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How to Survive a Summer
A debut novel centering around a gay conversion camp in Mississippi, and a man's reckoning with the trauma he faced there as a teen.
Camp Levi nestled in the Mississippi countryside is designed to "cure" young teenage boys of their budding homosexuality. Will Dillard, a Midwestern graduate student, spent a summer at the camp as a teenager, and has since tried to erase that experience from his mind. But when a fellow student alerts him that a slasher movie based on the camp is being released, he is forced to confront his troubled history and possible culpability in the death of a fellow camper.
As past and present are woven together, Will recounts his "rehabilitation," eventually returning to the abandoned campgrounds to solve the mysteries of that pivotal summer, and to reclaim his story from those who have stolen it. With a masterful confluence of sensibility and place, How to Survive a Summer introduces an exciting new literary voice."
Camp Levi nestled in the Mississippi countryside is designed to "cure" young teenage boys of their budding homosexuality. Will Dillard, a Midwestern graduate student, spent a summer at the camp as a teenager, and has since tried to erase that experience from his mind. But when a fellow student alerts him that a slasher movie based on the camp is being released, he is forced to confront his troubled history and possible culpability in the death of a fellow camper.
As past and present are woven together, Will recounts his "rehabilitation," eventually returning to the abandoned campgrounds to solve the mysteries of that pivotal summer, and to reclaim his story from those who have stolen it. With a masterful confluence of sensibility and place, How to Survive a Summer introduces an exciting new literary voice."
352 pages, Hardcover
First published June 6, 2017
67 people are currently reading
2209 people want to read
About the author
Nick White
2 books40 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Nick White is an Assistant Professor of English at Ohio State University. A native of Mississippi, he earned a Ph.D. in English from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His short stories have been published in a variety of places, including The Kenyon Review, Guernica, Indiana Review, Day One, The Hopkins Review, and elsewhere.
Nick White is an Assistant Professor of English at Ohio State University. A native of Mississippi, he earned a Ph.D. in English from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His short stories have been published in a variety of places, including The Kenyon Review, Guernica, Indiana Review, Day One, The Hopkins Review, and elsewhere.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 158 reviews
April 5, 2017
I'm stuck between 3.5 and 4 stars, but I'll round up.
"In the summer of 1999, when I was fifteen years old, I spent almost four weeks at a camp that was supposed to cure me of my homosexuality. Though I changed in many ways at Camp Levi, my desiresto the grief of everyone involved—did not."
Will Dillard is a graduate student in college working on his dissertation in film studies. He cannot seem to stay in a romantic relationship; in fact, even maintaining friendships is fairly difficult unless the other person is satisfied with a relatively one-sided relationship on which they'll have to expend most of the effort.
It's not that Will thinks he's better than others, or likes being anti-social—he just finds it difficult to remain present all the time, because he is constantly fighting to hide the traumas he sustained during a summer he spent at a gay "conversion" camp. He's never told anyone the entire story of his experience there, and he's always lived a relatively solitary life.
But when a horror movie about the camp, which has as its roots a memoir written by someone he knew from that summer, is released, and starts catching on, Will can't escape the trauma or his secrets. He knows his refusal to deal with these issues is the roadblock keeping him from truly confiding in and loving someone, but the thought of dredging up those memories is more than he can bear. Yet when he decides to head home to Mississippi to try and see his estranged father, a former preacher, the feelings of self-hatred and guilt come swarming back.
"I learned the past is not the past, a lump of time you can quarantine and forget about, but a reel of film in your brain that keeps on rolling, spooling and unspooling itself regardless of whether or not you are watching it."
After encountering two of his fellow campers and one former counselor, all of whom were part of the events of that traumatic summer, Will decides the only thing he can do is go back to the deserted campsite and confront what happened as well as his own complicity in those events. At the same time he must come to term with his own identity, the family secrets he has tried to keep hidden and those he has tried to embrace, and the path he has followed since then.
Nick White's How to Survive a Summer is at times a searingly emotional look at how hard it can be to embrace and love who you are when you are told that who you are is an abomination, and you must change. It's also a powerful story of finally finding the courage to trust others and yourself in order to move past paralyzing trauma.
There were times, however, that the plot meandered off course, veering too much into the stories Will's mother told him about the mysterious, courageous women who lived in the strange area she grew up in. There was even a point in which I thought the book might become a horror story. Luckily, White pulled his plot back together, getting back to Will's journey to confront his demons and deal with his past once and for all.
White is a very talented writer—sometimes the most emotion in his story occurs during the quieter, purer moments than where you might expect them to come. He wasn't afraid to make Will somewhat unsympathetic in his treatment of those who care about him, but yet you still want to understand his story.
There were times, of course, where just the thought of what was being done to these kids was simply horrifying; the fact that it is 2017 now and there are many (including the U.S. vice-president) who believe "gay conversion" should still be used disgusts me. But it is a credit to White's strength as a storyteller that the book wasn't as maudlin or upsetting as I feared.
NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Blue Rider Press & Plume provided me an advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making this available!
See all of my reviews at http://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blo....
"In the summer of 1999, when I was fifteen years old, I spent almost four weeks at a camp that was supposed to cure me of my homosexuality. Though I changed in many ways at Camp Levi, my desiresto the grief of everyone involved—did not."
Will Dillard is a graduate student in college working on his dissertation in film studies. He cannot seem to stay in a romantic relationship; in fact, even maintaining friendships is fairly difficult unless the other person is satisfied with a relatively one-sided relationship on which they'll have to expend most of the effort.
It's not that Will thinks he's better than others, or likes being anti-social—he just finds it difficult to remain present all the time, because he is constantly fighting to hide the traumas he sustained during a summer he spent at a gay "conversion" camp. He's never told anyone the entire story of his experience there, and he's always lived a relatively solitary life.
But when a horror movie about the camp, which has as its roots a memoir written by someone he knew from that summer, is released, and starts catching on, Will can't escape the trauma or his secrets. He knows his refusal to deal with these issues is the roadblock keeping him from truly confiding in and loving someone, but the thought of dredging up those memories is more than he can bear. Yet when he decides to head home to Mississippi to try and see his estranged father, a former preacher, the feelings of self-hatred and guilt come swarming back.
"I learned the past is not the past, a lump of time you can quarantine and forget about, but a reel of film in your brain that keeps on rolling, spooling and unspooling itself regardless of whether or not you are watching it."
