Out of the Pocket by Bill Konigsberg

Title: Out of the Pocket
Author: Bill Konigsberg
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Length: Novel / 275 pages
Buy the book: Amazon

Blurb:

Star quarterback Bobby Framingham, one of the most talented high school football players in California, knows he’s different from his teammates. They’re like brothers, but they don’t know one essential thing: Bobby is gay. Can he still be one of the guys and be honest about who he is? When he’s outed against his will by a student reporter, Bobby must find a way to earn back his teammates’ trust and accept that his path to success might be more public, and more difficult, than he’d hoped. An affecting novel about identity that also delivers great sportswriting.

Review:

Out of the Pocket won the Lamba Literary Award in 2009 for the Young Adult category and I can easily see why. This touching coming of age story is about a popular high school quarterback that is outed as gay against his will and he struggles to find his balance after this action. In the end Bobby not only accepts his sexuality and makes a positive impact but he has a lot of support and a hopeful, if uncertain, future. The great writing offers a glimpse back into glory days of high school sports set against the more modern climate of acceptance.

Bobby Framingham is the talented star quarterback of his high school team. Now in his senior year, he’s looking forward to college and a life in football. His goals are pretty simple, he wants to go to Stanford and play college ball. He’s good friends with his teammates and has supportive, interested parents and a quirky best friend that everyone takes to be his girlfriend. Although his life isn’t perfect, he’s pretty happy. Yet Bobby struggles with wanting to expose his secret that he’s gay. He finds himself obsessing over the fact there are no openly gay male athletes and wants to share his secret with his best friend. However once he does, this starts a slow avalanche with consequences he never considered.

The story follows Bobby as he knows he’s gay and desperately wanting to talk to someone about it. A key difference in this story to others is that Bobby doesn’t get to make the choice of coming out or staying in the closet. He’s outed against his will and is forced to confront the ramifications. He’s on his way to telling his parents and his closest friends, slowly working his way there but the sudden announcement forces the issue. This is both good and bad as the great character in Bobby tries to understand why he’s suddenly seen as different and some dislike him. He sees himself as the same guy he always was and really struggles to understand the negative reactions of others. Yet at the same time, Bobby is given mostly a positive response.

The overwhelming support Bobby gets is both good and bad. There are some dissenters but overall this is mild as there is a distracting side plot that happens at the same time to help explain the mostly positive acceptance. The storyline of Bobby’s sick father is distracting and unnecessary, giving a reason for friends, family, and others to be more accepting of Bobby since he’s dealing with so much. I wish the story instead had been more honest about the range of emotions and reactions Bobby would deal with. In the end, his sexuality is an issue and sets him apart even when he doesn’t want to be. There are subtle comments that always label Bobby as a gay athlete instead of just an athlete. The writing does a great job in always keeping this dichotomy in mind and showing readers how such a simple thing can change someone’s life.

The writing also evokes high school memories with numerous football scenes. These are from practice, games, and scrimmages and the author is not afraid to revel in the images and scenes. These remind me of classic high school, the kind with a winning football team that is adored and respected for their ability. There are a lot of football scenes, perhaps too many that go on for extended times but this also helps deepen the descriptive quality and fully set the scene of a close knit community with a lot of expectation. Bobby as the narrator also is fully immersed in the football community and wants to make his living in the NFL; perhaps he’ll do this or not as the story is left with a hopeful ending and no future predictions.

The story is engaging and compelling, one you don’t want to put down and can’t wait to find out what happens. Bobby is a fabulous character in a cast of well written, quirky people that represent a lot of different stereotypes but manage to transcend most of them. The story itself is a positive one and definitely worth reading. The message is clear without needing to preach or lecture but simply letting Bobby’s reactions strike a poignant cord with readers. Although a young adult story, this is really one for all ages and definitely a must read.