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Gotham Books
November 2012
On Sale: November 8, 2012
288 pages
ISBN: 1592407285
EAN: 9781592407286
Kindle: B007T8YXBS
Hardcover / e-Book
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Fiction Family Life
A heartfelt memoir by the father of a gay teen, and an
eye-opening story for families who hope to bring up
well-adjusted gay adults. Three years ago, John Schwartz, a national correspondent at
The New York Times, got the call that every parent hopes
never to receive: his thirteen-year-old son, Joe, was in the
hospital following a failed suicide attempt. After mustering
the courage to come out to his classmates, Joe’s disclosure
— delivered in a tirade about homophobic attitudes—was
greeted with dismay and confusion by his fellow students.
Hours later, he took an overdose of pills.
Additionally, John and his wife, Jeanne, found that their
son’s school was unable to address Joe’s special needs.
Angry and frustrated, they initiated their own search for
services and groups that could help Joe understand that he
wasn’t alone. Oddly Normal is Schwartz’s very personal
attempt to address his family’s own struggles within a
culture that is changing fast, but not fast enough to help
gay kids like Joe. Schwartz follows Joseph through childhood to the present
day, interweaving his narrative with common questions,
including: Are effeminate boys and tomboy girls necessarily
gay? Is there a relationship between being gay and suicide
or mental illness? Should a child be pushed into coming out?
Parents, teachers, and counselors alike will welcome Oddly
Normal and its crucial lessons about helping gay kids –and
any kid who is different -- learn how to cope in a
potentially hostile world.
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