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Thinking Straight
When he is shipped off to Straight to God, an institution devoted to ''deprogramming'' troubled teenagers, Taylor Adams learns valuable lessons in love, courage, rebellion, and betrayal in a place where piety is a mask for cruelty and the greatest crimes go.
306 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2008
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3624 people want to read
About the author
Robin Reardon
23 books180 followersI'm an inveterate observer of human nature, and my primary writing goal is to create stories about all kinds of people, some of whom happen to be gay or transgender—people whose destinies are not determined solely by their sexual orientation or identity. My secondary writing goal is to introduce readers to concepts or information they might not know very much about. On my website, robinreardon.com, see individual book pages for “Digging Deeper” sections that link to background information and research done for the novel.
My motto is this: The only thing wrong with being gay is how some people treat you when they find out.
Interests outside of writing include singing, nature photography, and the study of comparative religions. I write in a butter yellow study with a view of the Boston, Massachusetts skyline.
My motto is this: The only thing wrong with being gay is how some people treat you when they find out.
Interests outside of writing include singing, nature photography, and the study of comparative religions. I write in a butter yellow study with a view of the Boston, Massachusetts skyline.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 108 reviews
February 9, 2019
I tried to read this book but I’m on page 110 and I asked myself why on Earth I am doing this to myself. So let’s stop.
Why? It’s a story about a gay teen, Taylor, who is also a believer and whose extra strict homophobic parents enroll him to a special correction unit where Taylor is supposed to become straight ‘again.’ Mind you, the parents are described as not that bad, yeah, the father is quite ‘gruff’ but the mother is ‘the sweetest woman on earth’ – I get that a child doesn’t want to fight against parents and see them as villains, not every time, but can we stop with excusing parents’ horrific behaviour? Because what, they’re parents? It makes them even worse.
We also get a story about how Tylor became aware he was gay. You see, being around 15 (I guess?) he touched his friend’s dick. And then he discovered he wanted to do that again. And again. Fine, I get everyone has their own realization story but this one… Then he meets his true love, Will, and the very moment they get to be alone for the first time together, they have sex. Again, I get that there are people who do that but I don’t know, being 16 me and my friends were about kissing after the first "I like you" was uttered. Also, given the fact that Taylor is such a devoted believer, it seems a bit strange that he has absolutely no second thought about remaining ‘chaste’ or ‘virgin’, boy or not. And the same character admits that he finds it hard to believe that atheists exist! I get that American religiousness may be strange to some of us but that left me confused as hell.
Then we move to the facility and it’s a parade of clichés and stereotypes. You read about any mental institution? You know them all. You read anything about any institution led by clergy? You know what the secret plot will be about. I reached almost the half of the book and I can’t muster any interest in any of the kids. I feel really sorry for them, of course, but that feels not enough to follow their plot.
Of course the villains are the devilish priests and women. There is an obligatory mean girl that is mean to everyone because she can be. Generally, the way the girls were described was unpleasant and Taylor, who’s the first person narrative, didn’t get any of my sympathy points for that.
Oh, and do you know what is the first thing that Taylor does after being left alone for the first time in the institution, on his first day, being closed here for forty days, after crying his eyes out and declaring he was scared? He masturbates in the corner. Because he misses his boyfriend. I don’t know, maybe that’s what people do but for me it felt so forced I was rolling my eyes.
As for me, a waste of time.
Why? It’s a story about a gay teen, Taylor, who is also a believer and whose extra strict homophobic parents enroll him to a special correction unit where Taylor is supposed to become straight ‘again.’ Mind you, the parents are described as not that bad, yeah, the father is quite ‘gruff’ but the mother is ‘the sweetest woman on earth’ – I get that a child doesn’t want to fight against parents and see them as villains, not every time, but can we stop with excusing parents’ horrific behaviour? Because what, they’re parents? It makes them even worse.
We also get a story about how Tylor became aware he was gay. You see, being around 15 (I guess?) he touched his friend’s dick. And then he discovered he wanted to do that again. And again. Fine, I get everyone has their own realization story but this one… Then he meets his true love, Will, and the very moment they get to be alone for the first time together, they have sex. Again, I get that there are people who do that but I don’t know, being 16 me and my friends were about kissing after the first "I like you" was uttered. Also, given the fact that Taylor is such a devoted believer, it seems a bit strange that he has absolutely no second thought about remaining ‘chaste’ or ‘virgin’, boy or not. And the same character admits that he finds it hard to believe that atheists exist! I get that American religiousness may be strange to some of us but that left me confused as hell.
Then we move to the facility and it’s a parade of clichés and stereotypes. You read about any mental institution? You know them all. You read anything about any institution led by clergy? You know what the secret plot will be about. I reached almost the half of the book and I can’t muster any interest in any of the kids. I feel really sorry for them, of course, but that feels not enough to follow their plot.
Of course the villains are the devilish priests and women. There is an obligatory mean girl that is mean to everyone because she can be. Generally, the way the girls were described was unpleasant and Taylor, who’s the first person narrative, didn’t get any of my sympathy points for that.
Oh, and do you know what is the first thing that Taylor does after being left alone for the first time in the institution, on his first day, being closed here for forty days, after crying his eyes out and declaring he was scared? He masturbates in the corner. Because he misses his boyfriend. I don’t know, maybe that’s what people do but for me it felt so forced I was rolling my eyes.
As for me, a waste of time.
June 2, 2009
As a gay man, I reconciled my spirituality and my sexuality many years ago. It was a difficult balance to achieve and was not possible until I shut all the external noise out and began to reflect on my personal relationship with the Divine. Once the outside was quieted, once all the rhetoric was sorted through, I was able to connect with the Divine and my life has been much better for it. It is always sad to me when I see so many of my GLBTQ brothers and sisters turning away from spirituality and religion. When people ask me about my views on religion and sexuality, I always answer truthfully. "My problem is not with God, my problem is with other people". That's why I appreciate this book so much. The problem is not with God, the problem is with how other people interpret God's words and twist them around to suit whatever hate or prejudice feeling that they harbor. This book is entertaining and enlightening and I appreciate how the author uses scripture and modern applications of the morality of the Bible. I suggest that many GLBTQ people that might be trying to reconcile their relationship with God read this very wonderful book.
My only problem with this story is the entire Deus Ex Machina at the end, but isn't that the point :)
My only problem with this story is the entire Deus Ex Machina at the end, but isn't that the point :)
September 8, 2016
WARNING: This review includes unmarked spoilers to major plot points of the book. Proceed with the knowledge key parts of the book could be spoiler for you.
I really enjoy GLTB fiction as well as fiction that involves questioning the nature of religion. So, when I saw that this book not only combined the both of them, but also painted both homosexuality and religion in a positive light, I knew I had to get my hands on it.
After reading it however, I was left feeling very conflicted about the book. On one hand, I did appreciated several key themes and ideas that were presented in the book - but, on the other, the book itself proved to be a disapointment in both writing, characters, and plot.
After reading the first page I realized that the writing...was sub-par to say the least. The character voice was weak and the plot was less of a plot and more of an essay of "Why Homosexuality Is Not a Sin According To The Bible" with random plot points/fade to black sex scenes intigrated in it to make it look like an novel. It had a few points where the arguments against Homosexuality being "the ultimate sin" that were half-way decent and there was name it, ONE character I was mildly emotionally invisted in.However, neither of these things were able to actually redeem that many, many issues I had with the book, not to mention the ending that that really nailed the coffin shut with me by throwing a bunch of cliches and a random "WELL IF A SCIENTIFIC STUDY SAYS BEING GAY THEN IT MUST BE GOSPEL BECAUSE SCIENCE HAS NEVER BEEN DISPROVEN HAHA" which kind of made the whole "God vs Homosexuals" arguments pointless. For in the end...only science has the answers. (And since God made science it makes sense. Really. It does. Don't question science.) I didn't hate the book and there was again, a few parts of it I really did enjoy, but overal it was just very disapointing.
Cons:
Taylor, the MC, despite not being a femine individual had a very female voice. I have read about, and know femine boys, and I know that you can write them in a way there their feminity shows through, but they still remain obviously male. This was not the case with Taylor. I don't want to put the entire gender of "male" ito a cardboard box saying "this is how one" should act, but for me I kept on having to remind myself that Taylor was not actually, a giggly, dramatic, boy-crazy pre-teen girl with an obsene obsession with IM abrivations, but instead a highschool boy. (With ab obsene obsession with IM abrivations.) It became a little less...confusing as the book progressed, but he kind of stuck in gender-fluid territory for most of the book, which was kind of a downside, since this was a book of a religious teenage BOY coming to terms with his homosexuality and how it fits with his strong faith, and due to the lack of a strong character voice...the book lost a little something.
Taylor's lack of voice wasn't the only thing that bothered me, the book had a lot of issues, the smallest being Ty's obssessive compulsive desire to use IM abbrivations in both real life conversation (WHY? WHY! WHYYY?) to his thought life (DEAR GOD WHY) to the point where he tests Will's compability to him by throwing out a random abbrivation and being like "if you know what this means we are defiantly soul mates." Wait wait whaaat? I'm a teenager. I know many other teenagers. I know straight and gay teenage boys and girls. And...while a few unholy lol's and brb's might creepy into otherwise decent conversation (along with the classic WTF and BAMF) I've never seen someone drop something above five letters - which Ty did at least once a page. (And the other characters were like oh yes I totally know what this 12+ letter abrivation for "Hi Please Pass The Milk My Brother In Christ" means and I find it normal that would make up abrivations on the spot to replace normal conversation.) It was really, really annoying.
Other, much larger issues involved the raging sterotypes (EX: the black man, the short person, the attractive sexy boyfriend of seeeeex, the rapist priest, etc.) And lack of character in at least half of the side characters. Prime example were HOMOPHOBIC PARENTS. With an angry, fat, balding father and a submissive and timid (and mildly idiotic) mother who are both scandalized to find out their only child won't be producing grandbabies any time soon. I'm aware that sometimes parents fit this description, but...really? You couldn't have spent a little bit more time trying to escape the cliche pool? Not only that, but Ty didn't even seem to like his parents that much. His father was described more often as a raging dictator prone to explosive tantrums then a loving parent that actually cared about his songs well being, and his mother was just pitiful. "Well um, you were supposed to produce babies, and can't you try really, really hard to want to have sex with a girl? Pretty please with a cherry on top?" It was embarrasing to watch. And kind of sad, like, if your parnets have such violent and concerned reactions to your "coming out speech" (Which, I might add, the synopsis is misleading. It makes it look like the I LIKE BOYS speech was ripped out of Ty, which really he was having conversation with his parents that went along the lines of "why didn't you like that one girl" "because" "well don't you want to go out with anyone." "YES I DO I LOVE BOYS I WANT TO FUCK BOYS BOYS BOYS YUM DICK" *Ty runs upstairs and tries to convice himself that he had no other choice but to reveal le big secert* Ty could have run upstairs and been like. "Whatever." Like an average teeanger, but instead he had to pull out the podium and lay it on thick. So. It's hard to feel sorry for him in that respect.
- The rest of the characters ranged from "cliche as hell-oh wait-demerit" to "semi-decent" and various degrees in between. The "Cliches" included YET ANOTHER RAPIST PRIEST, Black-Boy-With-A-Sexy-As-Hell-Body-And-An-Irish-Name Sean (he's black and handsome, need the author say more? duh no) , homphobic John-The-Non-Rapist-Priest-like-Character, The-Mean-Bitch girl (someday there will be a book without a girl who is mean just for the sake of being mean, but it seems like it will not happen in my life time), and a slew of others.
The only characters the author really tried with were Charles (my character highlight of the book, the precious thing made my heart break) Nate (THAT ONE SHORT GUY) his mother, and I suppose Dawn, and by association Jessica.(Whose combined exisitence was there to prove that. "Lesbians go to correction facilities to!") Oh and Will, who was a mix between. "Sterotypical Sex God Boyfriend" to someone who might actually be an intersting character if we saw him outside of Ty's SUCH HOT SUCH ATTRACTIVE SUCH LOVE lenses. Outside of Charles, it was super hard to actually care what happened to anyone.
- The Rapist Priest sub-plot NEED I SAY MORE. That horse has been beaten to the point that there's not enough of it left to make dog food. It was also really lazy writing on the author's part. As we went from "soul searching contemporary novel that asks hard questions" to "this can all be blamed on rapist priests." Uh. Really? Not to mention you can just SEE it coming the moment the man's character is introduced.
- The 'what the fuck?' ending. Ty saves all the little boys from the pedophila priest. Will slips him the PAPER OF SCIENCE that shows this random study that shows him that it's impossible to change who you are because science and that God must have wanted him to be gay after all. His parents become mildly more accepting of the fact that he'll never be straight, and he makes out with his roommate in the name of LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP. Mmhmm. As Ty would say WTFISTESTM ('What the fuck is this ending supposed to mean' for those who do not understand basic IM lingo.)
-The lack of conclusion/(real) character change. The novel starts off with a closet case Ty exploring his sexuality with his first boyfriend Will - afterwards getting rejected by his family as well as his religion, and being sent on a personal journey to make sense of both. At the end of the novel, Ty isn't that much of a closet case anymore - he's still with Will - and his family still rejects him. Not only that but he has yet to figure out how God fits in his sexual orientation. Sure, he explored it in the middle of the book, but at the end he throws that away because of a scrap of science paper that tells him that God made him this way - so that's the only answer he really needs. I was really disapointed in how "meh well science says it's so so meh" he was about the whole thing. Like...so we went through all of those college argumentive essays *cough* soul searching conversations for...what?)
- Explict sex scenes. Not that there written all that well, but they were pretty graphic for a YA novel. And I KNOW sex is becoming less of a "though shall not write about" taboo in modern day YA fiction, but it was still sort of surprising and I wish there was a type of warning for those who are bothered with graphic-ish descriptions of sex. (It wasn't, again a big deal to me, but I know there's someone out there who dropped the book like a hot coal once Ty was giving his porn novel description of sex to the rapist priest.)
Pros:
Alright, so there were things I did actually like about this book, and it wasn't just the porno sex scenes.
- Charles. MY PRECIOUS BABY. Not only the best developed character in the entire book, but the one who went through the most drastic character change. He starts off as a stiff boy scout of a character "follow the rules" to the death sort of thing. He watches Ty like a hawk, and reports all of his slipups without giving him any sort of grace. Ty writes him off as a closet case gay and arrogant asshole after the first day, however as he learns more Charles the more he becomes sympathic. Charles reveals himself to be a real sweetheart who gives out his love freely without expecting anything return. From spending time with a teenage expecting mother (taking care of her, watching over her, making sure no one messes with her) who isn't even carrying his child, to being Ty's (strict) guardian angel, afraid to let him out of his sight because of what happened to his last roommate - Ry - who commited sucide. LIKE THIS BOY JUST HAS THE SUCKIEST MENTALITY. "I will care for other's in a non-selfish and loving way, but heaven forbid someone cares about me, I don't deserve it." He's a prime example of what happens when religion gets twisted to the point where it makes a person feel more wretched than they were before "they found the light." He spends his days trying to follow the rules and praying to God so that he can change into someone he could actually like. It hurts to watch. (Especially when pedo priest decides to prey on him - like yeah, let me have sex with you so will be released from this sin - like the boy is emotionally unstable, you fucker why would you do something that's going to break him even more, and make him feel more like worthless shit?) HE WAS MY BOOK HIGHLIGHT. The best thing about the ending is that he finally got into a path of healing - my headcanon is that he eventually learned to escape his depression and find a healthy view of religion and God. (Also that he found a loving partner that just like, adored him to no end and gave back all the love that Charles put into him and they adopted two children and like a dog, and became as happy as "the gay couple nextdoor" in ever comedy series ever.)
- God vs. Homosexuality conversations. Again, usually homosexuality and Chrisitanty don't mix well, and to see a Christian Homosexual as a main character for a GLTB book was very, very refreshing. Even if the excutition wasn't the best, it was still oringial enough that I could enjoy the concept at the very least. The arguments were intersting and defiantly made me think. (Any argument that supports my "but gender isn't that big of a deal to me" sexuality and my religious beliefs not getting into a "to the death battle" is a good thing honestly)
- The fact that this facility - and facilities like the one in the book wer presented as places that could have postive influences. Like for drug/achohal addicts that want to change their life and find help through religion. (And that they were not place for gay boys to come in and get "straightend out" so to speak.) Usually in GLTB fiction (or YA fiction in general) places that deal with addiction or sexuality or mental diseases are always bad places run by corrupt people - and while that can be the case, there are people on the world who do want to help disturbed children - and their methods actually do work. So, that was very refreshing.
- Ty deciding that he was going to stay behind and help other boy's like Charles. Honestly, I think this was one of the few things that Ty did that I supported - he went from a selfish ME BOY to a still mildly selfish kid that wanted to help others. (Though a minor con for me was him deciding that Kevin was gay after knowing him for three minutes. "Oh he said the word fairy defiantly a homo." like eeeh really Ty? That's um, judgemental of you. Like maybe he was sexually abused by a man and dislikes gays because of that and that's why he's so defensive on the subject. DON'T ASSUME THINGS.")
Overal, "Thinking Straight" was mostly a "eeeh" sort of book for me. It had a decent concept but poor exucution in both character/plot/purpose of the novel. There were however, redeeming factors of the book like Charles and key themes. 2 1/2 stars.
I really enjoy GLTB fiction as well as fiction that involves questioning the nature of religion. So, when I saw that this book not only combined the both of them, but also painted both homosexuality and religion in a positive light, I knew I had to get my hands on it.
After reading it however, I was left feeling very conflicted about the book. On one hand, I did appreciated several key themes and ideas that were presented in the book - but, on the other, the book itself proved to be a disapointment in both writing, characters, and plot.
After reading the first page I realized that the writing...was sub-par to say the least. The character voice was weak and the plot was less of a plot and more of an essay of "Why Homosexuality Is Not a Sin According To The Bible" with random plot points/fade to black sex scenes intigrated in it to make it look like an novel. It had a few points where the arguments against Homosexuality being "the ultimate sin" that were half-way decent and there was name it, ONE character I was mildly emotionally invisted in.However, neither of these things were able to actually redeem that many, many issues I had with the book, not to mention the ending that that really nailed the coffin shut with me by throwing a bunch of cliches and a random "WELL IF A SCIENTIFIC STUDY SAYS BEING GAY THEN IT MUST BE GOSPEL BECAUSE SCIENCE HAS NEVER BEEN DISPROVEN HAHA" which kind of made the whole "God vs Homosexuals" arguments pointless. For in the end...only science has the answers. (And since God made science it makes sense. Really. It does. Don't question science.) I didn't hate the book and there was again, a few parts of it I really did enjoy, but overal it was just very disapointing.
Cons:
Taylor, the MC, despite not being a femine individual had a very female voice. I have read about, and know femine boys, and I know that you can write them in a way there their feminity shows through, but they still remain obviously male. This was not the case with Taylor. I don't want to put the entire gender of "male" ito a cardboard box saying "this is how one" should act, but for me I kept on having to remind myself that Taylor was not actually, a giggly, dramatic, boy-crazy pre-teen girl with an obsene obsession with IM abrivations, but instead a highschool boy. (With ab obsene obsession with IM abrivations.) It became a little less...confusing as the book progressed, but he kind of stuck in gender-fluid territory for most of the book, which was kind of a downside, since this was a book of a religious teenage BOY coming to terms with his homosexuality and how it fits with his strong faith, and due to the lack of a strong character voice...the book lost a little something.
Taylor's lack of voice wasn't the only thing that bothered me, the book had a lot of issues, the smallest being Ty's obssessive compulsive desire to use IM abbrivations in both real life conversation (WHY? WHY! WHYYY?) to his thought life (DEAR GOD WHY) to the point where he tests Will's compability to him by throwing out a random abbrivation and being like "if you know what this means we are defiantly soul mates." Wait wait whaaat? I'm a teenager. I know many other teenagers. I know straight and gay teenage boys and girls. And...while a few unholy lol's and brb's might creepy into otherwise decent conversation (along with the classic WTF and BAMF) I've never seen someone drop something above five letters - which Ty did at least once a page. (And the other characters were like oh yes I totally know what this 12+ letter abrivation for "Hi Please Pass The Milk My Brother In Christ" means and I find it normal that would make up abrivations on the spot to replace normal conversation.) It was really, really annoying.
Other, much larger issues involved the raging sterotypes (EX: the black man, the short person, the attractive sexy boyfriend of seeeeex, the rapist priest, etc.) And lack of character in at least half of the side characters. Prime example were HOMOPHOBIC PARENTS. With an angry, fat, balding father and a submissive and timid (and mildly idiotic) mother who are both scandalized to find out their only child won't be producing grandbabies any time soon. I'm aware that sometimes parents fit this description, but...really? You couldn't have spent a little bit more time trying to escape the cliche pool? Not only that, but Ty didn't even seem to like his parents that much. His father was described more often as a raging dictator prone to explosive tantrums then a loving parent that actually cared about his songs well being, and his mother was just pitiful. "Well um, you were supposed to produce babies, and can't you try really, really hard to want to have sex with a girl? Pretty please with a cherry on top?" It was embarrasing to watch. And kind of sad, like, if your parnets have such violent and concerned reactions to your "coming out speech" (Which, I might add, the synopsis is misleading. It makes it look like the I LIKE BOYS speech was ripped out of Ty, which really he was having conversation with his parents that went along the lines of "why didn't you like that one girl" "because" "well don't you want to go out with anyone." "YES I DO I LOVE BOYS I WANT TO FUCK BOYS BOYS BOYS YUM DICK" *Ty runs upstairs and tries to convice himself that he had no other choice but to reveal le big secert* Ty could have run upstairs and been like. "Whatever." Like an average teeanger, but instead he had to pull out the podium and lay it on thick. So. It's hard to feel sorry for him in that respect.
