Customer Reviews

One Teenager in Ten: Testimony by Gay and Lesbian Youth

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I read this book over ten years ago and found it very helpful and interesting. It showed me that I wasn't the only person who had these feelings, though at the time I was certain there was something terribly wrong with me. It was nice to know I was not alone...

This is a book of essays written by gay and lesbian youth, talking about their experiences and feelings. It is very "raw" in some ways- they are completely honest and don't try to sugarcoat anything. For example, there is a story of someone who was seduced at the age of 12 by an adult, and she does not write about being traumatized. There is also a lot of writing about sex. Some of the essays I read made me think that the people are naive and equate love with sex, but it doesn't matter what I or anyone else think, this is their essay. There is value in that honesty, even though some of it seemed kind of "inappropriate".
The writing was OK- I think the book focused more on the subject than the writing ability. I don't know if my reaction is unusual, but this book made me feel even more alone, like the other non-straight youth were out partying somewhere and finding girlfriends and boyfriends and I was the only one who wasn't. But maybe it will give hope to some other people.

I bought this book when I was 16, I'm 37 now. This book is great from young people who are struggling with coming out of the closet and realizing they are different than others. It gives young kids confidence to know that being gay is OK. It is also a great book for parents of young adelescente kids who are struggleing with being different. Sort of gives a parent a little leverage to pointing a child in the right direction to saying Gay is OK.