After encountering two of his fellow campers and one former counselor, all of whom were part of the events of that traumatic summer, Will decides the only thing he can do is go back to the deserted campsite and confront what happened as well as his own complicity in those events. At the same time he must come to term with his own identity, the family secrets he has tried to keep hidden and those he has tried to embrace, and the path he has followed since then.
Nick White's How to Survive a Summer is at times a searingly emotional look at how hard it can be to embrace and love who you are when you are told that who you are is an abomination, and you must change. It's also a powerful story of finally finding the courage to trust others and yourself in order to move past paralyzing trauma.
There were times, however, that the plot meandered off course, veering too much into the stories Will's mother told him about the mysterious, courageous women who lived in the strange area she grew up in. There was even a point in which I thought the book might become a horror story. Luckily, White pulled his plot back together, getting back to Will's journey to confront his demons and deal with his past once and for all.
White is a very talented writer—sometimes the most emotion in his story occurs during the quieter, purer moments than where you might expect them to come. He wasn't afraid to make Will somewhat unsympathetic in his treatment of those who care about him, but yet you still want to understand his story.
There were times, of course, where just the thought of what was being done to these kids was simply horrifying; the fact that it is 2017 now and there are many (including the U.S. vice-president) who believe "gay conversion" should still be used disgusts me. But it is a credit to White's strength as a storyteller that the book wasn't as maudlin or upsetting as I feared.
NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Blue Rider Press & Plume provided me an advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making this available!
See all of my reviews at http://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blo....
August 10, 2017
This was a hard read. It was slow and you felt like you were walking through sludge. It took me three months to finish this book. I refuse to give up on a book but I nearly did with this one.
The author does has promise as there are some paragraphs offering powerful messages. But, the majority of the book was hard going.
The book is about camps people sent their children too, to Pray Away The Gay. Are they serious? These Gay conversion camps DON'T WORK. You know that, I know that. Ok I admit its a worthy topic. But I can't say that this author was the right person to tell this story. Don't ask! I really don't know its just the way I feel.
I tried to like this book. I really did try. If these camps actually happen and from what I've read they do. All I can do is shake my head and swear A LOT!
Would I recommend this book? I really don't know how I can. It was just so slow. I gave it 1.5 stars rounded up to 2 but I even think thats generous.
*ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley*
The author does has promise as there are some paragraphs offering powerful messages. But, the majority of the book was hard going.
The book is about camps people sent their children too, to Pray Away The Gay. Are they serious? These Gay conversion camps DON'T WORK. You know that, I know that. Ok I admit its a worthy topic. But I can't say that this author was the right person to tell this story. Don't ask! I really don't know its just the way I feel.
I tried to like this book. I really did try. If these camps actually happen and from what I've read they do. All I can do is shake my head and swear A LOT!
Would I recommend this book? I really don't know how I can. It was just so slow. I gave it 1.5 stars rounded up to 2 but I even think thats generous.
*ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley*
May 19, 2017
Release Date: 06.11.17
2.5 stars rounded up
In essence, this is a paint-by-numbers "hometown boy returns" literary release. It just isn't special in any way. Don't get me wrong; this author obviously has talent and some passages have power, but on the whole I was bored out of my skull. The premise of this one is very intriguing (hence my requesting an ARC from Netgalley), but the plot meanders and is just so sloooooow.
Things this book does right: it adequately shows the horror of gay conversion therapy, without feeling too gimmicky or cheap. In fact, Will's flashbacks to the summer of '99 — the time he spent at that camp — were great, and I only wish the entire novel (except for the beginning and end, I suppose) took place then. Will as a teenager is fascinating to read about, and the writing feels really electric in those chapters.
Things this book does wrong: almost everything else. Adult Will is totally unbearable, as are the people he surrounds himself with. I found myself skimming the parts concerned with Will's journey back home just to get to the flashbacks.
Overall, this is a very 'meh' novel. It had so much potential, and it's unfortunate the author doesn't really take advantage of it. Ah, well. I don't regret reading it, but I will never revisit this one.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC, which was given in exchange for an honest review.
2.5 stars rounded up
In essence, this is a paint-by-numbers "hometown boy returns" literary release. It just isn't special in any way. Don't get me wrong; this author obviously has talent and some passages have power, but on the whole I was bored out of my skull. The premise of this one is very intriguing (hence my requesting an ARC from Netgalley), but the plot meanders and is just so sloooooow.
Things this book does right: it adequately shows the horror of gay conversion therapy, without feeling too gimmicky or cheap. In fact, Will's flashbacks to the summer of '99 — the time he spent at that camp — were great, and I only wish the entire novel (except for the beginning and end, I suppose) took place then. Will as a teenager is fascinating to read about, and the writing feels really electric in those chapters.
Things this book does wrong: almost everything else. Adult Will is totally unbearable, as are the people he surrounds himself with. I found myself skimming the parts concerned with Will's journey back home just to get to the flashbacks.
Overall, this is a very 'meh' novel. It had so much potential, and it's unfortunate the author doesn't really take advantage of it. Ah, well. I don't regret reading it, but I will never revisit this one.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC, which was given in exchange for an honest review.
January 18, 2018
It pains me to say this, especially after reading an interview with the author in 'Rolling Stone', which corroborates his good intentions - but White's book is just NOT very good - and since I harbored notions of abandoning it several times, I can't really give it more than two stars. As with many (most?) debut efforts, the author tries to cram in too much plot and too many superfluous details that slow the story down to a painful slog - it could have easily jettisoned over a hundred pages, which would have made it a much more compelling read.
Aside from those deficiencies, the structure resembles the ramblings of an ADHD afflicted child, and the prose rarely is elevated above the pedestrian. A noble effort on a difficult, painful and sadly, still relevant subject - but White's reach far exceeds his grasp.
Aside from those deficiencies, the structure resembles the ramblings of an ADHD afflicted child, and the prose rarely is elevated above the pedestrian. A noble effort on a difficult, painful and sadly, still relevant subject - but White's reach far exceeds his grasp.
March 31, 2017
I wanted to love this book so much more than I did, but it was unfortunately juvenilely written and hard to slough through.
One character aptly assumes at one point that our narrator doesn't want to talk about his story because he may feel it's just another example of a gay boy growing up and getting out of a small town, moving from a rural area to a metropolitan area and not terribly worthy of sharing. This was the most poignant moment of the novel, because I think a lot of people do feel this way when they should know that their perspective is also important.
