Frat Boy and Toppy by Anne Tenino

[reviews_and_ramblings]

Frat Boy and Toppy is exactly the light and funny college novel the title suggest. Brad is a nice jock boy, maybe not so clever and quick in understanding things, and that is the reason why he is struck on the road to Damascus by the realization he is gay. Being gay is not really an issue per se, but Brad is worried how the other people will react… only to discover that his parents and sisters already knew and they are ok with that, his best friend is initially surprised but then he enlists on the local PFLAG organization and even some of his jock friends are maybe interested in helping him “straightened” things on his mind (i.e. giving him the chance to do gay experience).

But the one whom Brad really wants is Sebastian, the TA of his History class. Openly gay and very handsome, Sebastian is everything Brad desires, but well, there is a problem: where Brad is for sure a virgin to gay sex, Sebastian is, well, to use a kind word, “easy”. Sebastian doesn’t believe in love (due to the bad past experience with his parents’s divorce) and where he is willing to “teach” Brad something else other than Ancient History, he is not sure to be available for the intense relationship Brad is searching. Brad wants love and commitment, exactly for the opposite reason from Sebastian, he comes from a very tight¬-knit family, and he wants to find the same.

Some of the situations in which Brad will find himself are maybe exaggerated on the “funny” side, but this is basically a comedy, and so it was really nice. Brad is sweet, like Sebastian said, almost a puppy, and he really needs to be pampered and cherished; that is a nice contrast, since Brad is all jock-like, strong and big, while Sebastian is lithe and lean. There is maybe a certain distance between Brad and Sebastian on the cultural level, not that Brad is stupid, but he is more interested in basic things like gardening and cooking, than burying his nose in the books like Sebastian, but that is really not an issue. Sebastian is not a nerd, that is balanced by him being easy and friendly and very touchy feeling; in this you can really see that Sebastian is first of all still a student and he is enjoying his young age. In that Brad seems more mature than him, again I think due to his steady and loving family upbringing.

http://riptidepublishing.com/titles/frat-boy-and-toppy

Amazon: Frat Boy and Toppy
Amazon Kindle: Frat Boy and Toppy
Paperback: 188 pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing (March 26, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 193755130X
ISBN-13: 978-1937551308

Reading List: http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle