Book Talk Review; Straight

I haven't even wiped the tears from my eyes yet...

CHAT ROOM POSTING, SEPTEMBER 16, 9:08 PM: “Hey guys, I’m begging for help right now. I know this will sound weird, but here goes: I met someone on the city bus the other day, and the attraction was instant – he’s owned my thoughts ever since. But here’s my problem: I’m a guy, too – a straight guy, or so I thought. I’ve always been perfectly accepting of everyone, but at the same time I dated girls, I slept with girls, I loved girls – none of this has ever been in question. Until now. I’ve never so much as glanced at another guy before, and suddenly this dude is all I see in my dreams. I’m excited and a little giddy, but kind of confused and overwhelmed, too, because this was the last thing I ever expected. What does this mean? And where do I go from here?”

Henry Morgan is a beer-drinking, arm-wrestling, 100% heterosexual American male who is still a little numb after a rough breakup from his longtime girlfriend. Ty Stanton is a bohemian arts student who has been openly, and uncomplicatedly, gay ever since he asked for his first wig for Christmas. After a chance, butterfly-inducing encounter one autumn day, Henry starts to realize something strange: he might not be quite as straight as he’d always assumed. What follows is a breakneck adventure that upends both Ty and Henry’s lives for the long haul.

Sexy, fun and thought provoking, Seth King’s Straight is about all the love we can let into our lives when we dare to jump off the beaten path and veer a little off course. 

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I literally just finished the book. Normally I don't write reviews right after I read. Y'all know I can go off on tangents and just ramble about nothing. But I need an outlet. I need to let this out. So here it is. My review of Straight. 

How do you review a book that is not a book? That is the ultimate question. Because Straight isn't a book. It is life. Seth King took his heart and he poured it onto the pages. He broke through so many barriers, he asked so many questions. There's a reason I believe Seth King is a God. Because no one, can make me feel like he does. 

Straight tells the story of Henry Morgan and Ty Stanton. But it does more than that, it opens the reader to a whole new world. 

We might think we are accepting of everyone and everything. We might think that we are progressive, but in the truth of things, we are not. 

I feel like the female version of Henry, I don't judge or have any prejudices about any one race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual status. But, does that make me a bystander? Am I uneducated, even though I try to stay on top of issues I really care about? 

With Straight, you don't just get the romance, you get the hardship of a new relationship, of a new culture. The LGBTQ community is a culture that those of us who aren't in it, we could never understand. Because we are hard-wired to believe what society tells us is acceptable. Even if we think we don't, or aren't. 

Seth King used his book to help bridge that gap, to help open our eyes, to help those who are struggling. 

Many controversial topics are brought up in this book, and they are all relevant. I didn't understand a lot of the impact that recent events have brought about, I knew of some of it of course, but I never knew the full extent. While I was dying for Straight so I can read the love story, I realized that I am a different person with different feelings now that I've read it. 

I've enjoyed everything from high-school romance, to PNR, to M/M. And I've read almost all of Seth's books, He's made me feel in every single one. But never like this one. 

Straight isn't just about Henry questioning his sexuality and where he fits into the world. It's everyone trying to figure out where we stand now. 

Straight will make you wonder. It will make you love. It will make you hurt. Seth King has brought life into his words, and he has slayed me. Between working and having to start and stop a few times, it took me approximately eight hours to read Straight. Those are eight hours I never want back. 

I want to read Straight again and again. I want everyone to read this book, so they can understand, even a fraction of what this book is. 

Book Talkers, I've never been one to lie in a review, everything I say is honest. When Straight is published I will pimp it hard, I'm already pimping it hard. When I say you need to experience this book, I mean it. 

Do not pass this up. If you do, you will be missing out on a valuable life lesson.

If you feel like this world is too full of hate, too full of uneducated people, too full of sorrow. Then pick up Straight. It will hurt, it will make you question yourself, but it will be worth it. 

All the tears I have shed are worth it. 

Seth King, thank you. Just thank you. You're a beautiful soul and I am so glad I get to read your words. They get me every single time. 

*Quote- "I guess we all ignore things we think don't involve us."

"Why would I run away from something I'm not even ashamed of?"

"...I don't think sexual categories exist, really-it's like the wind. When is the wind ever blowing exactly north, south, east, or west?..."

"Every human deserves love..." 

-Abri