Talk

Kathe Koja, Talk (Frances Foster Books, 2005) There are few writers on the planet today whose every new novel brings such pleasure as Kathe Koja. Talk, Koja's fourth novel for young adults and ninth overall, continues the trend. Kit Webster is in high school, in the closet, and generally not the kind of guy you noticed when growing up. His best friend Carma convinces him to try out for the male lead in the school play, Talk, and he gets the part. He is quite surprised to find he has a real flair for acting, as is his female lead, Lindsay Walsh, the queen of the drama department. Instead of things going smoothly, of course, complications must arise, from Lindsay dumping her boyfriend to concerned parents protesting that the subject matter of the play is too controversial for young minds to handle. While it's not of the same brilliance as her four mid-period novels (Skin, Strange Angels, Kink, and straydog), Talk delivers on many levels, as do almost all of Koja's novels (Bad Brains being the sole exception). Short, punchy, readable, and powerful. Some of the characters, especially the minor characters, fall into stereotype, but it's hard to avoid that when so many real gay-bashers try their best to emulate the stereotype. There's really no way around it. Kit and Lindsay are quite well-drawn, and they carry the story (told alternately in chapters narrated by each) wonderfully. Another winner from the Koja stable. **** ½

God I hated high school!!! And even though I never went to a large one like the one described by Kathe Koja in her latest Young Adult novel, I experienced many of the same problems of inner struggle which her protagonist Kit experiences as he struggles with being Gay in a not-so-welcoming world. I have been a fan of Kathe Koja's for many years, since I read her first horror novel, "The Cypher." In "Talk," Ms. Koja captures the modern-day angst of being a teenager in today's world. Her dialogue is realistic, funny and at times, touching. The story concerns a young man named Kit who has been chosen to play the lead role in what many people in his community consider a controversial play titled, "Talk." Not only is our hero going through the everday strugle of being a teenager, he's also struggling with his sexuality. He's Gay. The only person who knows his "secret" is his best friend, Carma. Their relationship is very similar to my relationship while in high school with my best friend who turned out to be a Lesbian. The only reason I bring up my background is to explain how I wish I had had such a wonderful book to speak to me while going through high school. The charaqcters in "Talk" are living breathing human beings. The dialogue is fresh and exciting and what makes this book really exciting and fresh is how it is set up. The book features three narrators, Kit, Carma and Lindsay (a young girl who is featured opposite Kit in the play and who is secretly in love with him). Each chapter features the inner monologues or dialogue from that person's point of view. Interspersed are scenes from the play, "Talk" which is used to highlight the action within the novel. The writing is fresh and exciting and Koja has captured the real life of being a teenager in today's hostile America. Especially a Gay teenager. This book is highly recommended for anyone who is openly Gay, having to struggle with the "secret" of being Gay, or anyone who has a family member who is Gay or knows someone who is Gay, therapists working with Youth, and finally, I would definitely recommend this book to teachers who deal with vicious teasing and harassment many encounter in schools today. It is only by being aware of a problem that we can come to correct it. I am thankful that Kathe Koja is there offering some balm in a very hurtful and hateful world when it comes to teens sturggling with GLBT issues.