Boy Minus Girl

November 15, 2008
This 1980 's male coming-of-age narrative tries too hard to be funny. Hormone-ridden eighth-grader Les is anticipating another boring Kansas summer when cool Uncle Ray comes to town packing a revolver, a bottle of Jack Daniels and nudie pics. Ray is Les 's idol, but when it comes to light that he 's tomcatting around with a local married woman and is on the lam from his pregnant, stripper ex-girlfriend, Les is forced to reevaluate his bed-hopping hero. Meanwhile, he 's got his own problems: The town bully wants to crucify him, the girl of his dreams is gay and no matter how hard he tries, he just can 't stop masturbating. Uhlig 's sitcom plot, populated by stereotypes (the stripper with the heart of gold, the black-sheep uncle, the fat, misunderstood bully), plays for crude, cheap laughs that teens may appreciate in the moment but that won 't resonate past the next page. For a subtler, smarter and less clichd portrayal of the teenage-male psyche, opt for the works of Chris Crutcher, John Green or Randy Powell. (Historical fiction. 14 & up)

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January 1, 2009
Gr 8-10-Lester Ekhardt, 14, longs for Charity Conners, who just moved back to Harker City after living in St. Louis. The eighth grader has been practicing the tips he's read in "The Seductive Man" and trying to strike a bargain with Jesus (often involving promises to abstain from masturbating) if He will intervene. But it's not until Uncle Ray rolls into town that Lester sees some hope. The man is always making time with the ladies, and Lester thinks that maybe his uncle will help him achieve his romantic goals. Startling revelations about Charity's sexuality, Uncle Ray, and Lester's own parents, however, soon turn everything upside down. Set in the '80s, this coming-of-age story is heavily laced with humor. Lester's struggles with the school bully, his relationship with his parents, and even his inability to refrain from masturbation are realistic and amusing. The characters, even the unlikable ones like Uncle Ray and Brett the bully, are developed well. Teen boys in particular will laugh out loud at this well-written novel."Heather E. Miller, Homewood Public Library, AL"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2008
Eighth-grader Les Ekhardt anticipates a boring summer with his disaster-phobic doctor father and penny-pinching nurse mother until Uncle Ray, a cool bachelor, comes to town. With Uncle Ray as his mentor and dating guide The Seductive Man as his textbook, he just might be able to score with Charity Conners, the gorgeous, dark-haired, easy conversationalist who populates his perpetual erotic fantasies. Uhligs characters are vivid and authentic, while the 1980s setting and easy humor allow readers some much-needed distance from the intense issues they grapple with. While Boy Minus Girl starts out as little more than middle-school soft porn, it gradually evolves into a substantive young-adult novel that deals with homosexuality, bullying, and the difference between love and lust. Even though adults may be somewhat offended by Les preoccupation with sex, early-adolescent boys will identify with and hopefully learn from him as well.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)