- The rest of the characters ranged from "cliche as hell-oh wait-demerit" to "semi-decent" and various degrees in between. The "Cliches" included YET ANOTHER RAPIST PRIEST, Black-Boy-With-A-Sexy-As-Hell-Body-And-An-Irish-Name Sean (he's black and handsome, need the author say more? duh no) , homphobic John-The-Non-Rapist-Priest-like-Character, The-Mean-Bitch girl (someday there will be a book without a girl who is mean just for the sake of being mean, but it seems like it will not happen in my life time), and a slew of others.
The only characters the author really tried with were Charles (my character highlight of the book, the precious thing made my heart break) Nate (THAT ONE SHORT GUY) his mother, and I suppose Dawn, and by association Jessica.(Whose combined exisitence was there to prove that. "Lesbians go to correction facilities to!") Oh and Will, who was a mix between. "Sterotypical Sex God Boyfriend" to someone who might actually be an intersting character if we saw him outside of Ty's SUCH HOT SUCH ATTRACTIVE SUCH LOVE lenses. Outside of Charles, it was super hard to actually care what happened to anyone.
- The Rapist Priest sub-plot NEED I SAY MORE. That horse has been beaten to the point that there's not enough of it left to make dog food. It was also really lazy writing on the author's part. As we went from "soul searching contemporary novel that asks hard questions" to "this can all be blamed on rapist priests." Uh. Really? Not to mention you can just SEE it coming the moment the man's character is introduced.
- The 'what the fuck?' ending. Ty saves all the little boys from the pedophila priest. Will slips him the PAPER OF SCIENCE that shows this random study that shows him that it's impossible to change who you are because science and that God must have wanted him to be gay after all. His parents become mildly more accepting of the fact that he'll never be straight, and he makes out with his roommate in the name of LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP. Mmhmm. As Ty would say WTFISTESTM ('What the fuck is this ending supposed to mean' for those who do not understand basic IM lingo.)
-The lack of conclusion/(real) character change. The novel starts off with a closet case Ty exploring his sexuality with his first boyfriend Will - afterwards getting rejected by his family as well as his religion, and being sent on a personal journey to make sense of both. At the end of the novel, Ty isn't that much of a closet case anymore - he's still with Will - and his family still rejects him. Not only that but he has yet to figure out how God fits in his sexual orientation. Sure, he explored it in the middle of the book, but at the end he throws that away because of a scrap of science paper that tells him that God made him this way - so that's the only answer he really needs. I was really disapointed in how "meh well science says it's so so meh" he was about the whole thing. Like...so we went through all of those college argumentive essays *cough* soul searching conversations for...what?)
- Explict sex scenes. Not that there written all that well, but they were pretty graphic for a YA novel. And I KNOW sex is becoming less of a "though shall not write about" taboo in modern day YA fiction, but it was still sort of surprising and I wish there was a type of warning for those who are bothered with graphic-ish descriptions of sex. (It wasn't, again a big deal to me, but I know there's someone out there who dropped the book like a hot coal once Ty was giving his porn novel description of sex to the rapist priest.)
Pros:
Alright, so there were things I did actually like about this book, and it wasn't just the porno sex scenes.
- Charles. MY PRECIOUS BABY. Not only the best developed character in the entire book, but the one who went through the most drastic character change. He starts off as a stiff boy scout of a character "follow the rules" to the death sort of thing. He watches Ty like a hawk, and reports all of his slipups without giving him any sort of grace. Ty writes him off as a closet case gay and arrogant asshole after the first day, however as he learns more Charles the more he becomes sympathic. Charles reveals himself to be a real sweetheart who gives out his love freely without expecting anything return. From spending time with a teenage expecting mother (taking care of her, watching over her, making sure no one messes with her) who isn't even carrying his child, to being Ty's (strict) guardian angel, afraid to let him out of his sight because of what happened to his last roommate - Ry - who commited sucide. LIKE THIS BOY JUST HAS THE SUCKIEST MENTALITY. "I will care for other's in a non-selfish and loving way, but heaven forbid someone cares about me, I don't deserve it." He's a prime example of what happens when religion gets twisted to the point where it makes a person feel more wretched than they were before "they found the light." He spends his days trying to follow the rules and praying to God so that he can change into someone he could actually like. It hurts to watch. (Especially when pedo priest decides to prey on him - like yeah, let me have sex with you so will be released from this sin - like the boy is emotionally unstable, you fucker why would you do something that's going to break him even more, and make him feel more like worthless shit?) HE WAS MY BOOK HIGHLIGHT. The best thing about the ending is that he finally got into a path of healing - my headcanon is that he eventually learned to escape his depression and find a healthy view of religion and God. (Also that he found a loving partner that just like, adored him to no end and gave back all the love that Charles put into him and they adopted two children and like a dog, and became as happy as "the gay couple nextdoor" in ever comedy series ever.)
- God vs. Homosexuality conversations. Again, usually homosexuality and Chrisitanty don't mix well, and to see a Christian Homosexual as a main character for a GLTB book was very, very refreshing. Even if the excutition wasn't the best, it was still oringial enough that I could enjoy the concept at the very least. The arguments were intersting and defiantly made me think. (Any argument that supports my "but gender isn't that big of a deal to me" sexuality and my religious beliefs not getting into a "to the death battle" is a good thing honestly)
- The fact that this facility - and facilities like the one in the book wer presented as places that could have postive influences. Like for drug/achohal addicts that want to change their life and find help through religion. (And that they were not place for gay boys to come in and get "straightend out" so to speak.) Usually in GLTB fiction (or YA fiction in general) places that deal with addiction or sexuality or mental diseases are always bad places run by corrupt people - and while that can be the case, there are people on the world who do want to help disturbed children - and their methods actually do work. So, that was very refreshing.
- Ty deciding that he was going to stay behind and help other boy's like Charles. Honestly, I think this was one of the few things that Ty did that I supported - he went from a selfish ME BOY to a still mildly selfish kid that wanted to help others. (Though a minor con for me was him deciding that Kevin was gay after knowing him for three minutes. "Oh he said the word fairy defiantly a homo." like eeeh really Ty? That's um, judgemental of you. Like maybe he was sexually abused by a man and dislikes gays because of that and that's why he's so defensive on the subject. DON'T ASSUME THINGS.")
Overal, "Thinking Straight" was mostly a "eeeh" sort of book for me. It had a decent concept but poor exucution in both character/plot/purpose of the novel. There were however, redeeming factors of the book like Charles and key themes. 2 1/2 stars.
May 3, 2008
Robin Reardon has taken on a hugely important subject in her new book, Thinking Straight. Taylor Adams, a teen who starts out the book with his head pretty well in place, has parents who think differently about their son’s well adjusted outlook on life. As the story begins they have sent him to Straight To God, a program that prides itself on fixing teens’ problems, including getting young men and women to overcome homosexuality. Despite his circumstances and justifiable anger, Taylor has faith in who is he and believes that being gay is okay with God. Reardon knows her Bible and uses it well. Full of drama, great dialog and well developed characters, Thinking Straight is a book I couldn’t put down.
Beckie Weinheimer
Author of Converting Kate
Beckie Weinheimer
Author of Converting Kate
December 23, 2024
I didn't like this book - I found it, like others from this author, creepy, with a subtext that seems to be telling gays, and young gays in particular, to buy into the who heterosexual world of the suburbs and don't rock the boat. I got the distinct feeling this author isn't for gay freedom but is trying to ensure that gays are as repressed as their heterosexual contemporaries. The whole point of being queer is that we don't have to follow, or even consider, the twaddle spewed out by any versions of the Middle Eastern sky gods. They hate us, some of them may not put it so bluntly, but they do. They have created sin and repression to keep hetero boys and girls from enjoying themselves because of the threat of pregnancy. Well gay boys and girls don't have to worry about that, and now that science has banished the fear of AIDS, they can go and fuck like rabbits to their heart's content. Which really annoys writers like Ms. Reardon who wants gay boys to keep it zipped in their pants till they settle down with their partner for life and adopt babies.
What she doesn't want is for them to go off having any fun with their dicks least they give ideas to all those hetero boys and, who knows, maybe turn a few - because deep down every good christian knows that given a chance once the secret is out everyone will go gay.
What a load of rubbish - but instead of reading this rubbish go check out Genet and have some fun.
Awful tosh - don't read.
What she doesn't want is for them to go off having any fun with their dicks least they give ideas to all those hetero boys and, who knows, maybe turn a few - because deep down every good christian knows that given a chance once the secret is out everyone will go gay.
What a load of rubbish - but instead of reading this rubbish go check out Genet and have some fun.
Awful tosh - don't read.
June 20, 2008
Taylor Adams is a Christian, gay teenager whose parents send him to a summer camp designed to straighten him out. Over the course of the story, he manages to figure out how to remain true both to himself and to his religion. He learns to think strategically about religion. He learns that it's all about love, and he does that in a very surprising way.
Per author Mark Kendrick: Thinking Straight is an indictment of dogma and fundamentalism, a vindication of the power of love, and a fresh interpretation of being Christian and gay in the 21st century.
Per author Mark Kendrick: Thinking Straight is an indictment of dogma and fundamentalism, a vindication of the power of love, and a fresh interpretation of being Christian and gay in the 21st century.
July 15, 2021
The concept of straight camp is fascinating and bewildering and appalling. The protagonist's parents disagree, though—Taylor is shipped off to Straight to God when they learn he likes boys.
Now, Straight to God is not only for The Gays. It's also for people who have committed other crimes against...well, StG would probably say crimes against God, but let's say crimes against a particular denomination's idea of God. That includes, it seems, people with drug problems, or those who have had premarital sex (hint: this is more likely to be pregnant teenage girls, since it's easier to tell—their boyfriends are less likely to be there). If this book had come out more recently, I'd wonder if it wasn't in part inspired by recent events in the Duggar compound.
There are a number of really interesting things here. Taylor goes to StG not only against his will but also with a solid belief that being gay is not wrong, but he's also deeply religious. He just doesn't agree with everything his parents (or StG) are teaching. Many of the other characters are similar, and there's plenty of wrestling with ideas of God and religion. My mom is one of the sweetest women alive, says Taylor. And since her God is like her, it's almost like I miss God as much as I miss her. And my dad—well, he's gruff, no doubt there; look how hard he's been on me. And like his God, he's a little narrow-minded about some things, but I could do a lot worse than him (76).