I don't know. I was so psyched for this book but it didn't captivate me or compel me. It wasn't as gruesome as promised, not that I wanted to see gruesome specifically, but I expected there to be more shock factor for how the book was sold. There was one character who was very fucked up and I think that this was much more the problem in the story than the idea of "stomping out the gay."
I feel like there could have been more. Will's current life is very strange and aimless and could have better been written into its own story. His relationships with a guy he's interested in and a friend who's more a mentor were both very strange and were described as more intimate than they really are.
I kept getting bored and wanting to give up. Ultimately, the ending was super unsatisfying also, and I was left in limbo wondering what I had just read. While I think this topic matter is important, I would have liked to see this story differently done in a manner that would be much more captivating. I felt like the title was false advertisement, honestly.
This was disappointing. If you're interested in the topic manner it might be worth your time, but it was far from the slamdunk I was hoping this would pull on my emotions.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
One character aptly assumes at one point that our narrator doesn't want to talk about his story because he may feel it's just another example of a gay boy growing up and getting out of a small town, moving from a rural area to a metropolitan area and not terribly worthy of sharing. This was the most poignant moment of the novel, because I think a lot of people do feel this way when they should know that their perspective is also important.
I don't know. I was so psyched for this book but it didn't captivate me or compel me. It wasn't as gruesome as promised, not that I wanted to see gruesome specifically, but I expected there to be more shock factor for how the book was sold. There was one character who was very fucked up and I think that this was much more the problem in the story than the idea of "stomping out the gay."
I feel like there could have been more. Will's current life is very strange and aimless and could have better been written into its own story. His relationships with a guy he's interested in and a friend who's more a mentor were both very strange and were described as more intimate than they really are.
I kept getting bored and wanting to give up. Ultimately, the ending was super unsatisfying also, and I was left in limbo wondering what I had just read. While I think this topic matter is important, I would have liked to see this story differently done in a manner that would be much more captivating. I felt like the title was false advertisement, honestly.
This was disappointing. If you're interested in the topic manner it might be worth your time, but it was far from the slamdunk I was hoping this would pull on my emotions.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
June 16, 2017
DNF @57% = automatic 3 stars
Writing style not for me. It was written as a stream of consciousness, but the narrative would go off on a side quest, get lost there for a bit, before journeying back to the original point being made. The only problem is how the reader forgot what the original point being shown was. As for the story itself, the writing style muddied it, burying it beneath the way it was written. Storyteller narrative, all told, not shown.
But that wasn't my biggest issue. Early on in the novel, the reader meets Zeus, and his backstory is told via conversation, and this rubbed me wrong. I tried three more times after that to get into the story, trying to forget my earlier irritation, but I didn't succeed.
I'm unsure if I should post my thoughts on how the author created Zeus, afraid it will be taken the wrong way with insult being seen where none was meant, but I was personally insulted by Zeus' backstory.
I had a problem with the character of Zeus, to the point I couldn’t read the novel after I became hyper-focused. To go through the transition from female to male is admirable and brave, especially after coming out as a lesbian. What I couldn’t swallow...
As a female, she was a lesbian = / = as a male, he is gay.
That does not equate.
There was no indecision, no in the closet (actually, when female, she would have been straight if gay as a male, attracted to the male gender). No in denial. To make a conscious choice be come out as a lesbian, which by very definition means you are attracted to the female gender, not the male gender, that is not an easy choice to be made. A lot of soul-searching, self-reflection, and being attracted to the female gender. Then to struggle with your gender identity, which is both courageous and no doubt terrifying. But once the transition occurred from FtM, Zeus changed his sexual inclination as if it’s not something innate in our beings. After struggling to come out as a lesbian (wanting women), as a male, he decides he's gay (wanting men).
The gender you are attracted to does not change with your gender identity. Apples/oranges.
Bisexuality and pansexuality are more fluid, not necessarily wanting genders equally. When gay/lesbian/straight, it’s more rigid, wanting a specific gender, or you wouldn’t be gay/lesbian/straight by very definition.
Transitioning changes what you call your sexual orientation based on your gender vs the gender you are attracted toward, not the specific gender you’re attracted to. When Val, she wanted females = / = when Zeus, he wanted males- this erased all the progress we’ve made, which was ironic in a book featuring a conversion camp which also believed it was a choice. Who you are attracted to is not a choice.
Zeus' character made it seem as if it's a choice. When deciding to live as his true gender, he also decided to change which gender he is attracted to, making it seem as if the decision she was lesbian was a frivolity- a lie. A mockery. We can be in denial when saying we're straight, because of societal pressure, but to go through all the soul-searching to come out as a lesbian, as if it's easy... "My therapist made me realize I'm a gay man." There never would have been a struggle with sexual orientation (straight, not lesbian) as he struggled with his gender identity (FtM) gay male.
No matter how intrigued I was by Will’s story, not put off by his personality or how difficult it was to fall into the story itself due to the stream of consciousness writing style, when Zeus’ name was on the page, I got angry.
This visceral reaction is why I chose to not finish, instead of continuing on until the end.
Writing style not for me. It was written as a stream of consciousness, but the narrative would go off on a side quest, get lost there for a bit, before journeying back to the original point being made. The only problem is how the reader forgot what the original point being shown was. As for the story itself, the writing style muddied it, burying it beneath the way it was written. Storyteller narrative, all told, not shown.
But that wasn't my biggest issue. Early on in the novel, the reader meets Zeus, and his backstory is told via conversation, and this rubbed me wrong. I tried three more times after that to get into the story, trying to forget my earlier irritation, but I didn't succeed.
I'm unsure if I should post my thoughts on how the author created Zeus, afraid it will be taken the wrong way with insult being seen where none was meant, but I was personally insulted by Zeus' backstory.
I had a problem with the character of Zeus, to the point I couldn’t read the novel after I became hyper-focused. To go through the transition from female to male is admirable and brave, especially after coming out as a lesbian. What I couldn’t swallow...
As a female, she was a lesbian = / = as a male, he is gay.
That does not equate.
There was no indecision, no in the closet (actually, when female, she would have been straight if gay as a male, attracted to the male gender). No in denial. To make a conscious choice be come out as a lesbian, which by very definition means you are attracted to the female gender, not the male gender, that is not an easy choice to be made. A lot of soul-searching, self-reflection, and being attracted to the female gender. Then to struggle with your gender identity, which is both courageous and no doubt terrifying. But once the transition occurred from FtM, Zeus changed his sexual inclination as if it’s not something innate in our beings. After struggling to come out as a lesbian (wanting women), as a male, he decides he's gay (wanting men).
