Rating:
Publisher: Flux
Origins: From Publisher for Review
Format: Paperback
Blurb: Freshman Jamie Bates has a simple strategy for surviving high school: fit in, keep a low profile, and above all, protect his biggest secret – he’s gay. But when a classmate discovers the truth, a terrified Jamie does all he can to change who he is. At first, it’s easy. Everyone notices when he starts hanging out with Celia, the richest and most beautiful girl in school. And when he steals an experimental new drug that suppose to “cure” his attraction to guys, Jamie thinks he’s finally going to have a “normal” life.
But as the drug’s side effects worsen and his relationship with Celia heats up, Jamie begins to realize that lying and using could shatter the fragile world of deception that he’s created – and hurt the people closest to them.
Review: Jamie's not comfortable with who he is and right now he'd do anything to fit in - which also means being straight. Because the worst thing to happen to a guy in high school is to be gay and everyone finding out. Jamie's fears keep him from having real relationships with his friends and family. But when an opportunity arises to suppress his homosexual feelings with a untested drug - he jumps at the chance and starts a slow descent into a hell he'd never imagined.
This was a wonderful book and I really felt for Jamie - it's hard coming to terms with being 'different', especially in a setting as brutal and cutthroat as high school. Not everyone is comfortable with coming out of any closet or even comfortable with themselves and the latter is definitely Jamie. He became someone he wasn't in order to gain something he thought he needed - to be straight. This is a highly compelling story and I could really empathize with his ordeal having gone through my own years ago (no drugs involved though!). Another piece of this story really spoke to me - the drug testing issue. I work in the human research subject protections field and to read how the 'researcher' treated Jamie and the lack of consent and information was just appalling. The author truly captured the ills of unregulated research.
This book teaches you that you should accept yourself as you truly are and embrace your differences. You can't appreciate others if you don't appreciate yourself.
This was a wonderful book and I really felt for Jamie - it's hard coming to terms with being 'different', especially in a setting as brutal and cutthroat as high school. Not everyone is comfortable with coming out of any closet or even comfortable with themselves and the latter is definitely Jamie. He became someone he wasn't in order to gain something he thought he needed - to be straight. This is a highly compelling story and I could really empathize with his ordeal having gone through my own years ago (no drugs involved though!). Another piece of this story really spoke to me - the drug testing issue. I work in the human research subject protections field and to read how the 'researcher' treated Jamie and the lack of consent and information was just appalling. The author truly captured the ills of unregulated research.
This book teaches you that you should accept yourself as you truly are and embrace your differences. You can't appreciate others if you don't appreciate yourself.
