Social Intercourse--"If I had known losing my virginity would be so nerve-wracking, I would've stayed home and watched the Golden Girls marathon with my dad"

Title: Social Intercourse

Author: Greg Howard


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): High school seniors openly-gay Beckett and star quarterback Jaxon have little in common, but then Beck's dad starts dating one of Jax's moms. Beck is afraid that his dad will get his heart broken again, and Jax wants his moms to get back together and be a family again.  Meanwhile, Beck is planning the Rainbow Prom, Jax is struggling with his bisexuality, and all have to deal with homophobia in their small Southern town.


What I think (in 250 words or fewer): My summary doesn't reflect the tone of this book--it is absolutely hilarious!  Sure, it deals with some serious subjects, but the voices of each narrator are so down-to-earth that Social Intercourse is delightful to read.


The main characters are self-centered in very realistic (and hilarious!) teenage boy ways.  Beck's interactions with his best friend crack me up, and Jax's interactions with his evil cheerleader girlfriend make me want to throw her off a cliff (a metaphorical cliff, of course.  Well, a VERY HIGH metaphorical cliff).

Both characters, however, do have their anxieties.  Beck, for example, is still suffering from being a target of bullies, while Jax is concerned about what the football team might do if they find out that he is bisexual (completely valid concerns, especially with the homophobia in football).

A community church influences the school board to deny PFLAG the right to use the school gym for an event. I'm pretty sure the ACLU could have reversed that decision.

A scene I would love to see in real life is when Beck, in front of TV cameras, told off that hypocritical preacher who [spoiler deleted].

Social Intercourse contains more sex references (more info here) than most of the YA books I've read recently (again, realistically written teenagers). Nothing is written all that graphically, with the exception of a masturbation scene, which actually made me laugh out loud.  What can I say?  Teenage boys are, at times, amusing in their horn-dogginess 😇 .


This book is being considered for the forthcoming 2019 Rainbow Book List.


My final takeaway (in 75 words or fewer):  This book was the right mix of serious, fun, and teenagers. The amount of sex references would make me recommend this book for the older YA readers (15+) instead of the younger ones.

If you are a gay teenage boy who ever wishes that super-hot star quarterback would, well, play for your team 😉, Social Intercourse is the book for you.

Memorable quotes/passages from the book:

• "If I had known losing my virginity would be so nerve-wracking, I would've stayed home and watched the Golden Girls marathon with my dad" (first line of the book, hardback edition).
• "I swear, I probably came out of my mom's vagina wearing a tiara, swaddled in a rainbow flag, and belting out 'It's Raining Men' at the top of my gay baby lungs" (pg. 4).
• "Note to self:  Dorothy Beckett would make a fabulous pen name for my gay erotic zombie novel, The Hunger Gays" (pg. 27).
• "His kiss is urgent. Desperate.  Like the way I used to kiss my Thor action figure when I was eight" (pg. 213).

Other reviews:  Wild Heart Reads and That Librarian Lady


This book is available in the Greensboro Public Library.