Boyfriends with Girlfriends

I don't really know what to think about this book. On one hand, it deals with very real, difficult teenage issues. But on the other, nothing really happens other than discussions of sexuality. But I guess that is was some teenagers need to want, what they need to read. With that said, it was a

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really quick read and I was entertained.

Boyfriends with Girlfriends follows four main characters. Lance, openly gay; his best friend Allie, bi-curious; Lance, bisexual; and his best friend Kimiko, lesbian. So obviously there was a lot of sexuality, curiosity and challenges for all of them. Each one of them faces their own journey; whether it is figuring out who you really are, embracing yourself, dealing with past, present and future girlfriends/boyfriends, or something else completely. The interesting part is that although each character is facing his/her own, unique, choices and revelations, their stories intertwine, reminding the reader of how similar people really are.

In case this is not obvious - this is not a "clean" novel. There is alot of graphic sexual activities and discussions. It is definitely provocative, no secret there. That is not necessarily a bad thing, I just felt the need to make the reader aware because I was not expecting that aspect.

So what I liked... I was kind of expanding my horizons by reading this book. I am straight (which really shouldn't be important), but I wanted to be able to empathize with what some teens go through. I couldn't even fathom how it would be to have to prove yourself to people who don't understand after just struggling to figure out who you really are. Boyfriends with Girlfriends helped me to see and start to relate to a whole side of people and barriers that never applied to me. The book is very dialogue driven, which helped create a more personal feeling, making it a great exploration in many different ways.

But that is just a view for people who aren't gay (I hate to use labels, but there is really no getting around it here). I'm sure teenagers who are gay, trying to figure out their sexual orientation, or even adults who wish there was a book like this when they were young will really enjoy title. It is filled with those confusing, awkward, consuming emotions that play with your mind leaving you even more confused and exhausted.

But... I do have a few criticisms... this book doesn't just focus on LGBT relationships, but it is the only thing that happens. There really isn't much of a plot, it is really focused on the characters, not what they do. Some people like this, some don't. It really depends on you. Also, some dialogue was really, really awkward. I know that these situations would, realistically, be awkward. Maybe it is just me, but some lines didn't seem real.

So there was good and bad - but then again, I wasn't really the target audience. I'm sure many people will really love this novel. If you are like me, open and want to understand, give this book a shot. If the content in this book are issues you are dealing with, I'm sure this book will be helpful and enjoyable.

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This was a great story of relationships. All of them come with uncertainty, but especially when you’re a teenager. Throw in some confusion over your sexuality and it’s even tougher.

Lance and Sergio begin seeing each other. The boys best friends meet, Allie and Kimiko. Kimiko likes Allie but

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feels she’s out of her league. Allie begins to realize she’s attracted to Kimiko, but will she explore those feelings any further?

I liked this book a lot. The only thing that kinda’ bugged me slightly was Lance continually questioning where things might be going with Sergio. It was really a minor issue though. This book has great characters, a compelling story, and fabulous writing. I give this one 4 ½ kisses!

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Lance and Sergio are ready for an open relationship that won't shred their hearts, but they each come with emotional baggage and different opinions on sexuality. Lance views bisexuality as a cop-out, so when he finds himself attracted to Sergio who is recovering from an intense relationship with a

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girl, Lance is unsure if this is a good idea. His best friend Allie is also battling with her own uncertainties between a two-year relationship with a guy and a budding friendship (or is it something more?) with Sergio's best girl friend Kimiko.

I would have to say that Boyfriends With Girlfriends left me with mixed feelings. I left with much thoughts to digest, especially in regard to the honest discussion between Lance and Sergio in regard to the "realness" of bisexuality. Boyfriends With Girlfriends makes for a great read if you are fairly unaware of GLBT and some of the questions/concerns/confusions they face. It paints a fairly positive portrait of supportive parents and friends with a some glimpses of the negative reactions. However, I cannot help but feel the book was a little too simple and straightforward - and I wish that there had been a teeny bit more drama or conflict among the characters.