The gender you are attracted to does not change with your gender identity. Apples/oranges.
Bisexuality and pansexuality are more fluid, not necessarily wanting genders equally. When gay/lesbian/straight, it’s more rigid, wanting a specific gender, or you wouldn’t be gay/lesbian/straight by very definition.
Transitioning changes what you call your sexual orientation based on your gender vs the gender you are attracted toward, not the specific gender you’re attracted to. When Val, she wanted females = / = when Zeus, he wanted males- this erased all the progress we’ve made, which was ironic in a book featuring a conversion camp which also believed it was a choice. Who you are attracted to is not a choice.
Zeus' character made it seem as if it's a choice. When deciding to live as his true gender, he also decided to change which gender he is attracted to, making it seem as if the decision she was lesbian was a frivolity- a lie. A mockery. We can be in denial when saying we're straight, because of societal pressure, but to go through all the soul-searching to come out as a lesbian, as if it's easy... "My therapist made me realize I'm a gay man." There never would have been a struggle with sexual orientation (straight, not lesbian) as he struggled with his gender identity (FtM) gay male.
No matter how intrigued I was by Will’s story, not put off by his personality or how difficult it was to fall into the story itself due to the stream of consciousness writing style, when Zeus’ name was on the page, I got angry.
This visceral reaction is why I chose to not finish, instead of continuing on until the end.
October 3, 2017
I saw Nick White in conversation with Garrard Conley at Book Culture on Columbus earlier this summer, which was terrific and hilarious. The two had so much to say about growing up in Southern American religious communities, the myriad ways some of us escape those childhoods, and long-lasting effects that stick with us in adulthood. I'm so fortunate I was able to be there. Oh, and also, they were hilarious and I had a lovely chat with them as they signed my books. As I said, fortunate.
Despite these similar backgrounds, How to Survive a Summer tells its fiction story in a much different fashion than Conley's Boy Erased: A Memoir.
This is a weaving, pained story that delays getting into the history much like a person with PTSD might do. It's a smart way to circuitously unfurl information to your reader, although for me it was sometimes too long in getting there. However, some passages in the novel are gripping and unique. For instance, I won't complain at all about the surprise slasher flick described at length... because who doesn't love that?
For more LGBTQ+ recommendations, check out the shelves on my profile. I even keep a favorite queer reads front-and-center!
Despite these similar backgrounds, How to Survive a Summer tells its fiction story in a much different fashion than Conley's Boy Erased: A Memoir.
This is a weaving, pained story that delays getting into the history much like a person with PTSD might do. It's a smart way to circuitously unfurl information to your reader, although for me it was sometimes too long in getting there. However, some passages in the novel are gripping and unique. For instance, I won't complain at all about the surprise slasher flick described at length... because who doesn't love that?
For more LGBTQ+ recommendations, check out the shelves on my profile. I even keep a favorite queer reads front-and-center!
June 16, 2017
As a queer person raised deeply Southern Baptist, the experiences described in How to Survive a Summer rang unfortunately true. I never attended the kind of conversion camp that Will does, but I was a fixture at church camp every summer, and I certainly internalized all kinds of nonsense about myself and other queer people because of that. When we first meet Will, he's still working through all of the shit from his past, brought back to the surface by the release of a horror film taking place at the camp where he endured so many traumatic experiences.
I felt that White's exploration of Will's parallel stories--his story to find himself in his return to Mississippi, and the story of what exactly happened that summer at camp--was effective, particularly in how it evokes the way trauma shatters our memories and minds. It's hard to approach such a painful event in a linear fashion, and so the structure of flashbacks in this novel really worked for me. I've seen a few reviews complaining of the "juvenile" writing style, but I have to say it didn't bother me at all. Will is in a state of arrested development; he's never really been able to move on from the events of the past, no matter how much he's tried. So it makes sense, then, that his writing would be somewhat childlike. He hasn't been able to progress.
This is not a perfect novel, but maybe because of my personal connection to the subject, I found it extremely compelling and moving. I look forward to reading whatever Nick White writes next.
I won an ARC of this book in a Goodreads giveaway. Thanks to Goodreads, blue rider press, Penguin Random House, and Nick White for the ARC.
I felt that White's exploration of Will's parallel stories--his story to find himself in his return to Mississippi, and the story of what exactly happened that summer at camp--was effective, particularly in how it evokes the way trauma shatters our memories and minds. It's hard to approach such a painful event in a linear fashion, and so the structure of flashbacks in this novel really worked for me. I've seen a few reviews complaining of the "juvenile" writing style, but I have to say it didn't bother me at all. Will is in a state of arrested development; he's never really been able to move on from the events of the past, no matter how much he's tried. So it makes sense, then, that his writing would be somewhat childlike. He hasn't been able to progress.
This is not a perfect novel, but maybe because of my personal connection to the subject, I found it extremely compelling and moving. I look forward to reading whatever Nick White writes next.
I won an ARC of this book in a Goodreads giveaway. Thanks to Goodreads, blue rider press, Penguin Random House, and Nick White for the ARC.
January 16, 2019
Will survived the summer. Not all of them did. Now it’s ten years later and he’s still trying to learn how to live.
Told non linearly it seems no matter what year you learn about, life just keeps kicking Will in the gut. I found myself angry most of the time. I kept thinking I would have behaved differently. Were shown the power to please your family can often override what is sensible. This story will transport you to the south and make you thankful these events didn’t happen to you. 4.75 for repurposing land.
Told non linearly it seems no matter what year you learn about, life just keeps kicking Will in the gut. I found myself angry most of the time. I kept thinking I would have behaved differently. Were shown the power to please your family can often override what is sensible. This story will transport you to the south and make you thankful these events didn’t happen to you. 4.75 for repurposing land.
December 13, 2017
I enjoyed this for the most part. It mainly deals with Will's traumatic memories of his time at a gay conversion camp which was heartbreaking to read about. Again, in the beginning I found it hard to get into. There's the initial hook in the first chapter but then the proceeding 5-6 chapters were just really hard to get through for me. The book also deals in past and present (the story is being told in the present and Will remembers things from his past relating to that summer) and I loved the switches back and forth. It was very easy to follow and it was a good choice of the author's to have the past directly told rather than the reader just getting it second hand as a memory. As for the characters themselves, I loved how White didn't portray the people of the camp as these faceless, evil, religious people. They had a past (which was included) and that made it clear that everyone has a past and has reasons for what they do, even if it seems evil to others. I also had the opportunity to hear Nick White speak (he went to graduate school with my professor) which was a great experience.
