Why You're Never Too Old for a Coming of Age Story - An Adult Conversation with YA Author Bill Konigsberg
When Bill Konigsberg was a teen, there were no novels featuring young gay men. Thanks to him, gay teens today can’t say the same. In his latest novel, though, the sexual preference of his protagonists is almost incidental. Max and Jordan are in the middle becoming adults, and their struggle to integrate pain, joy, capacity, and weakness into their wholeness makes this book totally relevant for those of us who are still growing… that is - everybody.
Bill Konigsberg is the award-winning author of six young adult novels. THE PORCUPINE OF TRUTH won the PEN Center USA Literary Award and the Stonewall Book Award in 2016. OPENLY STRAIGHT won the Sid Fleischman Award for Humor, was a finalist for the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award and Lambda Literary Award in 2014 and has been translated into five languages. His debut novel, OUT OF THE POCKET, won the Lambda Literary Award in 2009. THE MUSIC OF WHAT HAPPENS, was released in February of 2019, received two starred reviews, and has been optioned for a film. His next novel, THE BRIDGE, will be released in the fall of 2020. In 2018, The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)’s Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN) established the Bill Konigsberg Award for Acts and Activism for Equity and Inclusion through Young Adult Literature.
Before Bill wrote for young adults, he was a sports writer and editor for ESPN and the Associated Press. Charles met and got to know Bill through their shared work helping create initiations for men - the Mankind Project - and boys at Boys to Men. Charles was immediately drawn to Bill’s intelligence, vulnerability, and attentiveness.
Bill lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with his husband, Chuck and their two Australian Labradoodles, Mabel and Buford, who complete him. Mabel and Buford have professional glamour shots on Bill’s website. I fell hard for Buford - you might, too.
Bill’s books - the one we read, anyway - are filled with real people of all stripes, not token stereotypes or caricatures. They are dealing with real and relatable problems and struggles, and being gay isn’t the most notable thing about them. They are regular people who just happen to be gay. Bill creates a world that is familiar for some of us - especially those of us who grew up in the arts or in places like Jerome, AZ - where being gay and out is unremarkable. We found it refreshing and a relief to spend time there and we really loved getting to know Jordan and Max and their friends and family. We definitely want to read the rest of Bill’s books, especially the new book: The Bridge that is available for pre-order now.
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Resources:
The ManKind Project
Mental Health Helpline
Crisis Hotline
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