Customer Reviews

Rainbow High

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Alex Sanchez deserves a tremendous amount of praise for writing such an excellent sequel to his immensely popular Rainbow Boys. Two of Alex's signature writing methods shown through this time, too. Those being his succinct writing style and the rotation of the chapters where we get the point of view from Jason, Kyle, then Nelson.

By writing about three distinct personalities, Mr. Sanchez gave us a perfect way to easily follow their lives. And, whereas I felt the most for Jason in the first novel, this time I seemed to focus more on what Kyle was going thru. Perhaps this is what Alex wanted us to experience, I'm not sure. Regardless, his writing method worked.

Despite giving this story 5 stars, I felt that the interruptions that kept the boys from being intimate with others was a bit contrived. I believe that his boys should have been given more moments to be together (wink, wink, nudge, nudge) than the single instance between Kyle and Jason that was depicted (which was very tastefully done, BTW). Otherwise, the various interactions amongst the characters (boys and girls) was spot on.

Speaking as a writer and not as a reader, I have to say that one of the best parts of the construction of this story is how Mr. Sanchez builds the tension and conflict level as it progresses. Alex, you know what you're doing! It kept me turning the pages to find out how the different situations would be resolved.

And it's the end that leads me to think that this will be a trilogy at some point. Since one of the characters doesn't get his due yet, and Alex's stories are always upbeat, I hope he will continue the series to a positive conclusion.

Thanks, Alex, for your new contribution to our literature.

I started this book with some trepidation. First, this is a sequel, and I didn't have the benefit of reading its predecessor, Rainbow Boys. (Rest assured, the events from the previous novel are helpfully recapped in the beginning of this one) Secondly, I found this in the young adult/teen section of the bookstore. Don't worry, this funny, sarcastic, and sometimes touching book can be enjoyed just as easily by adults as teenagers.
Nelson, Kyle, and Jason are three gay teens navigating through the sometimes happy, sometimes overly maudlin, and always confusing world of high school. This novel opens on the boys' senior years at Walt Whitman High School. Nelson Glassman, the outrageously flamboyant school GSA advocate, is facing problems of his own. An impromptu internet tryst with a complete stranger without protection may have left him poz...HIV positive, that is.
Kyle Meeks is in the midst of a reluctant relationship with "megajock" Jason Carillo. Jason, out to only a select few, including his ex-girlfriend, is uncomfortable announcing to the whole world (or at least the entire school populace) that he has a boyfriend.
Also, the fact that it's their senior year, they may go their separate ways after graduation, a major case of collegiate confusion, and a whole host of catty and bitchy situations, is the perfect recipe for a truly fun read.
Teenagers will revel at the rebelliousness and free-spiritedness of the lead characters, and the steamy slow scenes, (PG-13 at the most) in good taste, never get *too* out of hand.
This, obviously, is not War and Peace, or The Diary of Anne Frank. It is, however, a fun read that will make a couple of days (or hours, depending on how voraciously you read) pass with more enjoyment.
The ending leaves plenty of room for another sequel, so expect one soon. Here's to Alex Sanchez and the continuing adventures of Nelson, Kyle, and Jason.

Nelson, Kyle and Jason whom we met in RAINBOW BOYS are back again, pretty much as we knew them. Well, Nelson has gone from dying his hair lemon-lime to "flame-blue," an appropriate color since he is certainly the flamer of these three. He is the outrageous one who never had a chance of being in anybody's closet, even if he had wanted to. Kyle is still the shy one on the swim team who can "pass" if left alone. Jason, of course, is the high school jock equally attractive to both young men and women.

There are no surprises here. We pretty much know where Mr. Sanchez is going with his plot. Will Nelson break up with his new boyfriend Jason because he is HIV positive? Will Kyle go to Princeton rather than to a lesser university even though it means he will be separated from Jason? Will Jason come out to the other members of the basketball team? If he does, will he lose his college scholarship? Will they all attend the senior prom?

What this novel does extremely well is provide a story that gay teenagers can read and know that they are not alone, particularly those who live in out-of-the-way towns and attend small high schools. It is comforting to learn that RAINBOW BOYS was an American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults.

As in the previous novel, there is information about all kinds of organizations and help for gay teenagers at the end of this novel.

Continuing from the successful "Rainbow Boys", "Rainbow High" follows Nelson, Jason, and Kyle through most of their senior year in high school as they look forward to their futures after graduation, but will they all be together? Nelson struggles with having an HIV+ boyfriend, while Jason and Kyle work through the beginnings of their relationship. Kyle is hesitant to decide on a college until he knows where Jason is heading. Jason, meanwhile, decides to come out to his basketball coach and team, but this could jeopardize his scholarship, or will it? This young adult novel explores friendship and dating in these characters' lives, and paints a hopeful picture of being young and gay. While the story does gloss over much of the emotional intricacies of the teens, "Rainbow High" is a delight to read. Like in his first book, Sanchez also includes resources for gay youth after the story's conclusion.

