Golden Boy in Queereaders

May 24, 2013 Nancy rated it liked it

Shelves: fiction, gay, award-winners, kids-and-teens, library-books, outlaw-reviews, shelf-inflicted

Cross-posted at Outlaw Reviews and at Shelf Inflicted

I feel like a big old meany for not liking this book as much as my friends did.

It is wordy and repetitive, the multiple viewpoints drove me nuts, and the characters lacked substance and authenticity. Though I really admire Max’s parents’ decision not to make their child undergo surgery to correct his intersex condition, I could strangle them for being so secretive about it and allowing Max to grow up and navigate the difficult world of adolesc Cross-posted at Outlaw Reviews and at Shelf Inflicted

I feel like a big old meany for not liking this book as much as my friends did.

It is wordy and repetitive, the multiple viewpoints drove me nuts, and the characters lacked substance and authenticity. Though I really admire Max’s parents’ decision not to make their child undergo surgery to correct his intersex condition, I could strangle them for being so secretive about it and allowing Max to grow up and navigate the difficult world of adolescence without any discussion or guidance about sex, relationships, pregnancy, or gender identity. The thing is, when parents don’t talk about this stuff with their kids, they will learn from their friends, or the media, and likely pick up all kinds of incorrect information. What I didn’t understand about Max, particularly in this age of information, was why he showed very little curiosity, didn’t access the internet, or read books. And how does he manage to be the perfect son, the perfect brother, the perfect student, and the perfect boyfriend without any “issues”?

Yet, he is not. Very early on, a childhood friend sexually assaults 16-year-old Max. It is the consequences of that disturbing incident and the fact that his father is running for political office and doesn’t need any negative publicity that make things very complicated for Max.

“I am a normal guy. I am a normal guy who would never have a problem like this. Like what? Like nothing. It doesn’t exist. I am a normal sixteen-year-old. I listen to music. I wear my iPod. I laugh with my friends. I dream about kissing Sylvie Clark. I kiss Sylvie Clark. I am a brother. I am not a sister. I am not an everything. I am not a nothing. I have no big choices to make. I am a teenager, and my biggest job is to be normal. I can’t look at myself in the mirror anymore, or at any reflection of mine in glass. And I don’t know why.”

What I did like about this book, in comparison to Annabel, is that it tackles the issues of gender identity with more sensitivity and compassion. I just wish that the author’s research about intersexuality was presented throughout the novel organically and not solely through the voice of Max’s doctor, which made it feel like forced teaching moments.

As I mentioned earlier, there were problems with characterization. The story was narrated by Max, as well as his parents, his younger brother, Daniel, his girlfriend, Sylvie, and his doctor. Max’s parents were caricatures rather than real people. His brother was way too clever for his 10 years and had more sophisticated vocabulary than anyone else. And Sylvie, who was quite an interesting character and very supportive of Max, didn’t get nearly enough page time.

This book made me think and made me feel, but the prose lacked the grace and elegance of Annabel. I’m still waiting for the perfect book about intersexuality.

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May 16, 2013 Dana rated it it was amazing

Shelves: once-is-not-enough, made-me-cry, netgalley, gender-identity

I am totally in love with this book -- I devoured it in two days. I even cried a little.

It all comes down to the main character. Max is an intersex teen who has always identified as a boy, but certain catastrophic events lead him to question who and what he is. I just adored him. To his peers he's perfect: a talented soccer player, beautiful to look at, an excellent student. They have no idea the pain and confusion he's going through, especially because he can't talk to anyone about his secrets, ...more

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May 17, 2013 Christine rated it it was amazing

Shelves: debut-novels, favorites

This book broke me! Wow! What a story! I loved the characters, and I loved how they seemed so believable. Kudos to Abigail for writing on a topic unlike any I've read before. This will stay with me for a very long time! ...more

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Aug 12, 2013 Akiva ꙮ rated it liked it

Shelves: 3-fmt-f-novel, z-au-w, f-feelings-are-ineffable, a-intersex

Golden Boy, as a list of things that made me want to grab the author by the shoulders and shake her:

* There's a VERY graphic rape scene near the beginning of the book, and it goes on for PAGES. Max is 15 years old at that point. I don't know that there's anything... technically... wrong with it, and of course it's supposed to be totally nauseating, but that doesn't make it a good writing decision either. It feels exploitative as hell.

* I wanted to like the doctor, Archie. She dealt with the situ Golden Boy, as a list of things that made me want to grab the author by the shoulders and shake her:

* There's a VERY graphic rape scene near the beginning of the book, and it goes on for PAGES. Max is 15 years old at that point. I don't know that there's anything... technically... wrong with it, and of course it's supposed to be totally nauseating, but that doesn't make it a good writing decision either. It feels exploitative as hell.

* I wanted to like the doctor, Archie. She dealt with the situation excellently most of the time---with one huge exception right at the end, which managed to cancel out almost every good move that she'd made in the story. The other glaring issue with Archie is that most of her monologues are nothing more than MASSIVE INFO DUMPS, and she doesn't have much of a personality. The info dumps, at least, were pretty accurate, based on my own reading about intersex conditions.

(view spoiler)

That I thought Golden Boy was largely well-written and interesting despite these flaws says something about the power of the rest of it. Tarttelin's editor was asleep at the wheel. I'm very torn about what overall rating to give it; ultimately, the unevenness won't let me give it more than three.

(Actual review posted 3 Jan 2014) ...more

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Jan 31, 2018 Amy rated it liked it

Shelves: 2018

I wasn't sure if I would like the multiple POVs in this book, but I enjoyed them more than I thought I would.

This book really delivers a punch. It is not a subject I have read about much and I loved all the details, even if they were a bit much and a bit heavy handed.

I loved the first half of the book. But then...

Everything just started breaking apart. The characters stopped talking to each other and, when they did, no one listened. Especially Max and his mother. Both started taking on a Woe-is- ...more

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Jul 25, 2019 Iamshadow rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, young-adult, queer

I think I liked this, but I am really glad I was forewarned about one major plot thing, and there were about three or four more (they just kept coming!) that just made this story more and more intense. I just kept wanting something to diffuse the tension, but it kept getting worse. Not a light read, by any measure. I think maybe the book could have worked just as well if the high impact events could have been dialed back to two or three horrible things, rather than a continuous series of them. I ...more

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