Reviews

Skater Boy by Anthony Nerada

oa_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

tarinoihin_kadonnut's review against another edition

hopeful

4.5

amk13's review against another edition

emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

sdematos1443's review

sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

kelly_madden's review

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

cat_lover_reads's review

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

eyesofheaven's review

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

cayeman's review against another edition

emotional funny inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

fatitalunar's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

5.0

theofficialzhang's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

It's giving Avril Lavigne vibes.

It's giving angsty teens falling in love and grumpy x sunshine vibes.

It's giving early 2000s emo bands.

Skater Boy is a book that you’ll want to pick up if you feel like you’ve never really fit in as a teen. If you felt like you were an outcast and if you had a difficult family life. It’s a story that follows a gay punk as he comes to terms with his sexuality, family issues, and having a change of heart and wanting to go to college. Overall, it’s a nice and lighthearted story that touches on some darker themes.

Wes is a pretty relatable character. He’s flawed and angsty and a teen who deals with issues that many teens face. He deals with his coming to terms with his sexuality and coming out. And he also deals with trauma. He just wants to get by. He has some bad parts and good parts but is overall a nice character. And it’s great to see his growth from the beginning to the end of the story. He learns to appreciate his family more and comes to terms with who he is which I’m happy to see.

As for the love interest, Tristan is the absolute sweetest. He’s hard-working and not afraid to be who he is. He’s super nice and understanding and honestly, the kindest to Wes even though he’s an outcast initially. I loved seeing his love for ballet and how he also helps West out. Best LI ever.

Finally, I loved Ted and Mom as well. I thought they were the sweetest characters ever and they were great towards Wes. Also, I loved how the author addressed the mom’s past trauma as well.

So if you’re looking for a queer contemporary read that’s inspired by Avril Lavigne, then I recommend Skater Boy!

Overall, 4.5 stars.