Shockproof Sydney Skate

I was 23 when I read this book in 1972. It has always stuck with me. In 1972 I didn't know that this was lesbian literature. Yes, the mom is a lesbian, but, for me, the focus was on Shockproof, how he thought and felt. What astonished me then, was how a woman writer was able to so accurately describe the psyche of a 17 year old boy with whom I could so closely relate; that she could see into ME. It seems that Shockproof Sydney Skate is likely to be made into a movie; that Cameron Crowe is the screenwriter. Perhaps, but likely not, the movie will speak to me as this wonderful book did.

I liked all the references to early 1970's New York but I was a little confused about what the focus was supposed to be. I never figured out who Sydney was, there wasn't enough character development. I guess the real focus was supposed to be the mother, the author probably wanted the book to revolve around the mother but in 1972 I guess the world wasn't ready for that. A good afternoon read.

This is a rare gem about a lesbian mother and her teenage son without the earnest eagarness of the "Heather Has Two Mommies" genre. The son is funny and sarcastic and has weird sexual experiences of his own; indeed some of the scenes involving his various girlfriends are a little bizarre. But they're fun, and it's real. Though no one wears bellbottoms anymore or says things like super-fabulous, this novel is still very relevant.

This coming-of-age story, published in 1972, is aptly compared to Catcher In The Rye, on the book jacket, several times. I can see why. This is quirky, smart, funny, sad, touching, dark at times but always real and connects you with it's characters in a way that popular fiction rarely accomplishes today. A great read. I read it twice in one sitting!