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This is a terribly written book. The dialogue is laughable throughout, and Sanchez has no clue how teenagers actually talk. The storyline is all right, but I was constantly distracted by the cheesy and unrealistic dialogue.

The reason this book gets two stars instead of one is that it actual

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features a bisexual character (which is something that hasn't been done very often). I also appreciate that Sanchez has his characters attend church as a normal thing and without it being the cause for angst.

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You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view - until you climb into his skin and walk around in it
~Atticus Finch, To Kill Mockingbird~

My Thought
While reading this book, I kept spelling the quote above. I am not a phobia nevertheless the ideas in this book

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are new for me. Surprisingly, various emotions were up to the surface when I read it

It was nice that every characters, Allie, Lance, Kimiko and Sergio, got their own chapters. So I could read all their point of view and interpret them. I liked when Allie and Kimiko talked about manga. The conversations that involved Allie and Lance were also my favorite. In other side, Kimiko and Sergio gave me much trouble. I was never in their sides for every problem that they faced. Many things that they did really upset me. But nothing saddened me when I found out what Allie did in the end.

Please bear with me. I have never read any GLBT book before. Do not get me wrong when my eyes kept frowning since the beginning. I just did not get with some thoughts and issue that Alex brought. I kept asking about this bisexual. A way that Allie and Sergio chose to be. Just like Lance, I just not get why they can have deep feeling for both of man and woman.

Another thing that trouble me was Sergio's thought about a date. No need to wonder why I thought he just took Lance for granted. He was not that serious. I really dislike the way Sergio treated Lance. I understood why Lance questioned their relationship.Not only once, when I found myself kept whispered to Lance to leave him behind. Lance deserved someone better.

I was crying when Alex took me to all segments of Kimiko and her mother. Both of them were stubborn enough. They got their own reasons. I was glad when finally there was a way out. One thing that also broke my heart was something that happened between Allie and her boyfriend. The antipathy was knitted for her. Then few days after, I was giggling because of these feelings. There are not many books which make me feel these way.

I could enjoy this book more if I left what I think about straight, gay and bisexual behind.

If you want to find something different that you will not find in many YA genre, you can choose this book. I think I am going to give another chance for Alex Sanchez's works but not in the near future.

Cover
They chose the right models. All the characters were represented well. Allie and Lance were Gorgeous as I thought.

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When I am given Kentucky Fried Chicken Snack Meal, I separate coleslaw and mash potato from my fried chickens, and eat only the fried chicken. I don't touch coleslaw and mash potato. I don't hate them. They just don't do much for me.

Reading Alex Sanchez's Boyfriends with Girlfriends kinda break my

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heart a bit. The last Sanchez's book I had read was Getting It. I thought it would be bad but it turned out that I was wrong. I enjoyed that gay teen novel. I thought I would too, with Boyfriends but I was wrong. It was like having the unnecessary mash potato and coleslaw on my plate, when all I wanted was the fried chicken. Unlike my meal, I could not just separate the story easily and had to read through events which did not generate any interest in me.

There is this general idea that gays and lesbians don't mix, unless we are talking about demonstration for rights and some formal functions. Gays mix well with straight girls, not lesbians. It makes little sense that bisexual Sergio has no other gay friends, and has to mix with Kimiko, who should be finding her own crowd. The friendship between Lance and Alice is more believable.

I find this book sacrifices the characters development because Sanchez needed to spend time on each character to explore story from their sides, and hence, there is little depth.I wish Sanchez would just write about gay or lesbian characters and not doing both in one book. Maybe the issues are the same in coming out and finding oneself, as well as love, but it is like forcing a gay to read on lesbians when all the gay wants to do is to read about the gays. And vice versa.

I lost interest in the book every time the story lingered to Kimiko and Alice. By the time the story turned back to Sergio and Lance, I failed to get myself interested again easily. Another thing that irritated me was the should-I-or-shouldn't-I questions. Too often. I felt like screaming at the book, asking it to move on.

I feel like there is really no issue in this book. Sad. One thing I can say I like is the cover. That's all.

