Maybe

Bibliography:Runyon, B. (2006) Maybe. New York, NY: Random House.

Genre:Fiction

Reading Level/Interest Age:14-18yrs

Reader's Annotation:Brian and his parents move to a new school, and Brian struggles to fit in and hide his secret at the same time.

Author:Brent Runyon is the author of the memoir Burn Journals. This novel details his suicide attempt and lengthy recovery with considerable detail.

Plot Summary:The reason behind Brian's family's move to a new school is not clear at the beginning of the novel. What is evident is Brian's insecurities. He does not know how to act or who to befriend. We get the impression that something big has changed in Brian's life. As time goes on, he does make friends at school. He joins the Thespian group and tries out for the school play. He dates several girls and waits impatiently for a satisfying physical relationship. As the school year progresses, the secret Brian holds become harder to keep. When he meets Katya he is able to express his secret, and he finds acceptance and a renewed peace.

Critical Evaluation:This novel is unique in that it gives a teenage boy's perspective. Because this is written in first-person, we get to see Brian's thoughts and reactions to everything. He seems to be a typical high school guy. He is interested in girls and wants to have sex. He gets his driver's license and speeds dangerously down country roads. He parties and gets drunk with his friends. What sets Brian apart is his relationship with his parents and with his absent brother. As the novel goes on, we see him thinking about his brother more often. It's clear that he loves his brother and misses him. We sympathize with Brian. He does not have any other role-models; that job has been left vacant by his brother.

This is a fast-paced novel that pulls readers in quickly. I wanted to read more to know what would happen to Brian. This novel does have a lot of adult language, and Brian thinks about sex a lot. If readers do not like this kind of realism, they should not read this book. Because the narrator is a boy, I think this novel would appeal more to boys than girls.

Curriculum Ties: student choice book report

Book Talk Ideas:first person summary of the novel, introduce Brian

Challenge Issues:language, sex, underage drinking

Why was this text included in this project?I wanted to include Maybe in this blog because it has a first-person male narrator. It seems like a book that I would recommend to teenage boys (and it can be hard to find these).