Rainbow High is a novel about three teenagers: Jason, Kyle, and Nelson. Jason Carrillo is the basketball jock, Kyle Meeks is the near perfect grade point average swimmer, and Nelson Glassman is the hair dying hyper boy. These three boys are gay and each of them has personal issues which they must face head on. Jason's dad has left the family, ever since he came out. Also, Jason has a scholarship on the line for Tech College, and terrified something may occur which might cause him to lose it. Kyle has applied Tech and Princeton, but is very unsure if his decision. He wants to be with Jason, but he doesn't know if that can happen. Also, his dad is very certain with where he wants Kyle to go for college. Plus, Kyle must deal with homophobia with his team mates and at school. Jason is all over the place. He had a one night stand is waiting his test results for HIV. And to add fuel to the flame, the boy he is currently seeing is HIV+ and he must deal with everything that is going on. Moreover, he is secretly in love with good friend Kyle, who is unfortunately taken by Jason. Can the three handle everything that is happening? Or will the pressure be too much to bear? I think Rainbow High is an excellent book and author Alex Sanchez is a highly talented writer. This review is written without reading the first book (Rainbow Boys), so I wasn't totally sure about everything that had previously happened. The book gave background information though, so i felt I was able to dive right in. There are a few reasons why I didn't rate this book five stars. First off because I felt that sometimes the characters were worrying about mindless things or overthinking things way too much into the future that the story wasn't as strong on concentrating with the things currently happening, but rather pondering much too far into the future. Also, the ending was very good, it was original and joyous, but I felt somewhat like not all the loose ends were tied up. One of my favorite things about the book was how it was written. I really liked how each chapter was one of the three character's point of view. It first starts off with Nelson, then Kyle, and then Jason and rotates until the ending, in which the finale chapter wraps everything up. It reminded me of the novel Ordinary People (which is another favorite of mine and I highly recommend that too), because in O.P., the book is told through Conrad and his father's point of view. Telling a story that way is really great because you can feel for each of the characters involved. Anyways before I keep rambling, I think you should read this book because it has a lot to offer, plus its just fun!

All I have to say is that this book made me come out. It's a great story, and all the little episodes that rainbow boys are going through seem well known to me (and I'm sure other gay teenagers too). It's definite 5 in my opinion.

Rainbow Boys, the first book in this sequence is an absorbing read, full of organic conflict that arises naturally from the tense situations in which Kyle, Jason, and Nelson find themselves as they come out in high school. Highly relatable.

This sequel, on the other hand, feels forced. Most of the parents, teachers, and fellow adjust way too quickly to the news the guys are gay. And the obstacle/crisis pattern of the plot feels mechanical.

The weakest moment is definitely the opening chapter, in which a teacher supervising a Gay-Straight Alliance meeting asks the three guys to write an essay about being gay and Sanchez forces these three "essays" to provide all the backstory that went on in the first book.

So, in laughable language that's supposed to be teen colloquial, Nelson recounts the events of the last novel, over-explaining, referring to his best friends by their full names. The whole thing feels v. forced, like nothing Nelson would ever write.

Lots of good things about the book, but--since I'd had such a great time reading the first--it bummed me out.

You will have fun trying to determine if the "Jason" on this second cover is the same model as the "Jason" on the first book.I i still can't decide!

I discovered Rainbow Boys earlier on in the year, read and adored it, but it was Rainbow High that sealed my love for these characters in these books. Alex Sanchez writes realistically with a beautiful voice that had me in tears (of joy, sadness, or being able to see the boys that I know in Kyle, Jason and Nelson's respective personalities). I'm about to enter my senior year of high school, so I know that Sanchez remembers perfectly what high school was like; he captures it so well. Few books make me feel the emotions that Rainbow High and Rainbow Boys have made me feel, and that is the ultimate compliment I can pay to these amazing novels.

I am not gay but I was so in love with Rainbow Boys when I checked it out of the librarry 1 day that I read the book in a hour. Along with the first one, the second one is amazing, I have never read 2 such amazing books!

I read both Rainbow Boys, and Rainbow High in the space of two days. I think the highest praise I can give an author is at the end of a book when "I want more". And I wanted more. Hopefully Mr. Sanchez will continue on with the story's of these 3 guys.

If how he presents being a gay teen in his novels is true, then times have changed for the better, but there is still much work to be done. One of the things that struck me as true was the different ways each of the three boys were treated as they "came out". Nelson, who was always out, still has to bear the brunt of teasing and physical attacks. Even his understanding mother draws the line when he falls in love with an HIV+ guy. When Jason starts to come out, while he still has obstacles, he is treated with more respect because he is a star athlete. Kyle, while still an athlete, still has to endure the taunts and bullying and was surprised to find out that Jason got off so easy.

I also liked the subtle treatment of homophobia in the novels. The contrast between how Jason's and Kyle's two coaches approached the situation was very well handled. One coach firmly supported Kyle, but also warned that there would be repercussions and went so far as to have an intervention with the team. Kyle's coach, on the other hand chose to ignore the problem and went so far as to blame Kyle for being the victim. "If he hadn't come out, this wouldn't be happening." etc.

I also thought the physical interactions were handled well and not too graphic, which may have taken away something from the novel if they had been explicit. The author spent more time describing how electric hand holding and kissing were for the boys, than the actual sexual acts, which was suitable for a novel aimed at a younger audience.