Customer Reviews

The World Of Normal Boys

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The 70's...... an era of drive in movies, grease, john travolta and olivia-newton-john, pot smoking, leather wearing, motorcycle riding masses of muscle and testosterone..... alas, this novel brings everything back with such clarity that you can smell it seeping through the pages. 13 year old Robin MacKenzie is starting highschool in the midst of all of this and to make matters worse he is totally confused about his sexuality. His best friend is a girl who is experiencing changes of her own, his younger brother is closer to his Father than he ever hopes to be, and his mother still makes trips into the "city" with him where they create a fantasy world of handsome rogues, starlets and other escapes from reality! Tragedy strikes the family and suddenly Robin discovers that the literal "boy next door" is perhaps the boy he has always been looking for. The ensuing roadtrip is rife with burgeoning hormones, pot smoking, sexual awakenings and other hilarious anecdotes that recall that queasy feeling that young gay boys experience on their own road to self identity. For a debut novel, this is definitely a class act that deserves a follow-up. Pick it up, caress it, lose yourself in it!

About once every decade or so along comes an author with a voice so clear and exciting that a first novel becomes a revelation. K.M. Soehnlein has given us another universally effective tale of the coming of age of a boy in the labyrinth of puberty. Joyce, Salinger, Wolfe did it and created prototypes that became icons for countless young men fortunate enough to be encouraged to read abou the tangles life presents when the hormone balance shifts toward adulthood. "The World of Normal Boys" is a sheer wonder of writing skill, passion, and commitment. I wonder at the lack of notoriety due a book of this stature - but then perhaps this book has fallen victim of being too "specialized" in its reader audience. Yes, ONE of the struggles that the main character, Robin, encounters is his fear and coming to grips with nascent homosexuality. But Soehnlein handles this so adroitly that it should ring bells in everyone's psyche; sexual ambivalence is a normal step toward sexual identity, gene theory or no. Accompanying this odyssey of a highschool freshman is an incident which changes everything in his milieu of maturing. And with this incident we are allowed to observe the disintegration of a "normal" family unit, the inception of alcoholism, parental abuse of children as they seek escape from their own frustration about life choices, the obsessive need to feel loved/needed/to exist, the imbalance between juvenile naivete and adult "sophistication." Yet the author sweeps us along with a storytelling technique which is incredibly fine. If you wonder early in the book why he is taking such detail to describe a playground and especially an almost architecturally rendered view of a play slide, then you only realize in a few pages further why that little bit of apparent "diversion" was so important and why there is a replay of the same theme at book's end when our now beloved main character unveils the place the universe has fashioned for him in this life. If there were more than 5 stars to rate this book I would go to the maximum number. This is a brilliant book by an enormously gifted author who has not only given us a new Stephen Daedalus, Holden Caulfield, Eugene Gant...he has documented a decade (the 1970's) better than almost anyone writing today. Yes this book deals with gay issues (very well) and that can only be another reason for everyone to read it. Highly recommended!!!!!!!!!!

In some ways KM Soehnlein's THE WORLD OF NORMAL BOYS reminded me of the teenage novels of Paul Zindel. There is that same depth of feeling along with characters that can break your heart and make you laugh at the same time. Zindel wrote specifically for adolescents. Soehnlein does not have those restrictions and has written a brutally honest book about homosexual experimentation among post-pubescent boys and its social implications. Although the book is written for adults, it speaks on a deep personal level to the adolescent in all of us.

THE WORLD OF NORMAL BOYS is the story of a family that falls apart when a tragic accident befalls the youngest child. The story is seen through the eyes of the victim's 13-year-old brother as he tries to find something to hold on to while his mother drifts into alcoholism, his father goes nuts, his sister becomes a religious fanatic (and a kleptomaniac) and he finds himself smitten with two boys. One is Todd, the athletic and arrogant brother of his girl-pal confidante who lives next door. The other is Scott, a boy who deals drugs, cuts school and has an alcoholic father who beats him. All the characters are vividly rendered. If this were ever turned into a film, the actress who plays the mother would probably win an Oscar just for her final scene in the car.

This is powerful and emotional writing. I found it very moving. It's tempting to want to recommend this book to a wide audience, but I am reticent because there are several scenes of furtive and unacknowledged sex between teenage boys that could upset some people.

But I will never forget this book. Five stars.

I think this is one of the finest gay themed novels that I have ever read. I could barely put it down. It brought back many, many memories of my own high school experiences - I laughed and cried throughout! Having read many gay novels, I put this novel right up there at the top with my other favorites including Flesh and Blood by Michael Cunningham and Like People in History by Felice Picano. I dare anyone to read the description early in the book of the art teacher with the long hair without a smile! P.S. - The reviewer from Thailand completely missed the point of this book.

