Sprout: Or My Salad Days, When I Was Green in Judgment

While reading this book the first time, I didn't really understand what was going on most of the time. While reading it the second time, it made complete sense. I instantly wanted to discuss it, only to discover that hardly anyone has read it. I made one of my very good friends read it and she also loved it. Sprout really speaks to me. 10/10 would recommend it.

Daniel Bradford, alias Sprout, moved to Kansas at the age of twelve from Long Island with his Dad following the death of his mother. They set up home in a trailer on a large tract of land where they live a somewhat eccentric life. During his first week at his new school, in and attempt to shock his schoolmates out of picking on him, Daniel dyes his hair green and becomes Sprout. At the age of sixteen he comes to the attention of English teacher Mrs Miller, who recognises in Sprout the potential as a candidate for the State essay competition, and begins tutoring him in preparation. When he announces to Mrs Miller that he is gay and should write about this, she dissuades him, telling him to keep it quite (despite the fact that everyone else seems to know!). Sprout tells of his time in his new school, and particularly of the events of the year he turns sixteen; of his relationship with Ruthie who befriends him in his first week; of his relationship with handsome school jock Ian, conducted mainly in the janitors cupboard; and especially of his relationship with another new boy, Ty, which develops into something very special. It is a touching story told by a misfit who is more than content to be so. But what make this story special is the nature of the telling. Sprouts love of writing and of words shines through, he speaks directly to the reader in fresh and lively voice. It is a funny, entertaining, witty, frank, above all a most enjoyable read. It does not really matter what Sprout is writing about, it is just a pleasure the read what he is saying; that he dose have something to say, that there is relevant message that he delivers at the conclusion, makes it all the more worthwhile.

"Sprout" is a gifted young man who lives his life very openly and honestly. Struggling against small town values as a hip, large on life gay youth, Sprout takes most of his scrapes and upheavals in stride. It is in the heart of this resiliency that his ultimate secret becomes so sorely revealed. Indeed, his is a lesson that we all must face sooner or later, that we are ultimately the very things we say we are not. In that light this book spans far beyond young adult fiction and would be welcomed on the shelves of contemporary adult literature. In this work Peck breaks every rule you ever learned in creative writing classes, and he does it flawlessly. His character development is rich and clear, the plot is unpredictably intriguing, the climax and resolution are true to Sprout and his perspective on life... I have not read Peck's writing before, but I will again. If I found a weakness in this novel it is that the secondary characters are all but lost in the end. Yet that fact, itself, moves the plot. It shows the progression of Sprout's mindset, and how in the end he becomes less focused on the lives of others and realizes his own truth.

It's no secret that Sprout is gay. It's no secret that his mom died, or that he and his dad live in a vine-covered trailer. That's about as secret as the tree trunks his dad has collected and displayed for some unknown purpose. Sprout's secret stays with the reader's soul. A second secret, one that Sprout doesn't seem to think is worth mentioning, is that the kid is one heck of a writer. This teenage boy, uprooted from Long Island and unceremoniously dumped into Kansas, made friends with the weird-looking girl even while trying to avoid getting beaten for the sin of being the New Kid. He talked about not wanting to come out as the only gay kid in a school in a state in which two teens - of either persuasion - broke the law any time they had sex. He talked about his dad's girlfriend, and about the English teacher who took Sprout under her wing. Most of all, he talked about his best friend Ty, the yin to his solitary yang. Great summer reading. I'd also recommend this book to a teenager whose younger brother has just come out and who doesn't quite understand that the younger sibling has more on his or her mind than just his or her sexuality. Sometimes sweet, often sarcastic, and always insightful, Sprout is a complex book about a boy who's just as complex as any other teenager, and it's been wonderful getting to know him.

There is too often a theme in gay fiction. That theme is tragedy. I know this comes from the fact that so many gay people have lead rather effed up lives, but I can't help but wonder what sort of message it sends young gay people growing up today. If you see something like Torchsong Trilogy, do you then believe all you have to look forward to is being gay-based? What about some of the AIDS sagas of the 1980's and `90's? Gay fiction tends to be tragic because the lives of so many gay people have been tragic. But please note the use of the phrase "have been". It's a new world now. 2009, and being gay is pretty ok, unless you have the misfortune to live in some of the less-enlightened parts of our great nation. The titular character of this novel, Sprout, has that misfortune, living in Kansas, a place which contains the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. Sprout is a character that I didn't see often in gay fiction when I was growing up back in the late 1980's. He's not especially conflicted about being gay. He doesn't go out of his way to hide it from people, but he doesn't rub their faces in it, either. Rather he just goes about his life like any overly-intellectual teenage boy in a place where intellect is not prized (you know, high school). Sprout's story is one that's a bit different from standard gay fiction, and thank goodness for that. Sprout doesn't catch AIDS and doesn't kill himself, which are two major pluses. Nor does he get gay-bashed. His boyfriend doesn't commit suicide. All in all, this is a far more positive depiction of gay life than most of what gay teens get exposed to. That it's well-written, entertaining and damn funny all help. It's the kind of book I'd like to write some day (actually, the kind that I'm about 25% finished with writting). This is a very, very good book and one that anyone trying to come to grips with their sexuality ought to read. I'd say that straight teen boys and girls could benefit by reading it, too, but though this is 2009, our world is what it is, and I'm not naive enough to think anyone but the gay boys will read it. Still, what a read those fortunate few will have.