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I think I would have really liked this when I was a teen. As a staid old self-accepting grownup, though, the constant drama of this book was wearying. Angst cubed is too much. Being in all four angsty teens' heads was too much. I finished it, but it was a genuine slog for me. It was just... too

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angsty. Too drama-infused. Too, too, too.

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I was expecting this book to be a heavy-handed treatment of biphobia, the sort of thing that happens when a YA author decides that there’s an Issue that needs to be Addressed in young adult fiction. To my surprise, it was actually a very enjoyable novel — fast-moving, funny, and sweet. It

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probably helped that though most of Alex Sanchez’s fiction focuses on gay boys, this novel gave equal time to the lesbian storyline.

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Let me start out by saying that I was completely excited at the prospect of reading this book. I fully believe that Alex Sanchez's message is something that needs to be out there. He not only addresses the concepts of homosexual and straight, but also tackles the much debated idea of being

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bi-sexual. As a person who works with children, I know that there are a lot of young people out there sitting on the same fence that Allie and Sergio are in this book. Not quite sure what side they fall on, they are trapped somewhere in between and ridiculed for it. That being said, I really wanted to love this book. Sadly, it missed that mark for me.

The first thing that struck me when I opened Boyfriends with Girlfriends was the writing style. Written almost entirely in dialogue, the story skips between the viewpoints of the four characters in an almost manic way sometimes. In fact, certain conversations took place in just one paragraph. It was a little disconcerting to say the least, but the saving grace was definitely in the actual dialogue itself. Sanchez paints the reader some extremely accurate personality types for each of his characters, and that is what I fell in love with.

From the heart pattering gorgeousness of Sergio through Lance's eyes, right on down to the questioning thoughts of Allie, the dialogue really brings these characters to life. I was incredibly impressed with the depth and complexity that each character possessed. Kimiko, for example, isn't just a cultural stereotype of a Japanese girl. Instead she is her own shining personality, from her boyish clothes to her love of sweet adolescent poetry. I won't lie when I say she was my favorite character in the book. Each character however had their own charm, and I kind of transported back to high school as I followed them. These could be kids that I actually knew.

Sadly, my love for these characters couldn't overshadow the simple fact that the message Sanchez was trying to convey was being beat to death. Although I really enjoyed the snippy and witty dialogue, it seemed like all the characters ever did was discuss their sexuality and their relationships. I liked that I got to see a little further into each of them through that, but I would really have liked to know more about where they came from. It was hard for me to believe that four friends would just sit around all day and discuss nothing but relationships.

I'll be completely honest when I say that I nearly didn't make it through Boyfriends with Girlfriends. It wasn't at all the subject matter that pushed me away from the book, but rather the way that it was delivered. What it really reminded me of was an after school special. You know, the ones where the topic is attacked mercilessly until something happens and everything ends up just as it should be? Yes, sadly that is this book. I can't imagine that teenagers are going to appreciate such heavy-handedness in a book. Really I worry that this fact is going to keep such an important message, such great characters, from reaching the audience who truly needs them. Teenagers aren't always as forgiving with "in your face" tactics as adults. I only hope they'll finish the book and see the merit in it like I did.

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Boyfriends with Girlfriends explores the world of teen sexuality and all the questions and insecurities it entails. Lance is gay and his best friend, Allie, is straight. Sergio is bi and his best friend, Kimiko, is a lesbian. When they all meet for the first time the fireworks fly: Sergio is

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attracted to both Lance and Allie; Kimiko thinks Allie is hot; Lance really likes Sergio’s pecs but is worried about the bi appellation; Allie is excited that Kimiko is Japanese because she loves everything from Japan. The messages are not subtle but not overbearing either. Lance struggles with his preconceived notions and stereotypes about bisexual guys. Allie wonders if she might be gay or bi because she finds herself increasingly attracted to Kimiko and questioning her relationship with her boyfriend of two years. Ethnicity also complicates the already daunting issues of family acceptance and coming out in the Latino and Asian cultures for Sergio and Kimiko. The characters are realistic and wrestle with very real questions in their own minds and with their best friends and families. Booklist starred.

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