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Reality Boy
Gerald Faust knows exactly when he started feeling angry: the day his mother invited a reality television crew into his five-year-old life. Twelve years later, he’s still haunted by his rage-filled youth—which the entire world got to watch from every imaginable angle—and his anger issues have resulted in violent outbursts, zero friends, and clueless adults dumping him in the special education room at school.
Nothing is ever going to change. No one cares that he’s tried to learn to control himself, and the girl he likes has no idea who he really is. Everyone’s just waiting for him to snap…and he’s starting to feel dangerously close to doing just that.
In this fearless portrayal of a boy on the edge, highly acclaimed Printz Honor author A.S. King explores the desperate reality of a former child “star” who finally breaks free of his anger by creating possibilities he never knew he deserved.
Nothing is ever going to change. No one cares that he’s tried to learn to control himself, and the girl he likes has no idea who he really is. Everyone’s just waiting for him to snap…and he’s starting to feel dangerously close to doing just that.
In this fearless portrayal of a boy on the edge, highly acclaimed Printz Honor author A.S. King explores the desperate reality of a former child “star” who finally breaks free of his anger by creating possibilities he never knew he deserved.
353 pages, Hardcover
First published September 10, 2013
About the author
A.S. King
24 books3,655 followersA.S. King is the author of the highly-acclaimed I CRAWL THROUGH IT, Walden Award winner GLORY O'BRIEN'S HISTORY OF THE FUTURE, REALITY BOY, 2013 LA Times Book Prize winner ASK THE PASSENGERS, 2012 ALA Top Ten Book for Young Adults EVERYBODY SEES THE ANTS, and 2011 Michael L. Printz Honor Book PLEASE IGNORE VERA DIETZ and THE DUST OF 100 DOGS as well as a collection of award-winning short stories for adults, MONICA NEVER SHUTS UP.
Look for Amy's work in anthologies DEAR BULLY, BREAK THESE RULES, ONE DEATH NINE STORIES, and LOSING IT. Two more YA novels to come in 2016 & 2018. Find more at www.as-king.com.
p.s.- If I don't accept your friend request, don't feel sad. It's because I don't really use Goodreads even though I'm completely thrilled that you do!
Look for Amy's work in anthologies DEAR BULLY, BREAK THESE RULES, ONE DEATH NINE STORIES, and LOSING IT. Two more YA novels to come in 2016 & 2018. Find more at www.as-king.com.
p.s.- If I don't accept your friend request, don't feel sad. It's because I don't really use Goodreads even though I'm completely thrilled that you do!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,612 reviews
October 9, 2013
This story was absolutely messed up and also incredibly fascinating, with one of the most dysfunctional family units I have yet to come across. Reality shows are all the rave in the recent years, Reality Boy is the best example of how these shows are the opposite of reality. Do we ever stop to think of the psychological toll they take on a child? Especially when too young to understand how life can be so unfair. Network Nanny, the show in this book, is not very far off from our own running Reality shows. How do you think the kids in Supernanny will grow up with everyone at school, in their whole town, have seen them at their worst? Imagine your childhood tantrums shown on national TV! More often than not edited out of context to make it more "entertaining" for its viewers. This is the story of Gerald - aka the Crapper.
There are many words I could use to describe this story. Traumatic. Heartbreaking. Disturbing. Unfortunate. But also with hints of hope that things could end well for our protagonist. Gerald was a trouble child, which is his mom's excuse for having asked Network Nanny for help. They soon become the hottest entertainment of Friday night TV. Gerald, being too young to understand very much, retaliates under this pressure and change in the worst of ways - as you would expect, really. It's a retaliation that will haunt him throughout his childhood and teen years. This story is brilliantly told in alternating past and present point-of-views where we see who Gerald is today, while simultaneously learning what happened in his childhood to make him so mentally defeated. We go back to the filming of the show: What the network has done to this family, how they manipulated the scenes, how this fake nanny actually did nothing to help them, but most importantly, we learn the truth. A 5 year old boy then, Gerald only wanted someone to fight on his side. As for the real problem: it was not Gerald, and it was all kinds of troubling.
The writing is what I loved the most in this book. It's written in a voice of someone who has been psychologically abused by his family and a TV network. His mental state could not have been easy to portray, but A.S. took it head on. This story is harsh, yet honest and raw. It's told through a fragmented mind, yet amazingly genuine. Some parts are strange, others are simply disturbing, all are emotionally affecting. Imagine being told by your mother, repeatedly, that you're retarded. That the problem in your messed up family is you. Eventually you come to believe it. You are a child. Your parents are the people you look up to and believe in. My heart was breaking in two each time we went to the past and heard the thoughts of this sweet little boy. The more we learned of how he grew up, the more it took a toll on me. Having a little boy of my own, I couldn't help from being emotionally invested in this child getting the rotten end of the stick. As a teenager, Gerald still uses several methods to escape reality. Like Gersday - an alternate reality he dozes off to whenever real life becomes too much. While we journey with him, he finds his first love, his first ray of hope, and we get to observe the mental instabilities that he's trying to overcome.
