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Title details for Honestly Ben by Bill Konigsberg - Available

Honestly Ben

by Bill Konigsberg
Dan Bittner
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
In the companion to Openly Straight, Ben confronts pressure at school, repression at home, and his passion for two very different people in figuring out what it takes to be Honestly Ben.

The companion to the award-winning Openly Straight, called "remarkable...deeply satisfying and as honest as its appealing protagonist" (Booklist). Perfect for fans of David Levithan, Andrew Smith, and John Green!Ben Carver is back to normal. He's working steadily in his classes at the Natick School. He just got elected captain of the baseball team. He's even won a full scholarship to college, if he can keep up his grades. All that foolishness with Rafe Goldberg the past semester is in the past.Except...There's Hannah, the gorgeous girl from the neighboring school, who attracts him and distracts him. There's his mother, whose quiet unhappiness Ben is noticing for the first time. School is harder, the pressure higher, the scholarship almost slipping away. And there's Rafe, funny, kind, dating someone else . . . and maybe the real normal that Ben needs.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    June 1, 2017

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781338244304
      • File size: 266936 KB
      • Duration: 09:16:06

  • Languages

    • English

  • Levels

    • Lexile® Measure: 660
    • Text Difficulty: 3

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from January 2, 2017
      Seventeen-year-old Ben Carver is under a lot of pressure. He’s having a hard time in calculus, a subject that could torpedo his stellar GPA and ruin his chances at receiving the prestigious Pappas Award, which would look fantastic on his college résumé and provide a needed scholarship. He’s also having difficulty with Rafe Goldberg, his gay former friend (with whom he got quite close in Konigsberg’s Openly Straight), and might be falling for a girl named Hannah. The trouble is, Ben is in love with Rafe, but he can’t accept the idea of being in love with a boy. Ben isn’t homophobic, but that doesn’t make it any easier for him to see himself—captain of the baseball team, son of a farmer—as gay or even bisexual. Konigsberg again realistically explores what happens when one’s self butts up against who the world’s expectations and assumptions. Ben refuses to be labeled, and the result is a refreshingly honest exploration of modern relationships and an understanding that love can take many shapes and forms. Ages 14–up. Agent: Linda Epstein, Emerald City Literary.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Dan Bittner's narration develops the unique personality of 17-year-old Ben, a secondary character in Konigsberg's earlier book OPENLY STRAIGHT. At the end of that story, Ben has pushed away Rafe, his best friend with whom he had a brief lover relationship. In this follow-up, Bittner quickly reveals Ben's intelligence and introspection. His delivery continually contrasts Ben's sensitivity with the insensitivity of others--his gruff and domineering father, his macho baseball teammates, and his elite classmates at the boarding school to which he's earned a scholarship. In a complex portrait, Bittner captures Ben's confused central conflict--is he gay, or straight, or is he only "gay-for-Rafe"? Keeping the plot engaging, Bittner highlights Ben's search for his identity. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:660
  • Text Difficulty:3

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