Author: Angelo Surmelis
LGBTQ+ Representation: Main characters are gay
What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Evan is the only child of Greek immigrant parents: an abusive mother who sees him as a "disappointment" and workaholic father who avoids all conflict. Evan escapes in his art and writes about his pain in his journals, and it takes Evan falling in love with his best friend Henry to realize that he deserves more than his mother's harsh words and physical violence; he is capable and deserving of love.
What I think (in 250 words or fewer): When I was about ten, I read Don't Hit Laurie!, which made a lasting impression because of its vividly terrifying descriptions of child abuse. My mom was NOTHING like Laurie's mom in that book, yet I read it over and over because it was morbidly fascinating and still memorable thirty years later.
I have reviewed books with terrible parents and been horrified by many of them, but none have upset me as much as the way Evan's mom treats him in The Dangerous Art of Blending In.
Evan's father is irritating, but he is more of a pitiable character, too weak to protect his son. I feel harsh writing this because I do feel bad for Mr. Panos; he is in a situation where there are no easy answers. I do think that his positive relationship with Evan is what saves Evan from becoming completely broken.
Mrs. Panos, like Laurie's mom, is sneaky, cunning, and even moves the family when the doctor becomes suspicious of Evan's injuries. I want to blame the system's failure in situations of child abuse, but serial abusers are often experts at outsmarting authorities. Heartbreaking and frustrating.
Evan is mature, resourceful, and has so much love in his heart despite his family situation. His relationship with Henry is sweet without being sappy--I feel Henry is a one-dimensional character, but since it's Evan's story, not Henry's, that's not TOO much of a problem. However, I would 100% read a story from Henry's point-of-view.
This book is on the 2019 Rainbow Book List.
My final takeaway (in 75 words or fewer): The Dangerous Art of Blending In will make a lasting impression on you, breaking your heart for Evan but fixing it again when he finds love with Henry and manages to improve his life. I want to give Evan a big hug and I am not a super huggy person. Evan deserves all the love and happiness.
I also didn't mention Gaige, Jeremy, or the coming-out video. Or doughnuts. Mmmmmmm.
One last note: In the Author's Note, Surmelis explains that his therapist urged him to write elements of his own childhood traumas, but "give the story to another person." Even if only one-tenth of Evan's trauma had actually happened to Surmelis, he is an amazing survivor. Buy his book and also all of his design geek stuff. Also, his picture on that website was taken in front of a Hobbit-hole, which shows that he is also a tremendously likable person!
Memorable quotes/passages from the book:
- "What must it be like to feel so comfortable in your own skin?" (pg. 23).
- "Everything about this feels like that moment when you've finally reached the top of the highest peak of a roller coaster and you've just opened your eyes" (pg. 145).
- "This kind of behavior messes with my head. It makes me believe this can be real. That care, concern, and love are real. I long for this. I can see it right before my eyes. It's the normal that I want, but it's not real. . . . It makes me wish that my mother would always be cruel and horrible and unforgiving, because at least that's something that I can count on (pg. 240).
- "Maybe I'm not so ugly after all. Maybe no one is really ugly, and maybe no one has the right to call someone that or tell them that they are. Maybe the only real ugliness is what lives inside some people" (pg. 275).
Other reviews: The Reader and PaperFury
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| This book is available here: https://library.greensboro-nc.gov/ |
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| Learn more about the Rainbow Book List here: http://www.ala.org/rt/glbtrt |
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