The Final Verdict:
Make it through the beginning exposition: the ending is completely worth it. The characters are very well fleshed out and the structure is put together nicely.
4 stars
The Final Verdict:
Make it through the beginning exposition: the ending is completely worth it. The characters are very well fleshed out and the structure is put together nicely.
4 stars
May 4, 2017
This is yet another case of a book finding me at just the right time. The character of Will reminds me of a few young men I've known, and his journey in this book intrigued me, baffled me, impressed me, and comforted me. There's hints of southern gothic, to give you a taste and keep you guessing. At times I wished I had a book just of those stories that Will's mother told him, and it got my writer mind churning with possibilities.
I could see how some readers might find the story too jumbled to be enjoyed, but it was the jumpy storyline that pulled me in. Each layer of the story got me more invested, and by the near end I was literally at the edge of my seat, anxious to know what would happen next, and I seemed to feel what the characters were feeling as it all came out. I feel like this is a book and a story that some LGBTQ youth may find engaging enough to help them muddle through complex emotions and their own journeys of self discovery.
I know this is a book I'll be thinking about for awhile.
I could see how some readers might find the story too jumbled to be enjoyed, but it was the jumpy storyline that pulled me in. Each layer of the story got me more invested, and by the near end I was literally at the edge of my seat, anxious to know what would happen next, and I seemed to feel what the characters were feeling as it all came out. I feel like this is a book and a story that some LGBTQ youth may find engaging enough to help them muddle through complex emotions and their own journeys of self discovery.
I know this is a book I'll be thinking about for awhile.
February 6, 2018
In this book there is a traumatic summer for a group of boys at a gay conversion camp. Later on that traumatic summer is dramatized and refashioned into a completely unrecognizable slasher movie "inspired by real events" and some of the characters who experienced those events are upset about that.
And yet...my main criticism of this book is that it needs to be edited down and made more cinematic. I don't need a slasher, but I need a hook to get into your story.
The pace is ponderous, which is its main problem, but also the dribs and drabs of information you get come in such a strange order that it's often hard to care.
"Pick a plot. Focus on it. Try again." -- what the terrible editor apparently never said.
And yet...my main criticism of this book is that it needs to be edited down and made more cinematic. I don't need a slasher, but I need a hook to get into your story.
The pace is ponderous, which is its main problem, but also the dribs and drabs of information you get come in such a strange order that it's often hard to care.
"Pick a plot. Focus on it. Try again." -- what the terrible editor apparently never said.
June 30, 2018
I found this novel to be an engaging and compelling read, despite the difficult subject matter. The writing drew me in, and I appreciated the use of the simultaneously mythic and mundane to expose the horrific realities of “pray away the gay” movements.
August 19, 2017
"...I learned the past is not the past, a lump of time you can quarantine and forget about, but a reel of film in your brain that keeps on rolling, spooling and unspooling itself regardless of whether or not you are watching it."
Will Dillard's story takes place in two timelines: his childhood in the Mississippi Delta, leading up to his summer in a gay conversion camp, and his life as a graduate film student, learning about a movie based on that summer and deciding to confront his past with a southbound road trip. There are two story arcs at play, the details of his childhood and summer at the camp revealed slowly as his present-day roadtrip helps to settle formerly unresolved emotions. I loved the complicated relationships: between parents and children, between former campers, between the film director and those whose story he was telling.
The narrative is slow-moving, particularly in the beginning, but I liked it--the author captures that feeling of summers in the Deep South, when it's too hot and humid to do anything fast. He utilizes elements of Southern Gothic storytelling and details about small-town Delta life that bring a necessary depth to Will's actions in both the past and present. That said, there are moments of page-turning anticipation--particularly as the details of the summer camp emerge near the end.
I picked up this book because of this review by a friend of mine. I skimmed over it again after finishing the book, and found her remarks rang true, particularly her comment that this is "is an intentionally villain-less story." While the plot of the novel reveals a major wrongdoing, the people behind it come from a variety of backgrounds and motivations, which means even the worst of them is painted with strokes of empathy. Will's homophobic father also cares deeply about racially integrating his church. The camp directors spent time in New York helping those stricken with AIDS. There is redemption and forgiveness in this story, the strongest of all being self-forgiveness, when Will remarks on "my own worst desire, which turned out not to be my attraction to the same gender but my longing to obliterate myself completely and remake something new and wholesome in its place."
Will Dillard's story takes place in two timelines: his childhood in the Mississippi Delta, leading up to his summer in a gay conversion camp, and his life as a graduate film student, learning about a movie based on that summer and deciding to confront his past with a southbound road trip. There are two story arcs at play, the details of his childhood and summer at the camp revealed slowly as his present-day roadtrip helps to settle formerly unresolved emotions. I loved the complicated relationships: between parents and children, between former campers, between the film director and those whose story he was telling.
The narrative is slow-moving, particularly in the beginning, but I liked it--the author captures that feeling of summers in the Deep South, when it's too hot and humid to do anything fast. He utilizes elements of Southern Gothic storytelling and details about small-town Delta life that bring a necessary depth to Will's actions in both the past and present. That said, there are moments of page-turning anticipation--particularly as the details of the summer camp emerge near the end.
I picked up this book because of this review by a friend of mine. I skimmed over it again after finishing the book, and found her remarks rang true, particularly her comment that this is "is an intentionally villain-less story." While the plot of the novel reveals a major wrongdoing, the people behind it come from a variety of backgrounds and motivations, which means even the worst of them is painted with strokes of empathy. Will's homophobic father also cares deeply about racially integrating his church. The camp directors spent time in New York helping those stricken with AIDS. There is redemption and forgiveness in this story, the strongest of all being self-forgiveness, when Will remarks on "my own worst desire, which turned out not to be my attraction to the same gender but my longing to obliterate myself completely and remake something new and wholesome in its place."
December 16, 2018
Now that people with enough distance from those horrible formative years are able to write about the experience, we’re going to get a lot more novels about survivors of gay conversion therapy. How to Survive a Summer is about Will, a man who has hidden from himself since the titular summer of his teens, and how he pushes away everyone who has ever tried to know him. When one of the other conversion campers makes a horror film about the experience, Will is forced to confront his past.
This is the sort of novel that posits that some kids in conversion programmes want to be there, want to be “cured”. How this impacts those who actively resist the programmes is something that rarely gets investigated beyond making them unwitting villains who get discarded or defeated by the narrative. By making the narrator himself the boy who wants to change, White offers a new perspective; by making half of the action take place years after the formative experience, Will gets to grapple with the choices that he made back then.