A little later on, another character points out to Taylor that the people running StG aren't actually evil. Misguided, yes (particularly those who believe, say, that it's better to commit suicide than to live life gay), but genuinely doing what they think is best for the residents at StG. That's much, much more interesting to read about than a one-note place where the people running it are all flat-out horrible people.
That being said...the book takes a very weird turn towards the end, when one of the characters does turn out to be flat out evil, or at least batshit crazy. We're talking I guess it's supposed to make up the big climactic stuff, and be in there for the drama of it all, but it was a huge disappointment—not that parts of that big climax aren't relevant to stuff that has happened in churches, but it made the book feel a whole lot less realistic. And I hated that Taylor repeatedly wonders why .
Two other quibbles. One, Taylor reads an article—quite late in the game—about pheromones, gay men reacting to other gay men's pheromones rather than women's pheromones, etc. It's treated as a 'this changes everything!' moment, like, oh! There's proof! Now they have to listen! But...that's it? No. That's the sort of thing that will change the minds of a very few people, and those who are determined to believe otherwise will go on believing otherwise. I have similar problems with Taylor's theological conclusion that homosexuality was a sin thousands of years ago because homosexuality meant not having kids and that would 'jeopardize our whole community' (267) because of lack of things like retirement funds...but does he think that every single person back then had kids? What about the ones who were sterile? Or whose kids died? Or who died themselves, leaving their kids to be raised by others? Taylor's reasoning should be developed further, sure, but it's still in a very shallow stage.
The other quibble is the IM lingo. Granted, it is used as a plot point (a plot point that thinks it is more major than it actually is), but it is the single stupidest example of teenageness that I have seen in a very long time. Taylor and his boyfriend are obsessed with IM lingo to the extent that it's their 'test' when they first meet each other. Do they both know what WAI and PONA mean? ('what an idiot' and 'person of no account', for those of us who have lives.) They do! They're meant to be! You know what it says to me? That they're more interested in using stupid set acronyms than they are in developing independent thoughts.
Anyway. I would have loved to see a few other things developed a bit further. Sean's story, for example. Also...this idea that Taylor eventually buys into that StG is great as long as they cut out the gays-are-bad parts. Feels too easy, especially when we see very little of what it's like for people who are there for other reasons. Still, worth the read.
Happy that my parents are reasonable human beings (fantastic human beings, actually) who would never in a million years have shipped me off to straight camp. Happy that I'm no longer a teenager.
Now, Straight to God is not only for The Gays. It's also for people who have committed other crimes against...well, StG would probably say crimes against God, but let's say crimes against a particular denomination's idea of God. That includes, it seems, people with drug problems, or those who have had premarital sex (hint: this is more likely to be pregnant teenage girls, since it's easier to tell—their boyfriends are less likely to be there). If this book had come out more recently, I'd wonder if it wasn't in part inspired by recent events in the Duggar compound.
There are a number of really interesting things here. Taylor goes to StG not only against his will but also with a solid belief that being gay is not wrong, but he's also deeply religious. He just doesn't agree with everything his parents (or StG) are teaching. Many of the other characters are similar, and there's plenty of wrestling with ideas of God and religion. My mom is one of the sweetest women alive, says Taylor. And since her God is like her, it's almost like I miss God as much as I miss her. And my dad—well, he's gruff, no doubt there; look how hard he's been on me. And like his God, he's a little narrow-minded about some things, but I could do a lot worse than him (76).
A little later on, another character points out to Taylor that the people running StG aren't actually evil. Misguided, yes (particularly those who believe, say, that it's better to commit suicide than to live life gay), but genuinely doing what they think is best for the residents at StG. That's much, much more interesting to read about than a one-note place where the people running it are all flat-out horrible people.
That being said...the book takes a very weird turn towards the end, when one of the characters does turn out to be flat out evil, or at least batshit crazy. We're talking I guess it's supposed to make up the big climactic stuff, and be in there for the drama of it all, but it was a huge disappointment—not that parts of that big climax aren't relevant to stuff that has happened in churches, but it made the book feel a whole lot less realistic. And I hated that Taylor repeatedly wonders why .
Two other quibbles. One, Taylor reads an article—quite late in the game—about pheromones, gay men reacting to other gay men's pheromones rather than women's pheromones, etc. It's treated as a 'this changes everything!' moment, like, oh! There's proof! Now they have to listen! But...that's it? No. That's the sort of thing that will change the minds of a very few people, and those who are determined to believe otherwise will go on believing otherwise. I have similar problems with Taylor's theological conclusion that homosexuality was a sin thousands of years ago because homosexuality meant not having kids and that would 'jeopardize our whole community' (267) because of lack of things like retirement funds...but does he think that every single person back then had kids? What about the ones who were sterile? Or whose kids died? Or who died themselves, leaving their kids to be raised by others? Taylor's reasoning should be developed further, sure, but it's still in a very shallow stage.
The other quibble is the IM lingo. Granted, it is used as a plot point (a plot point that thinks it is more major than it actually is), but it is the single stupidest example of teenageness that I have seen in a very long time. Taylor and his boyfriend are obsessed with IM lingo to the extent that it's their 'test' when they first meet each other. Do they both know what WAI and PONA mean? ('what an idiot' and 'person of no account', for those of us who have lives.) They do! They're meant to be! You know what it says to me? That they're more interested in using stupid set acronyms than they are in developing independent thoughts.
Anyway. I would have loved to see a few other things developed a bit further. Sean's story, for example. Also...this idea that Taylor eventually buys into that StG is great as long as they cut out the gays-are-bad parts. Feels too easy, especially when we see very little of what it's like for people who are there for other reasons. Still, worth the read.
Happy that my parents are reasonable human beings (fantastic human beings, actually) who would never in a million years have shipped me off to straight camp. Happy that I'm no longer a teenager.
December 7, 2009
Taylor Adams is a sixteen-year old gay high school student who is head over heels in love with his first boyfriend Will. Unfortunately the joy that he feels about his first romance is not shared by his parents. They are devout, fundamentalist Christians, and they thus believe homosexuality to be an abomination. In an effort to cure Taylor of his homosexual proclivities, they elect to send their son to a six-week, faith-based, behavior-modification program called "Straight to God".
This is the second of author Robin Reardon's books that I've read, and I am quick to admit that she is an impressive story teller. Her ability to get inside the head of her gay male protagonist is remarkably realistic, and her development of complex yet likable characters creates an interesting and memorable read. In this particular story she uses a narrative arc to transform characters who initially appear to be a certain way but eventually are revealed to contradict this first impression.
Reardon also weaves together two extremely paradoxical viewpoints into a story which ultimately challenges the assumptions of both arguments. She craftily challenges fundamentalists to re-examine their condemnation of homosexuals, and she gently urges gays to try to understand the motives which fuel these harsh, fundamentalist judgements.
Although there were some plot elements which I did not find to be particularly plausible, I sincerely regard this book to be one of the best I have read in terms of its presentation of how people of faith choose to perceive sexual orientation. It certainly would be one of the first books that I would recommend to someone who is struggling to reconcile their faith with their affectional identity. It could also be immensely helpful to the religious family member of a gay person who has just come out to them.
I was most disturbed by the methodology that the program employed to brainwash and control its residents. One example is the use of what they referred to as the "safe zone" in which the inmate was required to remain mute for a period of hours or days. This prevented them from ever questioning authority or expressing any opposing opinion. It also created feelings of frustration and helplessness, quite the opposite of the "safe" atmosphere it was supposed to provide.
I was also a bit annoyed by the manner in which the religious establishment eventually evolved to a place of pseudo-acceptance of gay identity. They ultimately conclude that homosexuality "used" to be a sin, but it is not any more. This sort of rationalization does not explain why God would ever create someone to be gay in the first place. And their insistence upon protecting the "sanctity" of marriage by disallowing gays to marry is also contradictory in that they continue to condemn sexual relations outside of marriage.
Perhaps the important reality is that the process of reexamination had begun. At least some of the fundamentalists were able to allow themselves to rethink their staid opinions and challenge their previous assumptions.
Over all, I loved the book, and do not hesitate to recommend it. I'm anxiously waiting to see what future work this author has in store for us. Five stars.
This is the second of author Robin Reardon's books that I've read, and I am quick to admit that she is an impressive story teller. Her ability to get inside the head of her gay male protagonist is remarkably realistic, and her development of complex yet likable characters creates an interesting and memorable read. In this particular story she uses a narrative arc to transform characters who initially appear to be a certain way but eventually are revealed to contradict this first impression.
Reardon also weaves together two extremely paradoxical viewpoints into a story which ultimately challenges the assumptions of both arguments. She craftily challenges fundamentalists to re-examine their condemnation of homosexuals, and she gently urges gays to try to understand the motives which fuel these harsh, fundamentalist judgements.
Although there were some plot elements which I did not find to be particularly plausible, I sincerely regard this book to be one of the best I have read in terms of its presentation of how people of faith choose to perceive sexual orientation. It certainly would be one of the first books that I would recommend to someone who is struggling to reconcile their faith with their affectional identity. It could also be immensely helpful to the religious family member of a gay person who has just come out to them.
I was most disturbed by the methodology that the program employed to brainwash and control its residents. One example is the use of what they referred to as the "safe zone" in which the inmate was required to remain mute for a period of hours or days. This prevented them from ever questioning authority or expressing any opposing opinion. It also created feelings of frustration and helplessness, quite the opposite of the "safe" atmosphere it was supposed to provide.
I was also a bit annoyed by the manner in which the religious establishment eventually evolved to a place of pseudo-acceptance of gay identity. They ultimately conclude that homosexuality "used" to be a sin, but it is not any more. This sort of rationalization does not explain why God would ever create someone to be gay in the first place. And their insistence upon protecting the "sanctity" of marriage by disallowing gays to marry is also contradictory in that they continue to condemn sexual relations outside of marriage.
Perhaps the important reality is that the process of reexamination had begun. At least some of the fundamentalists were able to allow themselves to rethink their staid opinions and challenge their previous assumptions.
Over all, I loved the book, and do not hesitate to recommend it. I'm anxiously waiting to see what future work this author has in store for us. Five stars.
February 21, 2010
I'm torn on this book. It's not that I hated it...but I didn't like it...though some parts were alright. I dunno; I guess I was looking for answers, and this book didn't give me those answers. It was an entertaining read, and a page-turner for sure, but I wanted something more-- something much more real-- again, a truth to it. The book poses arguments on homosexuality and the Bible, but there wasn't much defin-ance in it for me. I'm sorry, but I was really excited to read this and try and figure out something for myself, and I realized after reading it, I really couldn't give it to someone who had the same questions I had, and am having about this issue; there was no satisfaction in it for me, and again, though points were posed--I had a counter-argument for each. Trust me, I didnt want to have those counter-arguments, but they were there, and I'm not going to get real specific either; sorry for whoever reads this.
