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A review by jodyjsperling
The You I See by Danny Freeman
5.0
This book had such warmth and heart. It embraced the joy of love, tenderness, courage, and passion.
I grew up in a church much like the one Brandon and Alex attended, and the attitudes of the Christians around me mirrored those in the book. In that way THE YOU I SEE delivered a heavy dose of nostalgia, and not all positive. I recalled some of my days in church with something less than fondness.
As the brother and son of two lesbians, I also related to the struggles of homosexuals in the early 90s.
THE YOU I SEE is at its best when Brandon and Alex explore their feelings about each other. Moments of tension, like when Alex early in the book decides to go out with a girl at summer camp at Brandon's coaxing but spends his time pining for Brandon help bring the reader close.
A scene about halfway through the book explores the real-world consequences of homosexuality when Alex is attacked and called several bigoted slurs. The moment is well drawn and paced for maximum feeling. Perhaps Alex might have felt a bit more lingering impacts of the attack, though a sweet moment later in the book does highlight his lingering stress when Brandon surprises him for a visit when Brandon is supposed to be grounded.
Beyond grounding his son, Brandon's pastor father is an effective foil and antagonist for his son, and the looming threat of him discovering his son's sexuality creates a constant tension that draws the reader through the book.
Perhaps the only points where this novel could have been elevated were the winks. The characters winked too much. Small gripe for a bold novel.
I grew up in a church much like the one Brandon and Alex attended, and the attitudes of the Christians around me mirrored those in the book. In that way THE YOU I SEE delivered a heavy dose of nostalgia, and not all positive. I recalled some of my days in church with something less than fondness.
As the brother and son of two lesbians, I also related to the struggles of homosexuals in the early 90s.
THE YOU I SEE is at its best when Brandon and Alex explore their feelings about each other. Moments of tension, like when Alex early in the book decides to go out with a girl at summer camp at Brandon's coaxing but spends his time pining for Brandon help bring the reader close.
A scene about halfway through the book explores the real-world consequences of homosexuality when Alex is attacked and called several bigoted slurs. The moment is well drawn and paced for maximum feeling. Perhaps Alex might have felt a bit more lingering impacts of the attack, though a sweet moment later in the book does highlight his lingering stress when Brandon surprises him for a visit when Brandon is supposed to be grounded.
Beyond grounding his son, Brandon's pastor father is an effective foil and antagonist for his son, and the looming threat of him discovering his son's sexuality creates a constant tension that draws the reader through the book.
Perhaps the only points where this novel could have been elevated were the winks. The characters winked too much. Small gripe for a bold novel.