Synchro Boy
Paperback | Dec 2018 | Arsenal Pulp Press | 9781551527444 | 274pp | 203x140mm | GEN | AUD$19.99, NZD$24.99
Age range 14+
Bart is a teenaged boy drawn to synchronized swimming, which puts his masculinity — and worse, his own expectations — into question.
Sixteen-year-old Bart Lively desperately wants to feel comfortable in his own skin. Being a jock doesn't mean he isn't the target of gay jokes, and the macho culture of his swim team is wearing him down. When he gives in to his curiosity and tries synchronized swimming, he discovers he has a natural talent -— not to mention a spark with one of the girls. So when Erika Tenaka asks him to swim the mixed duet with her, he commits to taking them all the way to the Olympics.
But judges' scores and Erika's sudden decision to quit the duet threaten to derail Bart's dream and kill what made the sport so liberating and alluring in the first place. And it doesn't help that as he falls in love with Erika, he's falling in lust with her frenemy ... not to mention a cute boy in the diving club.
Ultimately, Bart will have to give in to his intuition as it leads him to realize there are many ways to be a boy. If he doesn't, he'll lose not only his friendship with Erika but also his new Olympic dream — and the joy he feels as he dances in the deep.
'Synchro Boy is the kind
of book the world needs more of: a book that challenges readers to think more
deeply about gender and gender expression. Bart's story -- of a boy who has
never fit easily into a gender stereotyped box, who has endured years of gender
policing, who is bravely determined to find his own path in both sports and
relationships -- is an important and powerful one. Readers will cheer Bart on
as he swims his way towards "living a different kind of maleness.' ― Robin
Stevenson, author of Pride: Celebrating Diversity & Community
'Synchro Boy is a funny, bittersweet story of a teenaged boy's
self-awareness and acceptance, set within that ultimate crucible of teenage
lust: the swimming pool. By joining synchro, Bart pushes against the narrow
cage of masculinity, only to discover just how hard the bars will push back.
Armed with perseverance, hope, and some edifying relationships, he finds the
courage to follow his synchro dreams. Readers will come to know and appreciate
the challenge and camaraderie of synchronized swimming.' ― Douglas Davey, author
of Switch