Also, I really didnt care for the overuse and display of sexual imagery because it felt like I was reading something like a 'soft porno' (I can only assume what that means) i.e. SMUT?, and though the character opted for this description as his lover's 'true love' and feelings, I felt more like it was sheer lust and instant gratification than love. =[
And, I really don't like the whole play about Rev. Bartle~yay stereotypes. I mean it certainly gave the book more zing, but again...yeah... not what I was looking for, and I don't think the book offered much aside from the fact of love; and yes, God loves everyone, but that doesnt mean he has to love the 'sin'. I'm not saying that homosexuality is a 'sin', but the way the book poses it, is that it 'was' once a sin, and that 'was' statement is difficult to adhere to especially if God's Word is as true as it was before as it is today.
Truth: I'm Bisexual and I Love God; do I know if I'm going to hell? I'm not sure, but I do know that God loves me, the person, and if this truly is a birthed thing, then alright, but if its not, well then shit ya know? But its whatever; I'll keep wandering until I get the answers I seek...or maybe I already know the ansewrs. Its hard to tell sometimes and I was looking for something else to turn to, other thoughts, but when I know the things I know, and the things I've been told, I need more backing...understanding. Its hard to explain, but I'm one troubled fellow I can assure you that.
So yeah... I'm a little dissapointed, but hey it was an entertaining read, and for only the sheer purposes of entertainment and suspense, I would pick up the sequal and read about Taylor's new room-mate: Kenington. But yeah, other than that...I don't think so.
Also, I really didnt care for the overuse and display of sexual imagery because it felt like I was reading something like a 'soft porno' (I can only assume what that means) i.e. SMUT?, and though the character opted for this description as his lover's 'true love' and feelings, I felt more like it was sheer lust and instant gratification than love. =[
And, I really don't like the whole play about Rev. Bartle~yay stereotypes. I mean it certainly gave the book more zing, but again...yeah... not what I was looking for, and I don't think the book offered much aside from the fact of love; and yes, God loves everyone, but that doesnt mean he has to love the 'sin'. I'm not saying that homosexuality is a 'sin', but the way the book poses it, is that it 'was' once a sin, and that 'was' statement is difficult to adhere to especially if God's Word is as true as it was before as it is today.
Truth: I'm Bisexual and I Love God; do I know if I'm going to hell? I'm not sure, but I do know that God loves me, the person, and if this truly is a birthed thing, then alright, but if its not, well then shit ya know? But its whatever; I'll keep wandering until I get the answers I seek...or maybe I already know the ansewrs. Its hard to tell sometimes and I was looking for something else to turn to, other thoughts, but when I know the things I know, and the things I've been told, I need more backing...understanding. Its hard to explain, but I'm one troubled fellow I can assure you that.
So yeah... I'm a little dissapointed, but hey it was an entertaining read, and for only the sheer purposes of entertainment and suspense, I would pick up the sequal and read about Taylor's new room-mate: Kenington. But yeah, other than that...I don't think so.
December 26, 2008
Thinking Straight, by Robin Reardon is in many ways similar to Alex Sanchez’ The God Box, in that it explores the new sub-genre of gay/teen/Christian fiction. Tyler is a good god-fearing Christian who struggles with coming to terms with his realization that he is gay. With the arrival of Will, a confident, cute new student who happens to be gay and finds Tyler attractive, Tyler’s world gets complicated. Will is also a member of Tyler's church and the two of them engage in a discussion about the origins of sin, and how to reconcile what their bodies are telling them with what they are taught in church.
Eventually, Tyler and Will are found out, and his parents commit him to "Straight To God", a local retreat to rehabilitate teens who engage in drug use, petty crime, or "immoral behavior". It is under this last infraction in which Tyler is committed. He finds himself in a strictly controlled program with a roommate that shadows him constantly, nightly prayer groups, and strict regulations about dress and speech. Tyler keeps thoughts of Will in his mind to help him get through what he hopes will only be an eight week program, but as he runs afoul of the system, it looks like Tyler may be there for a much longer time.
Apart from the usual Gay Teen Coming Of Age elements, this story has some lengthy discussions about how sin is relative to the time in history the particular bible passage was written, and several teens in the program struggle against the more dogmatic administration to find good in the program and expose the more corruptive influences that threaten many of the students.
This book may be of interest to any teen who seeks to reconcile what they are taught in church, with what they feel is a fair and compassionate interpretation of the Bible.
Eventually, Tyler and Will are found out, and his parents commit him to "Straight To God", a local retreat to rehabilitate teens who engage in drug use, petty crime, or "immoral behavior". It is under this last infraction in which Tyler is committed. He finds himself in a strictly controlled program with a roommate that shadows him constantly, nightly prayer groups, and strict regulations about dress and speech. Tyler keeps thoughts of Will in his mind to help him get through what he hopes will only be an eight week program, but as he runs afoul of the system, it looks like Tyler may be there for a much longer time.
Apart from the usual Gay Teen Coming Of Age elements, this story has some lengthy discussions about how sin is relative to the time in history the particular bible passage was written, and several teens in the program struggle against the more dogmatic administration to find good in the program and expose the more corruptive influences that threaten many of the students.
This book may be of interest to any teen who seeks to reconcile what they are taught in church, with what they feel is a fair and compassionate interpretation of the Bible.
January 7, 2022
At first I was afraid, I was petrified that I would not like this novel by Robin Reardon. The main character, Taylor, comes out (by accident) to his well-meaning, staunchly Christian parents - and they send him off on a six week programme designed to "correct" him. This made me very uncomfortable, having an idea of the damage similar programmes have caused.
But Ms Reardon waves her magic wand and sure enough, the mix of complex characters in the programme with Taylor starts to become interesting very soon. Eventually it develops into a narrative of suspense, with the pages hardly turning quickly enough (even in the kindle version). Taylor is quite sure that he does not need any correcting, but he plays a role in assisting some of his fellow "residents" to withstand the undue pressure on them.
All's well that ends well, as the Bard said, and Thinking straight is yet another Reardon novel I enjoyed thoroughly and will reread in future.
Aanvanklik was ek erg ongemaklik oor die premis van hierdie Reardon-roman: die hoofkarakter Taylor word gestuur na 'n Christelike program vir problematiese jongmense om sy homoseksualiteit te "korrigeer". Hy is baie seker daarvan dat hy nie korrigering nodig het nie, maar sy alternatief is 'n militêre akademie. Die groep karakters saam met hom in die inrigting verseker dat die intrige baie gou interessant en selfs opwindend raak. Eind goed, als goed - en Reardon het nog 'n genietlike roman geskryf wat ek in die toekoms sal herlees!
But Ms Reardon waves her magic wand and sure enough, the mix of complex characters in the programme with Taylor starts to become interesting very soon. Eventually it develops into a narrative of suspense, with the pages hardly turning quickly enough (even in the kindle version). Taylor is quite sure that he does not need any correcting, but he plays a role in assisting some of his fellow "residents" to withstand the undue pressure on them.
All's well that ends well, as the Bard said, and Thinking straight is yet another Reardon novel I enjoyed thoroughly and will reread in future.
Aanvanklik was ek erg ongemaklik oor die premis van hierdie Reardon-roman: die hoofkarakter Taylor word gestuur na 'n Christelike program vir problematiese jongmense om sy homoseksualiteit te "korrigeer". Hy is baie seker daarvan dat hy nie korrigering nodig het nie, maar sy alternatief is 'n militêre akademie. Die groep karakters saam met hom in die inrigting verseker dat die intrige baie gou interessant en selfs opwindend raak. Eind goed, als goed - en Reardon het nog 'n genietlike roman geskryf wat ek in die toekoms sal herlees!
March 2, 2018
While I cringe at the thought of any kind of facility or therapy that promises to "cure" homosexuality, I had faith in Robin Reardon that she would not steer me wrong. I was not disappointed. I personally do not believe in organized religion, but this author has a way of keeping her characters from being irreparably harmed by religion.
Taylor is sent to Straight to God by his parents (and is a lot more forgiving of them than I am), and from the get go he is open to the religious aspect while rejecting the idea that he is broken or sinful in his desire for Will, his boyfriend. Taylor meets many interesting people during his stay, and uses his strengths to help others in many different ways.
I have read several books by this author, and I have loved them all. This was no exception. Taylor is a likable character, and I found myself rooting for him and many of the well developed characters as well.
Taylor is sent to Straight to God by his parents (and is a lot more forgiving of them than I am), and from the get go he is open to the religious aspect while rejecting the idea that he is broken or sinful in his desire for Will, his boyfriend. Taylor meets many interesting people during his stay, and uses his strengths to help others in many different ways.
I have read several books by this author, and I have loved them all. This was no exception. Taylor is a likable character, and I found myself rooting for him and many of the well developed characters as well.
June 6, 2025
The book was good (enough for me to finish) but we got to a handful of very sensitive topics and triggers in the last handful of chapters and everyone in the book seems/seemed so… casual(?)… about them?
Maybe that’s supposed to be the point though? Like maybe the reader is *supposed* to be uncomfortable with how blasé the characters are to receiving the information? It was also published in 2008, so maybe some of the things we experience in the book were fueled by the social/political climate of homosexuality and how it was viewed at the time? I don’t know. What I do know is that if I were in this story I would have had some very different reactions, that’s for sure!
Overall I’m glad I picked this book up from the used bookstore, but I can’t say I’ll ever read it again.
Maybe that’s supposed to be the point though? Like maybe the reader is *supposed* to be uncomfortable with how blasé the characters are to receiving the information? It was also published in 2008, so maybe some of the things we experience in the book were fueled by the social/political climate of homosexuality and how it was viewed at the time? I don’t know. What I do know is that if I were in this story I would have had some very different reactions, that’s for sure!
Overall I’m glad I picked this book up from the used bookstore, but I can’t say I’ll ever read it again.
July 6, 2008
Coming out stories have been told before, both to our satisfaction and to our dismay. What’s refreshing about Robin Reardon’s novel Thinking Straight is the fact that its protagonist, Taylor Adams, never once questions his sexuality and whether or not what he feels is wrong. He’s matter-of-factly gay and in love with another boy, plain and simple. In this story, his orientation plays second fiddle to his relationship with God--uncharted territory for a coming-of-age novel with an openly gay lead character.
At sixteen, Taylor not only realizes, but also accepts, that he likes boys instead of girls. He begins a relationship with fellow classmate and longtime crush, Will. Unashamed of his preference, he proudly comes out to his parents and proclaims, "I know God doesn’t make mistakes, and if I’m gay, it’s because that’s what he wanted." His parents aren’t as easily convinced, so they present him with an ultimatum: spend the summer at a "degayification" camp, or enroll in military school.
Rather than risk losing contact altogether with Will, Taylor reluctantly agrees to the former and is soon shipped off to Straight To God, where he becomes acquainted with other troubled youths in need of "deprogramming."
