Review by our Senior Youth Correspondent - Jarad Johnson

The Book of David - author anonymous

     Consider what your life would be like if you had to keep a huge part of yourself hidden and locked away because you are afraid what would happen if other people found out your secret. Well, consider this: is your personal happiness worth keeping this secret bottled up inside? Is it really as important as you think it is?

     The Book of David is one of the best novels that I have recently read. It is written in a diary format, and the diarists name is kept secret. Despite that, we learn a great deal about this character. He seems to have the, “Perfect,” life: numerous football scholarships, a varsity cheerleader girlfriend, a best friend named Tyler who he clowns around with, and a very religious family.  However, he is still dissatisfied with himself because of his gargantuan secret: he is gay. This isn’t apparent at first; however, he soon realizes this fact when a new guy named Jon seats himself in his English class one morning. Jon rouses feeling a desire and love in the diarist, which he at first denies and tries to oppress. But he finds an outlet: his English teacher requires his class to keep a diary, which he pours his inner turmoil into. In doing so, he records the process of discovering himself. In all the heartbreaking, funny, and extremely sweet scenes in between, the readers find themselves in the midst of a great novel.

     I think that the format of this novel is very interesting as well. For the first couple of paragraphs, it was torture for me to not know the characters’ name. I really wanted to know. But then I realized that the author did not reveal the name for a number of reasons, namely to showcase that not just one person has this experience; many do. This is very important to realize, because it gives you a different perspective on the novel. To think that an unknown number of teenagers experience this kind of turmoil simply because they have found another facet of themselves and their personality is extremely sad to me.

     Finally, no matter what your beliefs this particular topic, it’s always important to become involved in another person’s story. Never discard a book because of the way you feel about a certain issue; it is always important to read about things that we feel strongly about, especially if they showcase an opinion that is different from yours. I say that this is important because exposing yourself to different opinions new thoughts and ideas just might make you feel differently that subject matter. Never walk around with blinders on.