Sanchez, A. (2011). Boyfriends with girlfriends. New York: Simon & Schuster.
ISBN-13: 978-1-41693-773-9
Plot Summary
Lance and Allie have been friends for years, as have Sergio and Kimiko. Lance and Sergio meet online and begin a relationship although Lance is relatively new to having gay relationships while Sergio, who is bisexual, has had many different types of relationships. This makes Lance nervous and jealous. Allie is in a heterosexual relationship with Chip and when she meets Kimiko, she wonders what it would be like to kiss her and begins questioning her own sexuality. So she eventually breaks up with Chip to explore this new side of her life.
Sergio’s family is hesitantly accepting of Sergio’s bisexuality while Kimiko’s family struggles with her being a lesbian. Her mother has known since Kimiko was a child that Kimiko liked girls, but when Kimiko finally comes out to her family, her mother doesn’t speak to her for days while her father shows unconditional love. Sergio’s family, on the other hand, seem to welcome all of Sergio’s love interests but favors those with girls.
In the end, these four characters decide what is important to them and who they want to spend their time with.
Critical Evaluation
The four voices of Lance, Sergio, Ally, and Kimiko are clearly heard through this third person narration of four teens struggling with their feelings in new relationships. The dialogue is authentically teen, “Like, yeah!” enabling teen readers to connect with characters who are like them. The romance between the two pairs is realistic and sexual encounters are limited to kissing and groping. A Library Media Connection review comments, “Sanchez does a remarkable job of addressing GLBTQ issues, including the prejudice some gays have for bisexuals. Parents and straight characters in the story are portrayed with believability, and their struggle to understand the teens is realistic” (Jones, 2011). However, School Library Journal notes, “The plotline is too predictable, with most of the characters living in an all-too-perfect-world of acceptance” (Evans, 2011). The theme of struggling with one’s identity is magnified because of that; if it is difficult to realize who you are and find acceptance in a “world of acceptance,” imagine how difficult it must be under ordinary circumstances. Readers will realize the similarities between GLBT and heterosexual relationships, especially feelings of doubt, jealousy, anxiety, and longing.
Evans, B. (2011). Boyfriends with girlfriends. School Library Journal, 57(4), 183-184.
Jones, S. (2011). Boyfriends with Girlfriends. Library Media Connection, 30(1), 74.
Reader’s Annotation
Lance likes Sergio, but Sergio likes Lance and girls. Ally is fascinated with Kimiko, but could this attraction mean something more?
Author Information
Alex Sanchez was born in Mexico City in April 1957 to German and Cuban parents. When he moved to the United States when he was five, he immediately felt like an outsider. As a child, he always knew he was different, but he did not hear the word, gay, until he was 13 in 1970. His early years were filled with shame for feeling different not only because of the way he looked, but also because of his sexuality. He hated high school, and there he witnessed the terrible beating of another gay student; Sanchez himself did not come out until after high school.
As a counselor working with young people, Sanchez began putting ideas together and realized he was writing the book he wished he could have read when he was a young adult: a book that would’ve told him it’s ok to be who you are. This book’s idea came to him when he was struggling with his own coming out issues, and so we have his first novel, Rainbow Boys, published in 2001. His stories explore different sexual identities and relationships, especially in Latino cultures. They are often, in some part, coming out stories and coming of age stories. Sanchez enjoys being very active in reaching out and providing resources to people struggling with their sexual identity through his website and at school appearances.
For more information about Alex Sanchez, please visit his homepage:
Genre
Young Adult
GLBTQ fiction
Homosexual fiction
Bisexual fiction
Lesbian fiction
Gay fiction
High School
Romance
Curriculum Ties
Curriculum Ties
N/A
Book Talking Ideas
How do you feel at the beginning of a romantic relationship? How are heterosexual relationships and homosexual relationships similar? How do you give romantic advice to your friends?
Reading Level/ Interest Age
Characters are high school students; appropriate for grades 9 and up.
Challenge Issues
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual subjects
Challenge Defense
In defense of a challenge, I would cite these reviews as well as ALA's Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library Materials.
Booklist starred 03/01/11
Library Media Connection 08/01/11
Kirkus Review 03/15/11
Voice of Youth Advocates (V.O.Y.A.) 04/01/11
Why did I include this title?
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