Taylor first meets his emotionally guarded and bible-quoting roommate, Charles, then is introduced to down-to-earth Sean, who oversees the laundry room activities where Taylor spends most of his time earning his keep.
Other residents who take an implicit interest in Taylor include Nate, an older and seemingly ambivalent figure of authority, and Marie, an overly curious young girl with a mostly cavalier disposition.
Because part of their rehabilitation is to discount their former selves, Taylor can’t help but wonder what brought each of them to this place, especially Charles, who he opens up to and later tries to protect. Nonetheless, Taylor learns to hide his curiosity under the watchful eye of guardian and disciplinarian, Mrs. Harnett.
Taylor’s personal struggle (or lack thereof) aside, the sequence of events that transpires at Straight To God makes for a compelling read, as the aura of mystery surrounding both the establishment and its inhabitants continues to grow with each chapter. The author has created a story that is equal parts psychological thriller, whodunit and personal profile.
Meanwhile, Taylor Adams makes for an admirable role model, because his outlook remains unscathed regardless of the circumstance, and rather than condemning his captors, he tries to learn more about them before passing judgment. Although Taylor’s plight is fictitious, his story packs an emotional punch and teaches the reader a valuable lesson about religion, relationships and love.
At sixteen, Taylor not only realizes, but also accepts, that he likes boys instead of girls. He begins a relationship with fellow classmate and longtime crush, Will. Unashamed of his preference, he proudly comes out to his parents and proclaims, "I know God doesn’t make mistakes, and if I’m gay, it’s because that’s what he wanted." His parents aren’t as easily convinced, so they present him with an ultimatum: spend the summer at a "degayification" camp, or enroll in military school.
Rather than risk losing contact altogether with Will, Taylor reluctantly agrees to the former and is soon shipped off to Straight To God, where he becomes acquainted with other troubled youths in need of "deprogramming."
Taylor first meets his emotionally guarded and bible-quoting roommate, Charles, then is introduced to down-to-earth Sean, who oversees the laundry room activities where Taylor spends most of his time earning his keep.
Other residents who take an implicit interest in Taylor include Nate, an older and seemingly ambivalent figure of authority, and Marie, an overly curious young girl with a mostly cavalier disposition.
Because part of their rehabilitation is to discount their former selves, Taylor can’t help but wonder what brought each of them to this place, especially Charles, who he opens up to and later tries to protect. Nonetheless, Taylor learns to hide his curiosity under the watchful eye of guardian and disciplinarian, Mrs. Harnett.
Taylor’s personal struggle (or lack thereof) aside, the sequence of events that transpires at Straight To God makes for a compelling read, as the aura of mystery surrounding both the establishment and its inhabitants continues to grow with each chapter. The author has created a story that is equal parts psychological thriller, whodunit and personal profile.
Meanwhile, Taylor Adams makes for an admirable role model, because his outlook remains unscathed regardless of the circumstance, and rather than condemning his captors, he tries to learn more about them before passing judgment. Although Taylor’s plight is fictitious, his story packs an emotional punch and teaches the reader a valuable lesson about religion, relationships and love.
July 23, 2014
The setting is a complete insult to any thinking person's intelligence. I kept hoping all the way through this piece of religious trash, why don't you grow a backbone? Escape to anywhere and live on the streets if you have to, but don't put up with any more of this religious tripe. .
Depressing and repetitive, it tells the story of Taylor, a young man who let's his father send him to a conversion camp for homosexuals and other misfits. I find it hard to believe that this sort of Spanish Inquisition type of institution could possibly exist. Collectively the wooden faceless characters go through the motions in a hell hole that seems bent on destroying every last vestige of individuality in their young minds. Being gay and having a spine may not be mutually exclusive, but this book in no way seems to give any hope whatsoever that the Christian fundamentalist group is just a bunch of scum, but should be fought against at any cost.
Any teen who reads this, gay or straight, should run screaming from the library. If you have problems with coming out, DON'T read this book. It could make you suicidal!
Update July 2014
Three readings and I'm finally getting it. What the author is trying to do is give us a warning. These places DO exist, much to my disgust. And it's not really a bad book. Much of what I said in my original review holds true, but as vile, immoral, and hateful as these concentration camps are, it is important that we know that they are there, destroying the lives and minds of our children.
Taylor is lucky. He's strong willed and won't let himself be destroyed. He does all he can to help to keep some others from being overwhelmed by the brainwashing techniques used. The character's interactions do seem to be quite abnormal, but, given the circumstances, they could actually the disturbing result of being in such a place.
I wish the story could have been complete, ending with Taylor's homecoming, and subsequent result, but it leaves enough said that you can figure out what the ultimate conclusion will be.
But still, be forewarned. This is a depressing and sad book. Only Taylor's strength carries the story. He alone is the true savior and hero. I'm truly impressed by all of the good reviews it has received.
Please note that I have revised my original review as well.
Depressing and repetitive, it tells the story of Taylor, a young man who let's his father send him to a conversion camp for homosexuals and other misfits. I find it hard to believe that this sort of Spanish Inquisition type of institution could possibly exist. Collectively the wooden faceless characters go through the motions in a hell hole that seems bent on destroying every last vestige of individuality in their young minds. Being gay and having a spine may not be mutually exclusive, but this book in no way seems to give any hope whatsoever that the Christian fundamentalist group is just a bunch of scum, but should be fought against at any cost.
Any teen who reads this, gay or straight, should run screaming from the library. If you have problems with coming out, DON'T read this book. It could make you suicidal!
Update July 2014
Three readings and I'm finally getting it. What the author is trying to do is give us a warning. These places DO exist, much to my disgust. And it's not really a bad book. Much of what I said in my original review holds true, but as vile, immoral, and hateful as these concentration camps are, it is important that we know that they are there, destroying the lives and minds of our children.
Taylor is lucky. He's strong willed and won't let himself be destroyed. He does all he can to help to keep some others from being overwhelmed by the brainwashing techniques used. The character's interactions do seem to be quite abnormal, but, given the circumstances, they could actually the disturbing result of being in such a place.
I wish the story could have been complete, ending with Taylor's homecoming, and subsequent result, but it leaves enough said that you can figure out what the ultimate conclusion will be.
But still, be forewarned. This is a depressing and sad book. Only Taylor's strength carries the story. He alone is the true savior and hero. I'm truly impressed by all of the good reviews it has received.
Please note that I have revised my original review as well.
January 12, 2010
Really, it's all about love.
A wonderful mesh of queer and religion, Reardon gives the reader plenty to think about once the book is down.
I had some difficulty getting through this book, NOT because it was bad, but because it put people in awkward situations that could have turned out badly/embarrassingly and that is my squick. Our narrator is funny, witty and rather intelligent, which lends itself to a fun story, even when the discussion topics are deep and serious. Ty is taking everything seriously, but not TOO seriously, or else he might start to believe the junk they are shoving down his throat. It's a great voice to listen to through the story and the prejudice of first person plays out wonderfully.
The ending was wrapped up pretty completely, although it may have been a bit too much of a happy ending--I'm still out on that one. This is definitely worth the read (and it's a pretty quick read), especially if religion and homosexuality are close to your heart. Reardon (via Ty) gives us a new way to look at God's love and what the Bible means (and this is coming from an atheist).
A wonderful mesh of queer and religion, Reardon gives the reader plenty to think about once the book is down.
I had some difficulty getting through this book, NOT because it was bad, but because it put people in awkward situations that could have turned out badly/embarrassingly and that is my squick. Our narrator is funny, witty and rather intelligent, which lends itself to a fun story, even when the discussion topics are deep and serious. Ty is taking everything seriously, but not TOO seriously, or else he might start to believe the junk they are shoving down his throat. It's a great voice to listen to through the story and the prejudice of first person plays out wonderfully.
The ending was wrapped up pretty completely, although it may have been a bit too much of a happy ending--I'm still out on that one. This is definitely worth the read (and it's a pretty quick read), especially if religion and homosexuality are close to your heart. Reardon (via Ty) gives us a new way to look at God's love and what the Bible means (and this is coming from an atheist).
March 21, 2009
This was an pretty interesting book to read for me. I like how for once, it showed religious people defending their sexuality with scripture rather than trying to destroy it. The book gave some interesting view points that you don't see too often. My only real complaint with this novel was the IM lingo it used. That really detracted from the work. Most people don't use IM lingo outside of IMs, and those who do are really frowned upon. Heck, people are frowned upon for using in IMs. If the author had omitted all of that, I think this would've been a really good book. There were a couple other little cliche thing in there, but nothing too major. There were some interesting twists and turns, and the ending is actually pretty good. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who is struggling with their sexuality, and even those who aren't.
November 3, 2009
When 16 year old born-again Taylor comes out to his parents they ship him off to be deprogrammed. Taylor and his parents seem to belong to one the western mega-churches, which are short on reason, forgiveness and rationality. The program they send him to Straight to God is administered by a freak who thinks gay kids who commit suicide are preferable to living ones. And it gets worse. Taylor's choice at the end really threw me.
"There was something really creepy going on in this place, I decided. I felt like I'd landed in the middle of this horror flick, maybe one where some of the people were real people and some were aliens, or had been real people but had been taken over by some supernatural force. It was almost like I could go up to some of them and rip their face off and there'd be this hideous creature underneath." (p.90)
"There was something really creepy going on in this place, I decided. I felt like I'd landed in the middle of this horror flick, maybe one where some of the people were real people and some were aliens, or had been real people but had been taken over by some supernatural force. It was almost like I could go up to some of them and rip their face off and there'd be this hideous creature underneath." (p.90)
January 8, 2013
This book was amazing. Not so much because of the concept [gay kid gets sent to a church-run camp for "bad" kids who need to be reformed] because I'm sure that's been done several times. What was really interesting about this book was that the main character is actually a Christian to begin with [not a usual theme in this sort of story] and the journey into this camp actually changes and strengthens his faith. This is one of those books that will make you think, and I'd recommend it to anyone who is LGBT or an ally and is struggling with reconciling their faith with that. For that matter, I'd recommend it to those who aren't struggling, because I think it brings up some interesting things you may not have thought of before-- I know I hadn't.
I don't usually write reviews or comments on the stuff I read, so this is a pretty big testament to how much I enjoyed this book.
I don't usually write reviews or comments on the stuff I read, so this is a pretty big testament to how much I enjoyed this book.
August 29, 2009
-Holy! Jesus Freakin' Christ BATMAN!, everyone is gay!
-Not to worry Boy Wonder, grab the Bat-Crosses and we'll
beat the fairies out them!
- But...BATMAN!, we are gay too!
- I know kid, but some one has to do the job...
-Not to worry Boy Wonder, grab the Bat-Crosses and we'll
beat the fairies out them!
- But...BATMAN!, we are gay too!