The problem is that How to Survive a Summer would possibly have worked better as the exploitative slasher story that a different character used as their coping mechanism, or a pastiche thereon. That America has the capacity both to scar children for life with camps that remain legal in multiple states and to then make counselling to cure the cure prohibitively expensive for those who need it most is just the irony of that great nation. Almost no one in How to Survive a Summer is healthy because they simply don’t have access to the infrastructure to allow it.
That is realistic; less so is the nationwide coverage that an obscure independent gay subtext slasher film receives in the context of the film. That you can believe the horrific social elements but not the movie distribution and publicity says a lot about society, religion, and capitalism.
How to Survive a Summer is a book that holds itself back repeatedly, and many of the characters are annoying, bordering on caricatures of college types, but White has a firm handle on the family dynamic at the novel’s core. It’s not quite enough to make it a satisfying book overall, but it does make for one with enough bright spots.
This is the sort of novel that posits that some kids in conversion programmes want to be there, want to be “cured”. How this impacts those who actively resist the programmes is something that rarely gets investigated beyond making them unwitting villains who get discarded or defeated by the narrative. By making the narrator himself the boy who wants to change, White offers a new perspective; by making half of the action take place years after the formative experience, Will gets to grapple with the choices that he made back then.
The problem is that How to Survive a Summer would possibly have worked better as the exploitative slasher story that a different character used as their coping mechanism, or a pastiche thereon. That America has the capacity both to scar children for life with camps that remain legal in multiple states and to then make counselling to cure the cure prohibitively expensive for those who need it most is just the irony of that great nation. Almost no one in How to Survive a Summer is healthy because they simply don’t have access to the infrastructure to allow it.
That is realistic; less so is the nationwide coverage that an obscure independent gay subtext slasher film receives in the context of the film. That you can believe the horrific social elements but not the movie distribution and publicity says a lot about society, religion, and capitalism.
How to Survive a Summer is a book that holds itself back repeatedly, and many of the characters are annoying, bordering on caricatures of college types, but White has a firm handle on the family dynamic at the novel’s core. It’s not quite enough to make it a satisfying book overall, but it does make for one with enough bright spots.
May 25, 2017
Will Dilliard is a grad student writing his dissertation in film studies when he hears about a trendy new slasher film sweeping theatres across the nation. This film is based on a true story, his story, of Camp Levi, a camp designed to “cure” young boys of homosexuality. Growing up as a young teenage boy in rural Mississippi, Will discovered his sexuality while navigating the religious environment that surrounded him. His father, a devout Christian, suspicious and callous of Will’s identity, sent him to Camp Levi in hopes of “rehabilitating” him. Will himself, was heartbreakingly in agreeance with his father, desperate for God to help him. Now as an adult, the past traumas of Will’s childhood prevent him from forming meaningful relationships and friendships, and he remains as lost as ever. The release of the film finally causes Will to face his past, and his possible role in the death of a fellow camper.
Nick White’s debut novel truly dug deep into a dark history that many young people have faced. This fictional story sent me on a bit of a rollercoaster of emotion, because as history tells us, a story like this isn’t quite entirely fictional. The writing is genius, and Will’s character development is slow, steady, and undeniably believable. Was it a little dry at times? Yes. Is the whole, big-city-boy-returns-to-home-town-to-find-himself storyline a little overdone? Yes. But somehow this book had a bit of a different spin on the idea: The Neck. This is what made the book for me. I was immediately drawn into concurrent storylines: Will as his past self, and as his current self. The ways in which these two perspectives are woven together truly helps to explain Will’s thoughts and behaviours. Overall, this book was heartbreaking, painful, and satisfying in the end.
Thank you to Curtis Brown Publishing Ltd. for sending me this advanced readers copy! Keep your eyes peeled for this book being published in June.
Nick White’s debut novel truly dug deep into a dark history that many young people have faced. This fictional story sent me on a bit of a rollercoaster of emotion, because as history tells us, a story like this isn’t quite entirely fictional. The writing is genius, and Will’s character development is slow, steady, and undeniably believable. Was it a little dry at times? Yes. Is the whole, big-city-boy-returns-to-home-town-to-find-himself storyline a little overdone? Yes. But somehow this book had a bit of a different spin on the idea: The Neck. This is what made the book for me. I was immediately drawn into concurrent storylines: Will as his past self, and as his current self. The ways in which these two perspectives are woven together truly helps to explain Will’s thoughts and behaviours. Overall, this book was heartbreaking, painful, and satisfying in the end.
Thank you to Curtis Brown Publishing Ltd. for sending me this advanced readers copy! Keep your eyes peeled for this book being published in June.
August 1, 2021
Synopsis- A debut novel centering around a gay conversion camp in Mississippi, and a man's reckoning with the trauma he faced there as a teen.
Camp Levi nestled in the Mississippi countryside is designed to "cure" young teenage boys of their budding homosexuality. Will Dillard, a Midwestern graduate student, spent a summer at the camp as a teenager, and has since tried to erase that experience from his mind. But when a fellow student alerts him that a slasher movie based on the camp is being released, he is forced to confront his troubled history and possible culpability in the death of a fellow camper.
As past and present are woven together, Will recounts his "rehabilitation," eventually returning to the abandoned campgrounds to solve the mysteries of that pivotal summer, and to reclaim his story from those who have stolen it. With a masterful confluence of sensibility and place, How to Survive a Summerintroduces an exciting new literary voice."
Review- I detest religion. I tend not to think about it because it doesn't play any role in my life, but this book reminded me. This was my persistent feeling when reading the book.
Overall, I didn't like the main character. I felt pity for him but he was pretty stupid. I appreciate that he has some serious issues but he's selfish and makes endless bad decisions. When he was young it was forgivable but when he's older there's really no excuse. Honestly, this boy was an idiot.
The storytelling was slow and mostly boring. I honestly thought this book would be heartbreaking and moving but it was neither.
The fight at the end (both of them actually) was silly and anticlimactic.
Anyway, it's 😴😴😴.
