Billy's Boy
Raised alone by his mother, 13-year-old narrator William knows that his father is dead and considers his Mom and Aunt Marion his only family. But when Mom comes out as a lesbian and William has a dream that his father is alive, he is forced to rethink things. He begins by searching for his father, also discovering a new, communal sense of family in which role models are not necessarily biological parents. Teak enters William's household rejected and beaten up by his own family because he is gay. And Shawn, a special friend of William, runs away from his fundamentalist Christian parents, disguising himself as a girl to evade private investigators. William's search is ultimately for himself, and it is stark and troubling. Warren's (Harlan's Race, Wildcat, 1994) ability to understand this character and tell his story in the lingo of 1990s youth is remarkable. Highly recommended for all fiction collections.?Tom Nielsen, Pat Parker-Vito Russo Lib., New YorkCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.