to expose how we carry on. The words of Samuel Beckett come to mind: "I must go on. I can't go on. I'll go on."

This is a love story. Between two 17-year-old football players who happen to be gay. One is Irish and no longer on the team; the other, who has taken the former player's position, is of mixed race. They abide on opposite sides of the wealth spectrum, in a town divided by tracks. Both Emmett and Noah reflect their breeding, their environments, and yet the naturalness of their mutual pull allows them to break free, to bond.

I wish there were one sentence that would make you want or even need to read this book. Because if you are a student of the human heart, you should. You really should.

[Gina Marie ~books are my drug of choice~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was painful to read. She got the feelings of dealing with a person with dementia down pat. This book has one MC who is trying to hold things together for the next year so he will be 18 and able to make decisions for his father and himself. He is proud and stubborn, refusing to tell anyone to refusing all help from people who would be friends. This book deals with some pretty heavy issues and in a very realistic way. It is intended for YA readers but I would suggest it may not be appropriate for younger teens. The fact there is no real resolution and nothing changes can lead to some good conversations but it may be too open ended for those who really need a happy or, at least, some type of positive closure. I'm perhaps not the best to review this book since I lived through this very scenario for several years until my father's death.

[Leaf of Absence · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a kind of a twist at the end of Not Today that was unexpected and didn't take the easy, usual solution. I would have liked to see a little more depth and exploration of Emmett's reasons for the decisions he makes, as they are realistic but also kind of sad and self-destructive.

I'd like to read a follow up / sequel.

[Dena · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5* Not what I was expecting and the ending was not what I was hoping for. This book needs a follow-up with a better ending.