Review: The Porcupine of Truth

By Bill Konigsberg
Available now from Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic)
Review copy
Read my review of  Openly Straight

Last year I read a Bill Konigsberg novel for the first time.  OPENLY STRAIGHT was a good summer read, but not one of my favorites of the year or anything.  His recent release, THE PORCUPINE OF TRUTH, still caught my attention with its adorable cover and a blurb that promised an epic road trip.

The story starts when Carson's mom leaves him at the zoo.  They've come to Billings, Montana for the summer to help his dying father in his final days, and she needs to ditch him for a bit to take care of things.  At the zoo Carson meets Aisha, who has been kicked out by her father because she's a lesbian.  It's the beginning of a fast friendship between two weirdos with similarly off-beat senses of humor. 

Yes, there is an epic road trip.  Carson and Aisha set out to find what happened to Carson's grandfather.  He was a missing person, but they found evidence in the basement that he was in contact with his wife after he officially disappeared.  I liked that their road trip encounters a lot of problems, including car trouble and difficulty finding places to stay.  It's a pretty realistic road trip for two teenagers without many resources and rapidly dwindling parental approval.

There is a lot of religious discussion, which doesn't bother me, but I know isn't everyone's cup of tea.  Carson doesn't really believe in anything, and Aisha is turning against her childhood beliefs since her very Christian father treated her in such an un-Christlike way.  On their road trip, they encounter people who believe a variety of different things and discuss them.  I thought it was a good reflection of reality and very revealing of all the characters.

THE PORCUPINE OF TRUTH is a very funny novel that tackles tough subjects like alcoholism, homeless LGBTQ youth, and racism.  (Aisha is black.)  The irreverent tone balances the dark matter without being disrespectful of it.  Definitely worth a read.

Review: Openly Straight

By Bill Konigsberg
Available now from Arthur A. Levine (Scholastic)
Review copy

Rafe is tired of being the gay kid.  He understands that he's lucky, with his understanding hippie parents and progressive hometown Boulder, CO . . . but he's still tired of that one label always coming first.  So he decides to do what any foresight-lacking teenager would do and moves to a prep school across the country where no one knows that he's gay.

But Rafe's one little omission isn't as small as he things.  Sometimes it becomes an outright lie.  And when his friendship with one of his new classmates starts to turn romantic, it's definitely not cool that he's keeping his past a secret.  What's nice is that Rafe's English teacher catches on to his secrecy pretty earlier and puts him to writing about his motivation.  Rafe's assignment pieces and the teacher's commentary illuminate where Rafe is refusing to reflect and eventually helps Rafe think his experiment through.

Now, I am not saying Rafe is 100% in the wrong.  No one should be defined as a label.  But as OPENLY STRAIGHT points out, lying to people isn't cool.  And people who wouldn't be friends with you if they knew that you were gay, or bisexual, or able to fly, or from the planet Krypton . . . well, are they really the people you want to be friends with?

No matter the reader's sexuality, Rafe's struggle to define himself and where he fits in is pretty universal.  Messing it up and having to apologize to people is pretty darn universal too.  It's really interesting how far coming-out lit has come, that we can have a re-closeting and coming-out again novel. Strangely, I'm hoping that OPENLY STRAIGHT dates quickly.  It's a new exploration of life as "the gay kid" but it really would be nice if people stopped putting such emphasis on other people's sexuality.

OPENLY STRAIGHT is quick and funny, but grounded by well-thought out philosophy and sociology.   My favorite part of the story might be just how much Rafe is motivated by sex.  Even coming out - he comes out because he's more likely to get laid that way.  Rafe is just such a teen guy.  At the same time, I liked that Rafe's family and friends were as important to the story than his romances.  (And that everyone realized they were drinking maybe a bit too much.)  OPENLY STRAIGHT is a good summer read that will make you think a few thinky thoughts between laughs.