- I know kid, but some one has to do the job...
January 20, 2010
This book is suscessful on many levels. It's a good quick read with characters that we care about, a story-line that draws you in and an important message. It also allows you to perhaps see things in an all-new way. What more could you want from a novel?
July 1, 2008
Not a bad little read. Very fast. And a good message. It's good for young gay kids to see characters who are brave, smart and focused on serving others.
October 20, 2013
First, it was the IM talk. No one, I repeat, NO ONE talked like this. Then it got to be a bit too creepy religious for my taste so I had to bail.
April 11, 2019
This book has some similarities to Boy Erased. But I liked it on its own merits. It is part of a genre of gay YA books that concern themselves with resolving Christian faith and homosexuality. As an atheist, I am somewhat disinterested in this question, which involves quoting scripture and debating its meaning. The main character here is charming and sympathetic. I was with him all the way. The storyline and situations are involving. The secondary characters are interesting and individualized.
I guess the best book I've read in this genre is "The God Box". I would recommend that one before any other. But I think that anyone open to this type of storyline will really enjoy this book.
I guess the best book I've read in this genre is "The God Box". I would recommend that one before any other. But I think that anyone open to this type of storyline will really enjoy this book.
March 3, 2020
I won’t lie, this one was a tough read. I gave it 5 stars because the subject matter and the writing itself is worth 5 stars. I almost didn’t rate it because I absolutely hate it as well. Robin Reardon is a great author, and you can tell by the way even though I hate the entire idea behind a Christian conversion camp, I still finished it. Icky. Conflicting thoughts on this one.
August 12, 2023
This book was kinda messed up tbh.
February 18, 2016
Read more at http://rainbowreviews.wix.com/reading... or on Instagram @rainbowreviewskc
When Taylor's parents find out he's gay, they immediately ship him off to a camp, called Straight to God. (No, it's not a place for gay conversion therapy.) When he gets there, he discovers everything around him is about Christ and the way the bible accepts, and shuns us from our sins. But when Taylor's roommate starts acting distant, he feels that it's time to investigate (afterall, he's finally out of the SafeZone).
You may like this book if you like the following sub-genres:
GBLT
Religion/Christianity
Sexual Abuse
This book was a huge surprise. When I originally started reading it, I swore I'd be reading a true story about a conversion camp. But sure enough, I read the not-so-true story of Taylor, a boy who needed to know that through Christ there was love, and that being gay wouldn't change that. I thought, "Surely I'll get tired of reading all these bible verses." But I didn't. It was more re-assuring than anything, despite my own personal acceptance of my sexuality.
The story line, was good. But the concepts didn't mesh well with the writing style, which was the biggest disappointment in this novel. The way this is written, it feels like a memoir. I very much felt as if Taylor was a real person, and that I was following a brief moment in his life. But that brief moment, was too brief. Taylor was expected to be at the camp over the summer, but by the 100th page, I was only at day 2. But the end of the book, I only saw, 10 days, maybe? For me, I felt cheated. I would've liked to see the same chain of events happen, because I think it was extremely powerful, but it took a while to get to the camp, and the ending was really abrupt. I would've liked to see a bit more character growth, and while this is a separate issue, I think it would've been so rewarding to see more than just two characters change. The lack of substance from the other characters that Taylor bonded with could've accounted for more purposeful pages. While something happened in every chapter, the most important things happened in the first 98 pages, and the last 50 pages. That leaves 150 pages of things that weren't unimportant, but they didn't add a lot of value (for me) to the story line. I also missed the closure (if there was any) because Taylor and his parents as well as between Taylor and Will.
But this story, it's one many experience - that Christian values counter the ability to be gay. This story did an amazing job of showing the different levels of acceptance for gay Christians. As I mentioned previously, this felt like a memoir. That's a combination of how it was written, and the experience behind it. It felt very realistic. There were few moments that I thought, "that's not really going to happen." And then I remember an episode of some crime show and think, wait, that did happen... and there was no disclaimer before hand. It's not in the papers so much anymore, but when this book was written in 2008, this was a hot-topic issue in Obama's campaign. And that's because being gay was shifting from being the greatest sin (although, this book reminds us that no sin varies in weight from another) to being something progressives accept. This book looked into the future, into that historical shift and that's something that could've been predicted, but in no way could the author have known has drastic that shift was going to be. I think the reality-factor behind this novel made it that much more entertaining. And I don't mean that in the sense that reading about these camps is a laugh-factor; but I never felt like I had to put the book down. I became increasingly annoyed when I was interrupted as a matter of fact.
The title was really well done. "Thinking Straight" isn't just a phrase (as in, I'm so tired I wasn't thinking straight,) used, but it's used in the sense that these gay youth need to think straight. But they can't, because this is a thing ingrained in their bodies, in their DNA. And I think that the title, paired with the cover art (see above) really drove home this idea that these teenagers are caged into this camp with parental threats on the outside; that if they don't become straight, if they don't become straight edge, if they don't become calm/mild-mannered teenagers, that a certain hell awaits them on the other side of the fence. It's a separation of church and state; it's a separation of healthy and unhealthy; of reality and inner impulses; it's the epitome of what it means to try to think straight.
When Taylor's parents find out he's gay, they immediately ship him off to a camp, called Straight to God. (No, it's not a place for gay conversion therapy.) When he gets there, he discovers everything around him is about Christ and the way the bible accepts, and shuns us from our sins. But when Taylor's roommate starts acting distant, he feels that it's time to investigate (afterall, he's finally out of the SafeZone).
You may like this book if you like the following sub-genres:
GBLT
Religion/Christianity
Sexual Abuse
This book was a huge surprise. When I originally started reading it, I swore I'd be reading a true story about a conversion camp. But sure enough, I read the not-so-true story of Taylor, a boy who needed to know that through Christ there was love, and that being gay wouldn't change that. I thought, "Surely I'll get tired of reading all these bible verses." But I didn't. It was more re-assuring than anything, despite my own personal acceptance of my sexuality.
The story line, was good. But the concepts didn't mesh well with the writing style, which was the biggest disappointment in this novel. The way this is written, it feels like a memoir. I very much felt as if Taylor was a real person, and that I was following a brief moment in his life. But that brief moment, was too brief. Taylor was expected to be at the camp over the summer, but by the 100th page, I was only at day 2. But the end of the book, I only saw, 10 days, maybe? For me, I felt cheated. I would've liked to see the same chain of events happen, because I think it was extremely powerful, but it took a while to get to the camp, and the ending was really abrupt. I would've liked to see a bit more character growth, and while this is a separate issue, I think it would've been so rewarding to see more than just two characters change. The lack of substance from the other characters that Taylor bonded with could've accounted for more purposeful pages. While something happened in every chapter, the most important things happened in the first 98 pages, and the last 50 pages. That leaves 150 pages of things that weren't unimportant, but they didn't add a lot of value (for me) to the story line. I also missed the closure (if there was any) because Taylor and his parents as well as between Taylor and Will.
But this story, it's one many experience - that Christian values counter the ability to be gay. This story did an amazing job of showing the different levels of acceptance for gay Christians. As I mentioned previously, this felt like a memoir. That's a combination of how it was written, and the experience behind it. It felt very realistic. There were few moments that I thought, "that's not really going to happen." And then I remember an episode of some crime show and think, wait, that did happen... and there was no disclaimer before hand. It's not in the papers so much anymore, but when this book was written in 2008, this was a hot-topic issue in Obama's campaign. And that's because being gay was shifting from being the greatest sin (although, this book reminds us that no sin varies in weight from another) to being something progressives accept. This book looked into the future, into that historical shift and that's something that could've been predicted, but in no way could the author have known has drastic that shift was going to be. I think the reality-factor behind this novel made it that much more entertaining. And I don't mean that in the sense that reading about these camps is a laugh-factor; but I never felt like I had to put the book down. I became increasingly annoyed when I was interrupted as a matter of fact.
The title was really well done. "Thinking Straight" isn't just a phrase (as in, I'm so tired I wasn't thinking straight,) used, but it's used in the sense that these gay youth need to think straight. But they can't, because this is a thing ingrained in their bodies, in their DNA. And I think that the title, paired with the cover art (see above) really drove home this idea that these teenagers are caged into this camp with parental threats on the outside; that if they don't become straight, if they don't become straight edge, if they don't become calm/mild-mannered teenagers, that a certain hell awaits them on the other side of the fence. It's a separation of church and state; it's a separation of healthy and unhealthy; of reality and inner impulses; it's the epitome of what it means to try to think straight.
April 14, 2012
Thinking Straight is a novel that starts out really slow, boring even, and slowly works itself up into a fervor that incorporates some dark themes and quite a bit of tension. It was a page turner for me, which as far as I'm concerned, means the author did something right. Though I should say as well, what ends up happening in the novel is not at all what I was expecting to get into when I started reading it. It's not a bad thing. Just it took unexpected turns.
The characters, for the most part, were engaging. Most of them felt pretty believable, and I like that most of the ones who were introduced were given enough "page time" to be developed a little and for us readers to learn why they're in the program.
That said, I had some big issues with the infallible narrator, as well as his so called love interest.
I'm not doubting that teenagers can fall in love. When I fell in love for the first time, I was twelve, and ten years later I still love that person, even though I know she can't love me (straight girl problems). Even so, I found the relationship played up between Taylor and Will difficult to accept as realistic.
As a protagonist, Taylor is too "perfect". He's so faithful and sure of himself that he has little room to develop within the novel. True, he has his chances to grow stronger, but it is his positive aspects already there that grow. There is nothing that changes from his previous life, and if there had been, I think the novel would have been stronger.
Taylor is so sure of himself and his sexuality, even though he apparently only realized two years before the book starts, that all he needs to do is look at another boy in class to "know" that he is his one true love and that they will be passionate for each other. The first time they meet to "study" at his home, they have sex. I mean, they "make love". The author painfully overuses this phrase throughout the entirety of the novel.
I don't doubt that sometimes guys will look at sex like that... but they're teenagers, they're young, and because they have sex the *very first time they meet*, I felt that it was all their relationship was based on. Yes, they had some tender moments, but they weren't monumental in developing them as characters. For gay teenagers, they eased into things way too easily. There was absolutely no hesitation, absolutely no second guessing. They just did it. And they did it *a lot*.
And if it was just them having sex that was the problem, it wouldn't be so bad. But like I said, they have a lot of sex. A lot. Sometimes two or three times in a short period of time. Reardon, there's a biological thing males have to deal with called the refractory period. Especially being teens and being fairly new to being sexual, it just didn't feel probably that they'd be able to go at it five times in an hour. Just saying. <_<
So yeah. The book did rely on a lot of cliches, flowery language, and sometimes I feel the themes in the novel kind of reflected a little too much on the author, but I think it's worth it to give the story a chance. Once it gets going, it becomes easier to ignore the flaws, and even though Taylor seems like way too perfect a person, you can really feel for the other characters and their struggles, and that's the novel's biggest drawing point.
