Boy Meets Boy in Queereaders

Feb 14, 2010 Thomas rated it it was ok

Shelves: realistic-fiction, young-adult, lgbtq, romance

Boy Meets Boy is about Paul, an openly gay kid in high school. Of course he has his problems and his drama but none of it really involves his sexuality - he's just that comfortable with it. However, his friend Tony does have a problem with it. Or more like his parents do, because Tony's parents are like the bible worshiper type. Then there's Kyle, Paul's ex-boyfriend who can't seem to decide what he wants. Joni is Paul's best friend who might not be his best friend for much longer. Infinite Darl ...more

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Mar 02, 2010 Kassa rated it really liked it

The tagline on this book is “A dippy happy gay teen book.” This definitely describes the gay utopia atmosphere and the purposefully happy focus of the book and its message. Boy Meets Boy is a fantasy story set in a contemporary time. If you can indulge in the crazy city with its over the top antics, the story doesn’t fail to entertain and delight. The characters and details are whimsical and fantastical from the day trading janitors to the transvestite drag queens to the gay proud city. Yet the The tagline on this book is “A dippy happy gay teen book.” This definitely describes the gay utopia atmosphere and the purposefully happy focus of the book and its message. Boy Meets Boy is a fantasy story set in a contemporary time. If you can indulge in the crazy city with its over the top antics, the story doesn’t fail to entertain and delight. The characters and details are whimsical and fantastical from the day trading janitors to the transvestite drag queens to the gay proud city. Yet the easy writing, witty prose, and fun characters carry the angst lightly and deliver a lot of fun. This is not an intense, true to life coming out story but a light hearted eccentric and thoroughly enjoyable tale about gay teenagers.

Paul is a sophomore in high school and he’s got a few problems. His ex-boyfriend Kyle can’t decide if he hates Paul or loves him while Paul’s best friend Tony is perpetually grounded. Paul’s other best friend Joni is dating a new guy Paul hates and Paul just met the senior of his dreams. As if all of this isn’t enough, the Dowager Dance is coming up and Paul agreed to architect it. Life as a sophomore isn’t easy.

This funny and entertaining ride is set in a gay utopia where everyone is proud of their differences and being gay or a drag queen is celebrated versus put down. The homecoming queen is also the star quarterback, a dramatic and over the stop character of Infinite Darlene, and the Joy Scouts broke away from the Boy/Girl Scouts due to their anti-gay stance. PFLAG is more popular than the PTA and no one thinks twice about differences. There are classic stereotypes thrown in but always with a humorous twist bringing all the antics over the top. Such as the school rally and the various clubs presented. The story constantly tries to inject whimsy and comic relief while acknowledging classic teenage angst. This may not be to everyone’s taste and it does make light of real issues. Sometimes this attempt to keep the story outrageous goes a bit far and includes a few too many details. This didn’t bother me but some may find the constant barrage tiresome after a time.

The characters are well drawn and exaggerated stereotypes while injecting realistic attributes. Each of these characters represents different kind of teenagers from Tony’s super religious parents to Joni’s early fag hag status with an edge of cruelty, mixed with Kyle’s confused bisexuality and even Paul’s mistakes. The characters aren’t fully developed and rely on these outlines but fit in well with the light hearted theme and intent. There is enough to get the idea the story is trying to present without spending too much time on background. Some of this leaves for some choppy moments such as why a senior would be so taken with a sophomore, given Noah’s past, but the easy prose, fast dialogue, and interesting cast all carry the story and smoothes over any problems.

There are a few hanging questions and some easy resolutions, but really this book highlights and celebrates the typical outcasts of high school in an amusing and entertaining manner. The story doesn’t take itself seriously so you can’t either. There is a lot of suspension of disbelief required but the comic overtones and willingness to laugh at itself allows this story and its characters to really shine. The shorter length ties really well into the story as the cute factor and over the top happiness at life may annoy some after a while. However at 160 pages, the fast writing has the story over before you can hate it for being too happy. It may not be a story you can read all the time but when wanting something easy, breezy, and engaging – check this out. Just sit back and enjoy the ride for what its worth. ...more

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Nov 26, 2017 Lee Farnell rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Did not finish. This book was, unfortunately, complete rubbish. There was no backbone to the story at all. It’s very much ‘this happened and then this happened’ and it’s all a bit of a mess. The whole storyline is so farfetched and the characters, as diverse as they are, just feel one dimensional. What a shame.

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Jul 18, 2012 Sonja rated it liked it

Shelves: e-read

initially i wanted to read this because i'd heard the author got his inspiration from the patty griffin song 'tony' and any patty griffin fan gets my attention!
in the end this book didn't really have a lot to do with tony, either the song or character, but it was quite funny and cute.

the only problem that i had was it just comes across as trying too hard. i understand that it's set in a "gay utopia" but too often it reads like a teen hipster's notebook.
still, i enjoyed it and i'm keen to read s ...more

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