Teen Fiction

So Hard to Say

Name: So Hard to Say
Author: Alex Sanchez
ISBN: 9781416911890

by Alex Sanchez

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Overview

When Frederick shows up at school, Xio is thrilled. The new boy is shy, cute, and definitely good boyfriend material. Before long, she pulls him into her lively circle of friends.

Frederick knows he should be flattered by Xio's attention. After all, she's popular, pretty, and a lot of fun. So why can't he stop thinking about Victor, the captain of the soccer team, instead?

Thirteen-year-old Xio, a Mexican American girl, and Frederick, who has just moved to California from Wisconsin, quickly become close friends, but when Xio starts thinking of Frederick as her boyfriend, he must confront his feelings of confusion and face the fear that he might be gay.

Synopsis

Frederick is the shy new boy, and Xio is the bubbly chica who lends him a pen on the first day of class. They become fast friends — but when Xio decides she wants to be more than friends, Frederick isn't so sure. He loves hanging out with Xio and her crew, but he doesn't like her that way. Instead he finds himself thinking more and more about Victor, the captain of the soccer team. But does that mean Frederick's gay? He hopes not — he sees how everyone makes fun of Iggy, a boy all the other kids think is gay. Frederick has to deal with some tough choices: Even though he is curious about Iggy, he's just started fitting in at his new school, and he doesn't want to lose Xio, his best friend.

In So Hard to Say, Alex Sanchez, acclaimed author of the groundbreaking novels Rainbow High and Rainbow Boys, of which School Library Journal said, "It can open eyes and change lives," helps younger readers look at self-discovery, come to terms with being gay, and accept people who are different from them.

Publishers Weekly

"In chapters that alternate between Frederick, a new eighth-grader, and Mara Xiomara Iris Jurez Hidalgo, this insightful novel by the author of Rainbow Boys explores the ambiguities of budding sexuality," according to PW. Ages 10-14. (May) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

About the Author, Alex Sanchez

Alex Sanchez received his master's degree in guidance and counseling from Old Dominion University. For many years he worked as a youth and family counselor. His novels include the Lambda Award-winning So Hard to Say, the Rainbow Boys trilogy, and Bait. When not writing, Alex tours the country talking with teens, librarians, and educators about the importance of teaching tolerance and self-acceptance. Originally from Mexico, Alex now lives in Thailand and Hollywood, Florida. Visit Alex at www.AlexSanchez.com.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

Children's Literature

Sanchez's previous novels have focused on older, high school-aged characters coming to terms with their sexuality. With this novel, Sanchez again focuses on a gay main character, but this time it is a younger boy just discovering his sexual orientation. Frederick is the new boy at school, adjusting to more than a few cultural changes after he moves from Wisconsin to a largely Hispanic middle school in Southern California. He has always had trouble making male friends, so he settles in easily with a group of girls calling themselves "the Sexy Six." One of their leaders, the high-spirited Maria Xiomara (her friends call her Xio), falls hard for Frederick's "kick-butt blue eyes," and soon pursues him romantically, determined to have a boyfriend now that she is thirteen. Frederick himself values Xio's friendship but finds himself more attracted to his soccer-playing buddy Victor. In a decidedly gay-unfriendly environment, can Frederick admit his own feelings and come out to the girl who desires him herself? Frederick's sexual orientation will not be a surprise to most readers, although a revelation about Xio's absent father is more unexpected—and largely unnecessary to the plot. Narrated in alternate chapters by Frederick and Xio, the novel's plot unfolds easily and realistically, as both characters arrive at their revelations independently. 2004, Simon & Schuster, Ages 9 to 13.
—Norah Piehl

School Library Journal

Gr 6-9-Thirteen-year-old Latina chocoholic-chatterbox Xio can't keep her eyes off blond-haired, steel-eyed Frederick, the intriguing transfer student just in from Wisconsin. At first, the soft-spoken newcomer, unsure of his new Southern California junior high and maybe his own sexuality, doesn't know what to make of her pursuits. Slowly and surely, Xio charms her way into his life and soon absorbs him into her group of fabulous girlfriends whom she dubs the "Sexies." Content with this new niche, and his position on a pick-up soccer team, Frederick gradually becomes aware of Xio's real agenda: to make him her first boyfriend. All the while he finds he can't keep his eyes off Victor, his soccer buddy. Frederick's sexual confusion escalates, as do his dodging techniques when it comes to Xio's advances. However, when she gets him in a closet with her and at last gives him a smooch, things boil up to crises. Adventurous, multifaceted, funny, and unpredictably insightful, Sanchez's novel drops melodramatic pretense and gels well-rounded characterizations with the universal excitement of first love. The action is described through chapters that alternate between Frederick and Xio's points of view, and both voices ring true. The author deftly presents portraits of a boy teetering on the brink of reinvention who must grapple against his own fears that he might be gay and the girl-a high-spirited character whom readers definitely won't forget-who wants him.-Hillias J. Martin, New York Public Library Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Frederick, 13, is the new kid; Xio is an astrology-obsessed, spirited, Hispanic girl in his new class. She and her friends adopt Frederick-mostly because Xio thinks he's really cute. Frederick, despite his asthma, starts playing soccer with the Hispanic boys, the counterparts of Xio and her girlfriends. Xio wants to date Frederick, but he's not sure he feels the same way; he's not sure he likes girls that way. He's never thought about it before, but the more time he spends with Victor, the leader of the soccer boys, the more Frederick realizes that he might feel about boys the way most boys feel about girls. The truth comes out privately and, after a rough patch, all remain friends. Sanchez, whose first two titles were for YA, writes for a younger audience quite convincingly. Xio and Frederick alternate chapters to tell their story and their voices are distinct and believable. As with his previous efforts, the prose style is serviceable and coincidence helps tie things up neatly, but many young teens, gay and straight, will see themselves and their friends in these characters. (Fiction. 10-14)