The characters, for the most part, were engaging. Most of them felt pretty believable, and I like that most of the ones who were introduced were given enough "page time" to be developed a little and for us readers to learn why they're in the program.
That said, I had some big issues with the infallible narrator, as well as his so called love interest.
I'm not doubting that teenagers can fall in love. When I fell in love for the first time, I was twelve, and ten years later I still love that person, even though I know she can't love me (straight girl problems). Even so, I found the relationship played up between Taylor and Will difficult to accept as realistic.
As a protagonist, Taylor is too "perfect". He's so faithful and sure of himself that he has little room to develop within the novel. True, he has his chances to grow stronger, but it is his positive aspects already there that grow. There is nothing that changes from his previous life, and if there had been, I think the novel would have been stronger.
Taylor is so sure of himself and his sexuality, even though he apparently only realized two years before the book starts, that all he needs to do is look at another boy in class to "know" that he is his one true love and that they will be passionate for each other. The first time they meet to "study" at his home, they have sex. I mean, they "make love". The author painfully overuses this phrase throughout the entirety of the novel.
I don't doubt that sometimes guys will look at sex like that... but they're teenagers, they're young, and because they have sex the *very first time they meet*, I felt that it was all their relationship was based on. Yes, they had some tender moments, but they weren't monumental in developing them as characters. For gay teenagers, they eased into things way too easily. There was absolutely no hesitation, absolutely no second guessing. They just did it. And they did it *a lot*.
And if it was just them having sex that was the problem, it wouldn't be so bad. But like I said, they have a lot of sex. A lot. Sometimes two or three times in a short period of time. Reardon, there's a biological thing males have to deal with called the refractory period. Especially being teens and being fairly new to being sexual, it just didn't feel probably that they'd be able to go at it five times in an hour. Just saying. <_<
So yeah. The book did rely on a lot of cliches, flowery language, and sometimes I feel the themes in the novel kind of reflected a little too much on the author, but I think it's worth it to give the story a chance. Once it gets going, it becomes easier to ignore the flaws, and even though Taylor seems like way too perfect a person, you can really feel for the other characters and their struggles, and that's the novel's biggest drawing point.
August 9, 2009
The Tasting:
Why I bought it:
I was browsing the virtual shelves at The Book Depository and came across it. The blurb intrigued.
Dislike/like (ending on a high note):
Dislike~ Or more of a warning~ I have this fascination/horror with the things people do to each other in the name of religion. This is never more the case when it comes to what some so-called Christian people will do to adults and especially children in an attempt to make them conform to their interpretation of the Bible and Christianity. The idea of parents sending their gay children to an institution which would 'straighten' them out was particularly confronting for me and there were times in the book when I wavered between intense dislike for what I was reading to feelings of hope for future of the young protag.
Like~ What stood out about Thinking Straight for me was the character of Taylor. An extraordinarily strong, albeit imperfect (he's a teenager after all), character with an amazing sense of self. Below are two quotes from the book that illustrate this faith in himself and his God as well as part of Taylor's journey at Straight to God:
God, I know you love me. And you know I love you. I don't know why you've brought me here unless it's some kind of test. Can I live with these people and still be the person [gay:] you made me? Can I believe, despite everything I'll go through here that you don't make mistakes? (p. 36)
Strickland and everyone else need to learn to love me for who I am, for who God made me, not to try and make this about them. Which means they have to question their own assumptions about homosexuality. They assume that God is just as uncomfortable with it as they are. So it's as much a test for them as for me. And that's why everyone is in here [Straight to God:] together. (p. 197)
Dislike~ I have my own beliefs, but I am not someone who is, for want of a better word, 'religiousy'. I did stumble at times with the use of text, stories and concepts from the Bible because I wasn't always certain about their meaning. Having said that, the author did put a lot of this into context for the reader and Taylor himself reflected/had internal discussions about these subjects, thereby allowing readers like myself to gain a better understanding, if not an inkling.
Like~ A large part of why I liked this book was because of its potential; that is, I can imagine it having an enormous impact on those struggling with the idea of being a homosexual and a Christian. At the same time, I think it would have a meaningful and positive influence on those dealing with such issues in their families or communities.
So, what I think: I can't say with all honesty that I 'enjoyed' Thinking Straight in the true sense of the word; however, I was satisfied at its conclusion and deeply enamoured with the character of Taylor. As I indicated above, I would highly recommend this book for those interested in exploring the themes of homosexuality and of Christianity.
=============================================
‘Tasting’ is my version of a mini-review where I talk a (very) little about what I liked and disliked about a book as well as who I think the story will appeal to. Oh, and I’ve added a bit about why I picked up the book in the first place – sometimes this can be interesting to know.
Why I bought it:
I was browsing the virtual shelves at The Book Depository and came across it. The blurb intrigued.
Dislike/like (ending on a high note):
Dislike~ Or more of a warning~ I have this fascination/horror with the things people do to each other in the name of religion. This is never more the case when it comes to what some so-called Christian people will do to adults and especially children in an attempt to make them conform to their interpretation of the Bible and Christianity. The idea of parents sending their gay children to an institution which would 'straighten' them out was particularly confronting for me and there were times in the book when I wavered between intense dislike for what I was reading to feelings of hope for future of the young protag.
Like~ What stood out about Thinking Straight for me was the character of Taylor. An extraordinarily strong, albeit imperfect (he's a teenager after all), character with an amazing sense of self. Below are two quotes from the book that illustrate this faith in himself and his God as well as part of Taylor's journey at Straight to God:
God, I know you love me. And you know I love you. I don't know why you've brought me here unless it's some kind of test. Can I live with these people and still be the person [gay:] you made me? Can I believe, despite everything I'll go through here that you don't make mistakes? (p. 36)
Strickland and everyone else need to learn to love me for who I am, for who God made me, not to try and make this about them. Which means they have to question their own assumptions about homosexuality. They assume that God is just as uncomfortable with it as they are. So it's as much a test for them as for me. And that's why everyone is in here [Straight to God:] together. (p. 197)
Dislike~ I have my own beliefs, but I am not someone who is, for want of a better word, 'religiousy'. I did stumble at times with the use of text, stories and concepts from the Bible because I wasn't always certain about their meaning. Having said that, the author did put a lot of this into context for the reader and Taylor himself reflected/had internal discussions about these subjects, thereby allowing readers like myself to gain a better understanding, if not an inkling.
Like~ A large part of why I liked this book was because of its potential; that is, I can imagine it having an enormous impact on those struggling with the idea of being a homosexual and a Christian. At the same time, I think it would have a meaningful and positive influence on those dealing with such issues in their families or communities.
So, what I think: I can't say with all honesty that I 'enjoyed' Thinking Straight in the true sense of the word; however, I was satisfied at its conclusion and deeply enamoured with the character of Taylor. As I indicated above, I would highly recommend this book for those interested in exploring the themes of homosexuality and of Christianity.
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‘Tasting’ is my version of a mini-review where I talk a (very) little about what I liked and disliked about a book as well as who I think the story will appeal to. Oh, and I’ve added a bit about why I picked up the book in the first place – sometimes this can be interesting to know.
March 21, 2012
This was a very interesting read, and a lucky find in the Teen section of Bromley library. The title caught my eye immediately and I borrowed it even though the presentation of the book wasn't the greatest. It was either going to be a waste of the publishers' time, or a rare gem. It turned out to be the latter.
This novel follows the story of Taylor, a teenager who gets sent to a Bible camp after he comes out to his parents, who are hoping to "make him straight". In Taylor we have a main character who has a strong faith in God but who is also resolved not to let the "program" change who he is and what he feels for his boyfriend.
Taylor has to start by not talking for three days, and while on one hand he does not want to be brainwashed, some aspects of the camp and especially of human interactions really fascinate him. I really did enjoy all his theories about what motivated these people, because I'm also an overthinker, so I didn't think it was unrealistic or simply "too much".
There is an outstanding cast of supporting characters, so many names to remember and yet even those who only get mentioned once or twice I thought were fleshed out quite well, making it easy for me to remember who was who.
I am not religious but I was able to follow the religious talk quite easily, although at times I must admit it got a little intense. I do like religion when it's used as a basis for analysis of people's behaviour and how society has evolved. I think this book made me more sympathetic towards gays who choose to remain religious, while up until now I had dismissed them saying "how inconsistent is it to want to remain part of something that hates you?". I suppose I feel that more towards Catholics as that is the religion I was raised in, but the novel actually deals with a nonspecified Christian denomination in America.
The only fault of this book is in the narration, occasionally, and jarringly, in the occasion of "circle" meetings it looked almost like scriptwriting (character name: "Dialogue") and it just seemed inappropriate in the middle of a novel. Also, the IM acronyms used throughout the book must have seemed all the rage at the time, but they are quite outdated at the moment, giving it a bit of a "distant" feel while the topic is still extremely relevant, with the common plague of gay teen suicides.
I would have perhaps appreciated an epilogue where we find out what happens to Taylor once he returns to his parents, unchanged in his gayness but more accepting of other's narrow-mindedness.
This novel follows the story of Taylor, a teenager who gets sent to a Bible camp after he comes out to his parents, who are hoping to "make him straight". In Taylor we have a main character who has a strong faith in God but who is also resolved not to let the "program" change who he is and what he feels for his boyfriend.
Taylor has to start by not talking for three days, and while on one hand he does not want to be brainwashed, some aspects of the camp and especially of human interactions really fascinate him. I really did enjoy all his theories about what motivated these people, because I'm also an overthinker, so I didn't think it was unrealistic or simply "too much".
There is an outstanding cast of supporting characters, so many names to remember and yet even those who only get mentioned once or twice I thought were fleshed out quite well, making it easy for me to remember who was who.
I am not religious but I was able to follow the religious talk quite easily, although at times I must admit it got a little intense. I do like religion when it's used as a basis for analysis of people's behaviour and how society has evolved. I think this book made me more sympathetic towards gays who choose to remain religious, while up until now I had dismissed them saying "how inconsistent is it to want to remain part of something that hates you?". I suppose I feel that more towards Catholics as that is the religion I was raised in, but the novel actually deals with a nonspecified Christian denomination in America.
The only fault of this book is in the narration, occasionally, and jarringly, in the occasion of "circle" meetings it looked almost like scriptwriting (character name: "Dialogue") and it just seemed inappropriate in the middle of a novel. Also, the IM acronyms used throughout the book must have seemed all the rage at the time, but they are quite outdated at the moment, giving it a bit of a "distant" feel while the topic is still extremely relevant, with the common plague of gay teen suicides.
I would have perhaps appreciated an epilogue where we find out what happens to Taylor once he returns to his parents, unchanged in his gayness but more accepting of other's narrow-mindedness.
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