Rating - Two it deserves more than one but not more than two stars. ⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Devoured the book, couldn't put it down.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Really liked it, consumed within days
⭐⭐⭐ - Enjoyed a fair bit, better than average
⭐⭐ - Meh
⭐ - Absolute drivel
Camp Levi nestled in the Mississippi countryside is designed to "cure" young teenage boys of their budding homosexuality. Will Dillard, a Midwestern graduate student, spent a summer at the camp as a teenager, and has since tried to erase that experience from his mind. But when a fellow student alerts him that a slasher movie based on the camp is being released, he is forced to confront his troubled history and possible culpability in the death of a fellow camper.
As past and present are woven together, Will recounts his "rehabilitation," eventually returning to the abandoned campgrounds to solve the mysteries of that pivotal summer, and to reclaim his story from those who have stolen it. With a masterful confluence of sensibility and place, How to Survive a Summerintroduces an exciting new literary voice."
Review- I detest religion. I tend not to think about it because it doesn't play any role in my life, but this book reminded me. This was my persistent feeling when reading the book.
Overall, I didn't like the main character. I felt pity for him but he was pretty stupid. I appreciate that he has some serious issues but he's selfish and makes endless bad decisions. When he was young it was forgivable but when he's older there's really no excuse. Honestly, this boy was an idiot.
The storytelling was slow and mostly boring. I honestly thought this book would be heartbreaking and moving but it was neither.
The fight at the end (both of them actually) was silly and anticlimactic.
Anyway, it's 😴😴😴.
Rating - Two it deserves more than one but not more than two stars. ⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Devoured the book, couldn't put it down.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Really liked it, consumed within days
⭐⭐⭐ - Enjoyed a fair bit, better than average
⭐⭐ - Meh
⭐ - Absolute drivel
November 23, 2020
this book left me w some memorable images-- the neck, the holy warriors, the parsonage-- and painted a vivid picture of mississippi and of the midwest. i came away feeling I understood slightly more about queer culture in the south.
however, I found the book v difficult to get through, not bc it was complicated or hard to read but bc there was no momentum propelling me forward & bc none of the side characters were written w any lasting impact. idk. something about Will's narrative voice felt very distant to me and I couldn't sink myself into him or his psyche. there were also so many jumps back and forth in time that made the story flow feel very disjointed/ patchy, esp bx the jumps didn't seem to add anything to the story-- the narrator would go to sleep and then the next scene would be him at the theater recounting what he did before arriving at the theater, for example, so I found myself kind of exhausted constantly trying to trace the sequence of events... idk.
i think that saving the events of the camp for the climax was a good choice, but I hate to say that the climax was the only portion of the book I felt fully engaged by, either bc it had been alluded to for so many long hours before I got to it or because I was very ready to just Finish the book. mostly the plot just meandered & moments seemed to pass w very little consequence or feeling. by the end, I didn't come away w that much satisfaction or relief or emotion for Will and his new life w Zeus & his healing process bc I didn't rlly feel like I knew or understand him that well.
however, I found the book v difficult to get through, not bc it was complicated or hard to read but bc there was no momentum propelling me forward & bc none of the side characters were written w any lasting impact. idk. something about Will's narrative voice felt very distant to me and I couldn't sink myself into him or his psyche. there were also so many jumps back and forth in time that made the story flow feel very disjointed/ patchy, esp bx the jumps didn't seem to add anything to the story-- the narrator would go to sleep and then the next scene would be him at the theater recounting what he did before arriving at the theater, for example, so I found myself kind of exhausted constantly trying to trace the sequence of events... idk.
i think that saving the events of the camp for the climax was a good choice, but I hate to say that the climax was the only portion of the book I felt fully engaged by, either bc it had been alluded to for so many long hours before I got to it or because I was very ready to just Finish the book. mostly the plot just meandered & moments seemed to pass w very little consequence or feeling. by the end, I didn't come away w that much satisfaction or relief or emotion for Will and his new life w Zeus & his healing process bc I didn't rlly feel like I knew or understand him that well.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 20, 2017
When Will Dillard, aka Rooster, was in his teens, his father sent him to Camp Levi, a conversion therapy camp in the Neck, an isolated area in central Mississippi. Therapy is a misnomer for what actually happens to the young men placed by their parents in the hands of Father Drake and Mother Maude, the camp’s leaders. After a tragedy occurs, the camp disbands and the campers go their separate ways.
Will, now a graduate student, believes himself to have moved on from that summer. But then a horror movie, “Proud Flesh,” based very loosely on that summer’s events is released and inserts itself into his life. Will begins a road trip, both mentally and physically, back into his past as he returns to the place where it all began.
How to Survive a Summer has a lot of potential and the topic it tackles, gay conversion therapy camps, is certainly weighty and worthwhile, but I never felt it achieved the depth it deserves nor did the characters become much more than caricatures. It was a good try, but I was disappointed.
Will, now a graduate student, believes himself to have moved on from that summer. But then a horror movie, “Proud Flesh,” based very loosely on that summer’s events is released and inserts itself into his life. Will begins a road trip, both mentally and physically, back into his past as he returns to the place where it all began.
How to Survive a Summer has a lot of potential and the topic it tackles, gay conversion therapy camps, is certainly weighty and worthwhile, but I never felt it achieved the depth it deserves nor did the characters become much more than caricatures. It was a good try, but I was disappointed.
October 15, 2025
This book was hard to read. I knew what I signed up for content-wise (conversion camp, gay sex, emotional/physical abuse, PTSD, EDs, etc), but I didn’t expect it to impact me on such an emotional level. I hate knowing that this work of fiction probably isn’t that far from someone’s truth, and I hope that maybe reading this would shock some sense into people. Let queer people live their lives and leave your thoughts and opinions to your self. I did appreciate the resolution at the end, it wasn’t happy or sad: it just was. And I think that’s the message. Life just is and we just have to do our best to live it every day
September 9, 2018
It started out wonderful. A very creative plotline I was eager to read about. But as the story went on, the plot seemed to change in an incoherent way. Right when I think the story is going a certain way, something happens to completely lose the plot that has been set up, throwing the reader off balance. It is well written, but drags on quite a bit and eventually becomes rather boring once you realize the questions set up at the beginning aren't going to be returned to.
March 12, 2018
As someone who grew up as a queer Mississippian, the people portrayed in this book were all too familiar to me. Nick White’s writing is compellingly and unfortunately accurate. The protagonist is frustrating much of the time, but I also understood a lot of his actions. He is not the gay caricature usually portrayed in fiction, so it was nice to see a different perspective that’s more similar to me.
January 7, 2021
Well this is a interesting story 🤔
It also opened a wound i had sealed away along time a go when my mother found out she had a gay daughter.
I liked learning about his story and how honest he was about it.
