Covering foster care, murder, anti-gay feelings, religion, acting out at school, mystery, unrequited love—both gay and straight—undercover cops, rebelling against parents, homelessness, and more, this novel follows Noah Nordstrom, a high school junior and son of the Bible Answer Guy, through his self-realization.
While The Less-Dead does not focus specifically on a gay character, it is the death of a gay, homeless foster child, Will Reed, who brings about self-realization for both Noah and his best friend Carson, son of an atheist. Noah investigates Will’s death, the third in a series of gay killings, while Carson turns religious and becomes baptized for a girl. Noah and his father overcome their adversity, and the killer is caught. The book ends with much happiness, although there are plot twists and eccentric characters sufficient to keep the reader interested and unaware of the killer’s true identity.
This book will appeal to LGBT teens, as it shows how, sometimes, those who are against gays can be changed, with time and care, but also how some others will never change. An interesting and useful inclusion at the end of the work is an author’s note about her experiences growing up in a strict evangelical home, and the future for the LGBT community. Lurie also includes “The six ‘clobber’ passages that so many evangelical teachers quote to support their hard stance against homosexuality,” and her interpretations of these to show what is truly being said in the Bible. Lurie also includes a bibliography for further readings on the Web and in print.
The Less-Dead is a valuable book for young adults who are around gay teens, and those who are gay, as well as for parents of gay adolescents, or whose children’s friends might be gay.
Reviewed by, [s.n.]
Assistant Professor Electronic Resource/Web Librarian
