I'll Get There. It Better Be Worth the Trip

Gr 6 Up—After the unexpected death of the grandmother who has raised him, 13-year-old Davy Ross moves from his Boston home to the Manhattan apartment of his estranged alcoholic mother. The lonely boy copes with her mercurial moods by taking long walks with his loyal dachshund, Fred. At school, Davy meets Douglas Altschuler, and they become fast friends, and then more than friends. Davy's conflicted emotions are sensitively portrayed as he tries to come to terms with kissing Douglas as well as his mother's outraged reaction to her suspicion that something "unnatural" has happened. This 40th-anniversary edition (Flux, 2010) includes the complete text of John Donovan's groundbreaking 1969 book that was the first young adult novel to deal with teen homosexuality, as well as insightful short essays about the novel read by their authors: Stacey Donovan, Brent Hartinger, and Kathleen T. Horning. The novel is timeless, barring a handful of dated references (like the mention of rich families who have color televisions). The physical relationship between Davy and Doug is both tame and "clean," consisting of the one kiss and an off-page make-out session. Michael Urie's pleasant narration brings Davy to life. For school and public libraries.—Beth Gallego, Los Angeles Public Library, CA