Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez

• ISBN: 978-0689857706
• Plot summary: In Rainbow Boys, we meet Jason, the jock, Nelson, the freak, and Kyle, the nerd. Jason isn't sure what to make of himself--he has a girlfriend, but he can't help these feelings he's had for guys his whole life. When he shows up at a meeting for LGBT youth and Kyle and Nelson are there, he freaks out and leaves. He doesn't want word to get out to the rest of the school that he's into dudes. Still, when Kyle offers his friendship to Kyle, Jason considers it. Kyle is a nice guy, and he could help him with his math homework. Nelson knows that Kyle has always been into Jason, and the closer they become the more jealous Nelson gets. Does he like Kyle? Why doesn't he like him back?
• Critical evaluation: As these young men try to make sense of their sexual identities in high school, one can't help but feel admiration for the kinds of things they have to endure. While juggling tough issues such as coming out and AIDS, they also endure taunting at the hands of their peers and even their own families. Teenagers in heterosexual relationships have a hard time securing privacy to explore what that means to them, it's a wonder that the young men in this novel ever get time away to explore what it means to be homosexual in their hetero-centric high school bubble. Alex Sanchez does an excellent job of showing just how these young men keep it together, and how they can support each other when the rest of the world seems to turn it's back on them.
• Reader's annotation: Jason, Kyle, and Nelson all knew senior year would be hard, they just didn't know how hard.
• About the author: Alex Sanchez lives in Virginia and continues the Rainbow series for YA readers. His background is in guidance and counseling.
• Genre: Fiction
• Curriculum ties, if any: None
• Booktalking ideas:
• What other kinds of identity are called into question at school?
• Have you ever heard of a GSA before this book? If so, where?
• Reading level/interest age: 15+
• Challenge issues: Sexuality, underage drinking, profanity
• Why was this item included? This item is on the Best Book for Young Adults list by the ALA.