Soehnlein takes a potentially tired genre-the gay coming of age story-and crafts a lively, compelling story filled with dead-on observations about sex and boys and the pains of growing up. Set in the tacky days of the late 1970s, the story focuses on the end of 13-year-old Robin MacKenzie's sexual innocence, as well as on the fracturing effect a tragedy has on his family. The bottom line is, this is a great read with great characters and great writing (and hot sex scenes to boot). I read a lot of gay fiction, and this novel would easily go on my list of favorites.

The World of Normal Boys is one of the most powerful first novels I've ever read. The author digs deep into the psyche of his protagonist and speaks to us in a clear, warm, youthful voice. While sometimes shockingly explicit in its sexual content the novel does not rely on the cliches typical of "the coming of age" novel.

At times poetic, the book focuses on Robin MacKenzie and his search for love and a "place" in the world. When a horrible accident puts the family at odds with each other, Robin is thrust into a journey filled with self-doubt, guilt, and fear. Never a dull moment, The World of Normal Boys is a page turner. This is a near perfect novel that brings those agonizing years clearly into focus for those of us who forgot what it was like to be on the outside looking in. No doubt, the author will win a Lambda award for this effort. In short, this book is a gem and will stay with you long after you've finished it.

K.M. Soehnlein did not strike a single false note for me in his coming-of-age novel. The non-linear nature of many conversations (which still communicate much to both the listeners AND the speakers), the guilt and excitement that a person feels when he continues to experience life during tragic circumstances, the way a series of bold decisions suddenly add up to a life spinning wildly out of control: all of these ring true to me.

The protagonist Robin McKenzie is destined for greater things than his suburban New Jersey town can give him -- he's smart, creative, and hungry -- but we're lucky to have a peak into the half-year when his life and identity are transformed (unfortunately, by an accident when childhood teasing gets out-of-hand).

The book is written for adults, although older teenagers might be ready for it. I imagine that some high school gays will dog-ear certain hot sections for re-reading. I would have done so had I stumbled on such a book when I was in high school. Wait, I did ...

**SPOILER**

And for once in recent fiction, a gay relationship in high school is shown to be the intoxicating, confusing, educational and FINITE experience that it often is.

I look forward to reading more from K.M. Soehnlein.

The World of Normal Boys is an incredible coming of age story. It was a moving experience for me as I read it, reliving the fuzzy confusion of a past identity. Then pulling back sheer curtains to see clearly and with a little disappointment, that maybe there is no normal.

Our hero is Robin MacKenzie, a young boy of 14 living in suburban New Jersey. It is 1978 and he is just at the start of his freshman year in high school. He knows exactly what to do to be normal in school. In fact, that is the first thing he writes down in one of his new school notebooks; his list to prove he is as normal as everyone else. This is the first clue Soehnlein gives us that Robin is a bright person who understands the dynamics of the world around him and can define it so clearly. The problem, he soon learns, is that the world is totally screwed up. No one he comes in contact with, from his parents, his aunt and uncle, cousin, friends or teachers, can provide a real-life example of what normal is. There is no normal that rises to the level that would satisfy Robin, a person who is coming to grips with his sexuality and where he fits.

Early in the story, his younger brother ends up in intensive care after falling off a slide in the school playground, and that sets in motion, throughout the story, a downward spiral of his family's behavior. His parents, aunt and uncle start down a road of self-destruction. Even his house is being torn apart. His friends, once admired, continually disappoint him and are dealing with their own demons. In the eye of this mess is Robin. It's fascinating how Soehnlein moves Robin through the storm, while at the same time coming to grips with who he is. We only see a few months of Robin's life, but it is the pivotal ones we've all had when we realize we're different. But Robin doesn't let it go there. He's smart enough to look deeper. Different isn't what it seems.

Robin sums it up best when, towards the end, he tells his best friend, referring to his friends and especially his family: "When people who aren't normal try to make their lives normal, it doesn't work." Pretty good for a kid just coming to grips with his own sexuality and how he fits in the world. I hope we get to see where Robin is headed in a sequel to this novel.

I'm 17 and I just came out to myself. Being a gay teen is not easy but reading this book helped me through some of my personal struggles with myself. I'm sure you probably know the plot by now so I wont waste time explaning them. anyway, this book is one of my very first gay novels and I loved it. I actually was exited to go home and read. It's an amazing story and very realistic. It will warm you heart seeing Robin strive to understand and come to terms with his sexuality. This might not be a book for everyone but for all the homosexuals, especially the gays, you can relate to the character one way or another. I could not stop thinking about it even after I finished. Overall, its a really really good book. I definitely recommend it to anyone questioning about their sexuality or just in for a good read. I can't wait for the next novel by him.

I could not put this book down. This not just about a young kid dealing with sexuality. I believe the book is more about Robin coming to terms with his life, sexuality being only a small portion of what he learns. He struggles with his relationships with his mother and father as well as his other family members. I really felt connected to Robin and the situations he encounters. It reminded me of what I felt like when I was his age. This book is most definitely worth the purchase.