I cried. I also screamed. This book has ALL of the feels. ( )

Trigger Warning: Conversion Therapy, Homophobia, racism, sexual assault, alcoholism, death of a parent, police brutality

In 1973, Jonathan is a sixteen-year-old obsessed with David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust and uses him as a safe haven in his imagination - a place where he can be "normal". In reality, Jonathan must complete his treatments before he can be "normal" and "cure" the sickness of homosexuality. But then Web stumbles into his life and he's everything Jonathan wishes he can be: fearless, strong, and most importantly, not ashamed of being gay. He becomes an escape Jonathan has never known, because the first time in his life, he may finally feel free enough to love and accept himself as he is.

This book addresses two incredibly important issues, homophobia and racism, and how it was handled in the 70's. I'm going to be honest and say that I wasn't all too familiar with the events of Wounded Knee - it sounded familiar when first mentioned but after being told what happened by the characters, I realized I didn't know much about it at all. It's one of the reasons I like historical fiction because, though it can be fictionalized, it still tells about the past.

I knew of the treatments Jonathan went through, and to see him go through it was heartbreaking. His need to go through with it was what shattered me the most. Him coming to terms with who he is and even standing up for himself against his doctor made me smile. (view spoiler).

My only real problem was that I had a bit of a hard time with Jonathan's train of thoughts - sometimes it would say stuff happened in regular text, but then Jonathan would say something along the lines of, "actually, I think they did this instead..." It made it hard for me to trust the narrator in a way. And also how many "whambamthankyouma'am" did there need to be??

Overall, I would still recommend this book for the historical factor. It gives you an insight on what it was like in the 70's being gay as well as Native American. ( )

LGBTQAI teen historic fiction (16 y.o. gay teen boy meets Lakota teen boy in 1973 small town Missouri; author is non-Native and gay but is actively learning from and assisting the Native queer community)

first impressions: Jonathan is adorable and your heart aches for what he goes through--from his fanboy crush on Ziggy Stardust to his running from bullies to his electroshock therapy. I hope things get better, and that his story helps others who might feel alone.

final impressions: there is significant trauma included here (emotional turmoil as well as physical assault) and I am glad that Jonathan is able to figure out that there's nothing wrong with the way he feels, and that everyone gets away safely. Starla and Web are both sweet, terrific characters. I think there's a lot to relate to here, even if you aren't a history buff (but if you are, there's all that bonus Nixon/Watergate excitement). Don't miss the afterword by the author. ( )

[waves hands around uncertainly]
Nothing against this one, really. I think it was a good mix of a very heavy theme & plot but with bright narration to prevent it from feeling like a slog, which explains how I got to about 50% through. But man that narration is also super grating and unfunny and pretentious (calm. the. hell. DOWN, JONATHAN), so I'm gonna say goodbye.

This book was remarkable. James Brandon has taken difficult subject matter and taken us inside the brain of Jonathan Collins. Jonathan has a tough life. His mother died when he was born, his father is an alcoholic, he's bullied at school and worst of all - he's struggling with who he is. Jonathan survives by spending time with his best friend, Starla and disappearing into the world of his imagination. There are parts of this book that are really difficiult to read and it's only because of Jonathan's vivid imagination that the painful edges are rubbed away and the reader can absorb what is happening to him.

When Jonathan meets Web - a young, brave and outspoken Native-American boy - his world begins to change. It becomes more dangerous and more wonderful at the same time.

Please read this book. ( )