THINKING STRAIGHT
Robin Reardon
If only Taylor had kept on lying to his parents about his sexuality, and about his boyfriend, Will. Then he wouldn’t have been shipped off to Straight to God, an institution devoted to “de-programming” troubled teens and ridding them of their vices – whether that’s drugs, violence or, in Taylor’s case, other boys. Not that Taylor has a problem with being gay, or with reconciling his love for God with his love for his boyfriend.
But at Straight to God, such same-sex love is forbidden. Every movement is monitored, privacy is impossible and no-one – from staff to other residents – is quite what they seem to be. There’s Charles, Taylor’s seemingly clean-cut roommate, who’s desperate to leave his past behind. Nate, a handsome older boy who’s alternately arrogant and kind. And secretive Sean, who returns to Straight to God each year to avoid doing prison time for drugs.
Here, where piety can be a mask for cruelty and the greatest crimes go unpunished, Taylor learns more than he ever dreamed about love, courage, rebellion and betrayal – but the most surprising lesson is the truth he learns about himself.
296 pages, paperback
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