It's been a long time since I've read a young adult novel. I don't know if this is par for the course, but holy shit did this book make me feel like a prude!
First of all, Absolute Brightness is written by the man who co-founded The Trevor Hotline, which is a 24 hour suicide prevention hotline for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered and questioning teens. I'd also seen his work on the short Trevor which received an Academy Award for best short and was really spectacular.
So, let's just say that my expectations were high. I'm not sure if they were met, because, you see, the thing is...
I have no idea what to expect in a young adult novel --especially one that clearly states on the back of the book that it is intended for audiences that are 12 years of age and over. I can, however, tell you what I didn't expect which was :
- Constant use of language like fuck, shit, damn, bitch, etc. Really? For 12 year olds? Is that normal?
- Tons of teens smoking with no bad consequences or even mentioning that it's 'not cool'. And I'm a smoker! But Jesus, can we not encourage our kids to do this shit?
- Graphic sex scenes between children and adults.
- Graphic sex scenes between children and children – including one that led to a physical assault and almost led to a rape.
- A father raping his 14 year old daughter.
- A gay boy being raped, murdered and thrown in a lake with all of his limbs tied together.
- Lots of information on how 'good' shop-lifting makes kids feel. Again with no negative consequences or alternative points of view.
While a lot of the subject matter seemed too mature for a 12+ audience, I felt like a lot of the writing talked down to the reader. There were a lot of jokes followed by explanations of the joke, as though the reader was an idiot.
There was also a lot of political stuff going on. He touched on issues of tolerance of homosexuals, anti-death penalty stuff as well as some anti-Iraq issues. I have no problem with these issues being discussed in a Young Adult novel, in fact I love that. However, it was really jarring. They'd go from talking about a soldier who'd recently returned to Iraq with a broken leg to a long diatribe written in really hygienic language that felt much more like a lesson than an actual human story. I felt preached to, and considering that I'm a member of the choir, I found it annoying.
All of these problems were issues from the first 100 pages or so. Once I accepted them and allowed myself to get drawn into the story, I was really moved. In fact, I cried a few times.
I would recommend this to a more mature Young Adult audience, though definitely not the 12 year olds it suggests.
7/10
YTD:
Books read : 20
Pages read : 6,170
Currently reading : Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris & The Color Purple - Alice Walker & U.S. Hands Off the Mideast! - Cuba Speaks Out at the United Nations - Fidel Castro and Richardo Alarcon
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