Title: Rainbow High
Written by: Alex Sanches
Series: Book 2 in the Rainbow trilogy
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Publish Date: May 31, 2005
Genre: YA Contemporary
Pages: 247
Source: Bought at Indie Bookstore
Buy the Book: Rainbow High
Synopsis: Nelson Glassman and Kyle Meeks, best friends for many years, are gay teens at Walt Whitman High School. Kyle becomes romantically involved with basketball jock Jason Carrillo, while Nelson embarks on a strained relationship with Jeremy, who has tested positive for HIV. Jason comes out to his teammates and endures public scrutiny on television, eventually losing his athletic scholarship. On the homefront, Kyle’s parents desperately want him to attend Princeton, although this would mean leaving Jason behind, and Nelson’s mother insists that he end his relationship with Jeremy. Throughout these vicissitudes, the young men provide support for one another as graduation approaches. Sanchez has written a respectable sequel to the noteworthy Rainbow Boys (S & S, 2001). He has a definite feel for the thoughts, feelings, and speech patterns of contemporary high school students, and his characters are believable, although perhaps not as fully developed as one would like. The narrative flows smoothly, with plenty of soap-opera dramatics to keep readers interested and a steamy scene or two to boot. Mature YAs will identify with the problems and decisions these individuals must face. (Via Amazon)
Brian’s Review: My favorite book I’ve read so far in 2013 is Rainbow Boys, by Alex Sanchez, the story of three gay teenagers who come to terms with their sexuality during their senior year of high school and come to learn more about each other than they imagined possible. If Rainbow Boys had been the complete story of Jason, Kyle, and Nelson, I would have been satisfied, but having two more books in this trilogy made me so happy, I can’t tell you. Even better, Shaunta encouraged me to buy all three books at once while they were all on the shelf at our indie bookstore, and I did. How glad I am that I did!
Rainbow High is just as compulsive a read as Rainbow Boys, with the story picking up right where it left off, with questions like, is Nelson HIV-positive? Where’s Kyle going to go to college? Will Jason finally admit to his friends and the school that he’s gay, and that he’s dating Kyle? All these questions are answered, and even more questions are posed, as we move toward the final book of the trilogy, Rainbow Road. It baffles my mind that Rainbow High only has 29 ratings on Amazon, with Rainbow Road standing at only 21 ratings, as these are simply essential young adult books for people both gay and straight. I’m in love with these books because I see a part of myself in all three of these characters, but there’s something in these stories for everyone.
Rainbow High doesn’t feel so much like a sequel as it does a continuation of the first book. The writing is so simple and engaging, and the characters so three-dimensional and smart, that I wish the story of Nelson, Kyle, and Jason went on for ten books. In Rainbow High, Nelson tries to deal with a relationship with a boy who’s HIV-positive, when he may or may not be; Kyle tries to figure out if he wants to go to Princeton, without Jason, or Tech, with Jason; and Jason, the jock on the basketball team, has to decide whether to come out of the closet or stay inside. The novel ends at the prom, where secrets are revealed, and the impossible suddenly becomes possible. I can’t wait to see how Alex Sanchez wraps up this story.
The Rainbow trilogy is not just my favorite read of the year, but an important one, the kind that needs to be promoted to readers everywhere. If you haven’t checked out these books, I highly recommend you give them a try. You won’t be disappointed!