It also opened a wound i had sealed away along time a go when my mother found out she had a gay daughter.
I liked learning about his story and how honest he was about it.
May 3, 2017
Nick White’s debut novel ‘How To Survive A Summer’ is a thought provoking and impressive piece of work that lifts itself from the pages and ingrains itself into the reader’s subconscious. Written in the first person, we hear the story of Will which progresses through passages of flashback. Working on many levels, blending genres from self discovery, horror, thriller and mystery whilst pushes this ahead of the game of most novels of this ilk.
The story starts in the present day as Will Dillard is trying to find his footing within his own world. With a militant feminist best friend Bev and possible new friend Raphael, Will is misplaced and has no real strong convictions. The novel starts to open up when a cheap horror film based on his experiences at a conversion camp is made leading the main character onto a road of self discovery of his past and present. This is where things become interesting and masterly handled by Nick White.
As the story flits back and forth, there are times that the novel feels slightly untrue to the time period for which the flashbacks occur. It really has an American Gothic panache which really captures the heart and feeling of the characters. The decade felt more 1940/50’s with the family, camp and Mother Maude sequences which overall provides an overall warmth to the book. This is not a complaint because this is where the book really comes alive and we are dealt with a reflective narrator that is far beyond the stilted emotional Will we are dealing with in the present day.
The novel has a lot of depth and the characters are alive and breathing within the confines of the pages lifting themselves to a fully realised flesh and blood incarnations. The past sequences are so fully realised that the writer takes you there and you can see, hear and smell the environment. It has the feeling of nostalgia, that very few writers are able to capture. Nick White has really excelled which in my personal opinion, only a handful of writers can really accomplish this. The two authors that do come to mind are Fannie Flagg and John Irving. This is what sets this novel above the rest.
As for the present days sections, these are very well handled and due to the character’s emotional growth occurring these sections, we feel these growing and expanding to equal the flashback segments. This is very ingeniously handled and although I felt that Will was quite irritating from the start, this character grows on you and by the end you are totally invested in him and his journey.
The secondary characters are excellently realised and there are times where I would have liked a little more from them but this has more to do with the style of the piece than lack of writer’s talent. As the story is seen in the first person and through the eyes of Will, we basically get Will’s version of each of the characters. On reflection, characters such as his mother , Mother Maude, etc would have a warmer aspect than the male characters due to the detached nature of his personality.
This is an excellent novel of self recovery, reflection and fantastically written novel that can be read on multiple levels. This is a truly mesmerizing piece of work that transports the reader on this road and through the multiple detours keeps its audience on track. Emotionally invested characters, and the mystery aspects shows an author at his most talented. Nick White has really made his mark on the world and this could be the one that looks like the start of a wondrous career. This is a five star rating and a definite must read.
The story starts in the present day as Will Dillard is trying to find his footing within his own world. With a militant feminist best friend Bev and possible new friend Raphael, Will is misplaced and has no real strong convictions. The novel starts to open up when a cheap horror film based on his experiences at a conversion camp is made leading the main character onto a road of self discovery of his past and present. This is where things become interesting and masterly handled by Nick White.
As the story flits back and forth, there are times that the novel feels slightly untrue to the time period for which the flashbacks occur. It really has an American Gothic panache which really captures the heart and feeling of the characters. The decade felt more 1940/50’s with the family, camp and Mother Maude sequences which overall provides an overall warmth to the book. This is not a complaint because this is where the book really comes alive and we are dealt with a reflective narrator that is far beyond the stilted emotional Will we are dealing with in the present day.
The novel has a lot of depth and the characters are alive and breathing within the confines of the pages lifting themselves to a fully realised flesh and blood incarnations. The past sequences are so fully realised that the writer takes you there and you can see, hear and smell the environment. It has the feeling of nostalgia, that very few writers are able to capture. Nick White has really excelled which in my personal opinion, only a handful of writers can really accomplish this. The two authors that do come to mind are Fannie Flagg and John Irving. This is what sets this novel above the rest.
As for the present days sections, these are very well handled and due to the character’s emotional growth occurring these sections, we feel these growing and expanding to equal the flashback segments. This is very ingeniously handled and although I felt that Will was quite irritating from the start, this character grows on you and by the end you are totally invested in him and his journey.
The secondary characters are excellently realised and there are times where I would have liked a little more from them but this has more to do with the style of the piece than lack of writer’s talent. As the story is seen in the first person and through the eyes of Will, we basically get Will’s version of each of the characters. On reflection, characters such as his mother , Mother Maude, etc would have a warmer aspect than the male characters due to the detached nature of his personality.
This is an excellent novel of self recovery, reflection and fantastically written novel that can be read on multiple levels. This is a truly mesmerizing piece of work that transports the reader on this road and through the multiple detours keeps its audience on track. Emotionally invested characters, and the mystery aspects shows an author at his most talented. Nick White has really made his mark on the world and this could be the one that looks like the start of a wondrous career. This is a five star rating and a definite must read.
June 6, 2018
So much hype for a book gone so wrong. The sociopolitical pogressiveness is cool, but White's debut novel seems to lack a specific genre--and not in a good way.
August 17, 2018
The story jumps back and forth all over the place and I found it jarring. I wanted to be invested in the main character's journey but too much time was spent in areas that never came full circle and then not enough time was spent on things like, how he was finally able to enter into a healthy relationship, or there would be things that got "resolved" in a sentence and I was like oh, so that's all. I don't know.
It had such a promising plot and subject matter, the fascinating POV of someone who went to a conversion camp, a coming of age story about a gay kid who'd been through trauma and is now suffering from panic attacks in his adult life, a story about relationships, romantic and more...
But because of the WAY it was written I don't think this book will stay with me as much as it could have.
I dug all the 90's references though I was close to 15 in 1999 so I loved that part.
It had such a promising plot and subject matter, the fascinating POV of someone who went to a conversion camp, a coming of age story about a gay kid who'd been through trauma and is now suffering from panic attacks in his adult life, a story about relationships, romantic and more...
But because of the WAY it was written I don't think this book will stay with me as much as it could have.
I dug all the 90's references though I was close to 15 in 1999 so I loved that part.
February 25, 2019
I found this story about the horrors of gay conversion therapy camps more compelling than "Boy Erased.".
September 8, 2020
Not at all what I expected! So much for me having a not bummer summer.
April 9, 2024
i liked the timeline jumps but the ending felt kind of rushed maybe? still good
June 17, 2025
heart filling and heartbreaking.
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