"Winger" by Andrew Smith
Smith, Andrew. (2013). Winger. New York, YN: Simon & Schuster.
ISBN: 978-1-4424-4492-8
The back cover of this book has snippets of things famous
writers have said about “Winger” but I didn’t pay any attention to them. “This book
broke my heart” was the gist of it. I believe in developing my own opinions, so
here is my main thought: This book broke my heart!!! I cried. I had trouble reading
the last few pages through the tears that made my mascara run and eyelashes
stick together. Oh, my, goodness. I was so upset my 3-year-old came and hugged
me. That being said, please read this book!
Ryan
Dean is our protagonist and, for the most part, he is a normal 14-year-old. He is smart and mischievous. He plays sports.
He likes girls. He thinks about sex every few minutes (or seconds). Seems
pretty normal until you realize that he is a genius 14-year-old Junior in a very
exclusive private high school hidden in the mountains. The book is spattered with
Ryan Dean’s cartoon depictions of events and notes he writes his friends and
they lend a much more personal air to the story. I honestly did not realize how
often teenage boys think about sex until reading this. It is near constant. If
this depiction is accurate, it is a wonder they manage to survive to the age of
18! Ryan Dean throws around f-bombs and sexual innuendos like candy at a
parade! It makes him oddly endearing.
Ryan Dean
did not make me cry. Joey, his gay best friend, made me cry. In the last 10
pages or so of the novel, Joey disappears and most people aren’t very concerned.
Ryan Dean and his scary, rugby roommate Becker are concerned. They go out to
help find Joey and finally someone does. He is tied, naked, to a tree and had
been beaten to death. After the author goes through so much effort to make us
love Joey, he murders him. I was furious. I would read it again and be furious
all over.
This
book is a perfect read for anybody in or related to GSA (Gay Straight Alliance)
as it shows what life is like for the standard straight boy versus the standard
gay boy in high school and I think a lot of people don’t really understand the
difference. The fact that Joey is persecuted (heavy but accurate word) is a
scary potential reality for a reader. Exposure to reality like this is
important for young readers. They have the advantage of being able to gain
experience from books instead of real life danger and they can learn from Ryan
Dean and Joey’s experiences.
More by this author! (Winger has sequels!)
An Angry Teen Reviews Winger! (she is peeved...)
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