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A review by lunaseassecondaccount
Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn
2.0
I was looking forward to this book. I thought I'd just devour it. Teen-accessible GLBTI lit? I'm so there. But when I got to reading it... it just fell flat (and not just because I thought Ely was actually a girl and it would be a lesbian story. Ahem.)
The biggest problem for me was Naomi. She knew Ely was gay. She knew Ely was gay. This wasn't some secret hidden agenda that snuck up on her in the dark one day. She knew for a long time Ely was gay and refused to admit it to herself. Ely's kissing boys? Ely's touching boys? Ely's having sex with boys? Ely's ultimately very attracted to boys? No, it's all just a sham, they're going to run off and get married. Argh. It just infuriated me.
Ely is, of course, a close second. The fact he kissed Naomi's boyfriend isn't what bugs me. Yes, it's a horrible thing to do, but both Ely and Bruce the Second get a point from me for feeling guilty about it. Ely told Naomi about it shortly after it happened, too. The sneaking around... well, the deducts the point I gave them. What bugs me about Ely is his selfishness and inability to see beyond his world. He's a representation to me of some gay men I know. Stereotypical, yes, but also quite true. And I have a hard time believing this changes after the novel ends.
Gabrielle also reminds me of Ely. He's just as selfish and bland and annoying.
The only characters I liked were Robin(f) and Robin (m).
Here's another problem- bisexuality doesn't seem to exist in this book. Bruce the Second could have been a good bisexual character. He's attracted to Naomi but then, oh my, he finds Ely attractive, too. This book could have easily been about a young man finding his sexual identity and being caught between two best friends. Same book, similar plot, little need to change.
This book only gets two stars because it's more accessible to young teens, and they may not feel shy about reading it in public as it doesn't have a Big Gay Title like Naomi and Ely's Stereotypical Gay Adventures.
The biggest problem for me was Naomi. She knew Ely was gay. She knew Ely was gay. This wasn't some secret hidden agenda that snuck up on her in the dark one day. She knew for a long time Ely was gay and refused to admit it to herself. Ely's kissing boys? Ely's touching boys? Ely's having sex with boys? Ely's ultimately very attracted to boys? No, it's all just a sham, they're going to run off and get married. Argh. It just infuriated me.
Ely is, of course, a close second. The fact he kissed Naomi's boyfriend isn't what bugs me. Yes, it's a horrible thing to do, but both Ely and Bruce the Second get a point from me for feeling guilty about it. Ely told Naomi about it shortly after it happened, too. The sneaking around... well, the deducts the point I gave them. What bugs me about Ely is his selfishness and inability to see beyond his world. He's a representation to me of some gay men I know. Stereotypical, yes, but also quite true. And I have a hard time believing this changes after the novel ends.
Gabrielle also reminds me of Ely. He's just as selfish and bland and annoying.
The only characters I liked were Robin(f) and Robin (m).
Here's another problem- bisexuality doesn't seem to exist in this book. Bruce the Second could have been a good bisexual character. He's attracted to Naomi but then, oh my, he finds Ely attractive, too. This book could have easily been about a young man finding his sexual identity and being caught between two best friends. Same book, similar plot, little need to change.
This book only gets two stars because it's more accessible to young teens, and they may not feel shy about reading it in public as it doesn't have a Big Gay Title like Naomi and Ely's Stereotypical Gay Adventures.