This is a stunning, expertly written book that is thought provoking and moving. The cast is set for conflict – a Christian minister with a closet gay son who has committed suicide, an openly gay high school student, a closet gay student and his religious mother and her skeptical boyfriend, and a closet gay teacher. The story looks at every side of the Christian view of gays debate, with different characters representing different views, and it does so in a way that allows us to understand the fear and the indignation that fires the conflict.
I particularly liked the way the author used video shot by the teen lovers as a means to help the minister come to a new understanding. The point is that it’s easy to hate homosexuals and think all sorts of nasty things about them until you find that someone you love is one.
I also loved the character of the mother’s boyfriend. The complete ease with which he wandered naked around the house was delightful, as was his open-mindedness. He shows the heterosexual man who is so confident in his masculinity that he is not at all threatened by a gay person.
The book gets right into the character’s heads so that we feel a connection to their hopes and fears. We come to understand them, even with their diverse opinions. No view is denigrated; all are respected. This book should be read by everyone who has never met a homosexual particularly if you’re a Christian.. The end is particularly inspiring and it uses a passage from the bible, but it is not preachy in any way.
Highly recommended.