This is the story of Gerald. The price he paid for entertainment.
--
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for review.
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads
There are many words I could use to describe this story. Traumatic. Heartbreaking. Disturbing. Unfortunate. But also with hints of hope that things could end well for our protagonist. Gerald was a trouble child, which is his mom's excuse for having asked Network Nanny for help. They soon become the hottest entertainment of Friday night TV. Gerald, being too young to understand very much, retaliates under this pressure and change in the worst of ways - as you would expect, really. It's a retaliation that will haunt him throughout his childhood and teen years. This story is brilliantly told in alternating past and present point-of-views where we see who Gerald is today, while simultaneously learning what happened in his childhood to make him so mentally defeated. We go back to the filming of the show: What the network has done to this family, how they manipulated the scenes, how this fake nanny actually did nothing to help them, but most importantly, we learn the truth. A 5 year old boy then, Gerald only wanted someone to fight on his side. As for the real problem: it was not Gerald, and it was all kinds of troubling.
The writing is what I loved the most in this book. It's written in a voice of someone who has been psychologically abused by his family and a TV network. His mental state could not have been easy to portray, but A.S. took it head on. This story is harsh, yet honest and raw. It's told through a fragmented mind, yet amazingly genuine. Some parts are strange, others are simply disturbing, all are emotionally affecting. Imagine being told by your mother, repeatedly, that you're retarded. That the problem in your messed up family is you. Eventually you come to believe it. You are a child. Your parents are the people you look up to and believe in. My heart was breaking in two each time we went to the past and heard the thoughts of this sweet little boy. The more we learned of how he grew up, the more it took a toll on me. Having a little boy of my own, I couldn't help from being emotionally invested in this child getting the rotten end of the stick. As a teenager, Gerald still uses several methods to escape reality. Like Gersday - an alternate reality he dozes off to whenever real life becomes too much. While we journey with him, he finds his first love, his first ray of hope, and we get to observe the mental instabilities that he's trying to overcome.
This is the story of Gerald. The price he paid for entertainment.
--
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for review.
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads
June 16, 2014
A.S. King is easily one of my favourite authors. I was going to say "YA authors" but that seems to imply she can't hold her own against authors of adult fiction. She can. In fact, King is one example that proves that teen lit can be as well-written and meaningful as any book for adults. King's novels tend to focus on kids with dysfunctional lives and families, whether the main issue be bullying, death or "coming out". I've liked all her novels; they've all been powerful, but this one is by far my least favourite.
With King, it is first and foremost her talent for well-developed characters that brings each story to life. I often find myself nodding along when King crafts a relatable emotional response, even though I'm thankfully not familiar with many of the situations she's describing. I've never lost a friend, I've never experienced having to "come out", and I'm glad to be able to say I've never crapped on a table .
If you haven't read this book, then that last sentence probably requires some explanation. Reality Boy is about Gerald Faust who was part of a reality TV show when he was a young child. The show was one of these about problem kids, like Supernanny or whatever the latest crappy program is that attempts to show you how to raise your children. Gerald was an angry kid who expressed his anger and frustration by defecating in unfortunate areas of his house - like the dinner table and his mum's shoes. Which the public watched with disgust (and disgust's partner in crime - fascination).
Now Gerald is older and he's even angrier. He's had to deal with years of torment, parents who don't even try to understand him, and the nickname "Crapper". And he also has a bad relationship with his vindictive older sister - Tasha - who has a whole world of her own problems.
I think I find the possible implications of this story far more fascinating than the book itself. Reality Boy looks at a number of interesting things: the potential damage caused to kids by being thrust into the public eye at such a young age (does anyone even think about how those children on Supernanny might be treated at school?); the way treating someone like you expect them to be can make them exactly what you feared; how someone who is labelled a "problem kid" gets stuck with that label and often blamed when they've done nothing wrong.
As this is King, the book is well-written and had a number of touching parts. Of all her characters, though, I found it most difficult to sympathise with Gerald. I feel like it took a lot longer to connect with him emotionally, and it wasn't until about two thirds into the book when I began to see something beyond a bratty boy who crapped everywhere. In the beginning, his anger and I-hate-life attitude is directed at innocent (if annoying) people and his sister's noisy sex life. I get that no one wants to hear their sister having sex, but it's not like it's the end of the world or worth a whole load of self-hatred.
I also felt a bit bored by the romantic subplot with Hannah - a beautiful but flat character, IMO. My favourite parts were the flashbacks to Gerald's youth when he was being featured on the show and the family dynamics happening around that time.
Lastly: forgiveness. I know it's a good thing and I'm glad when tormented teens can make peace with their past and the people who've grieved them. However, I do not like when the ending of a book features a neat little package of completely undeserved forgiveness. I thought someone here was offered forgiveness too readily without showing any sign of repentance or care for the harm they'd done. I would have liked to get that character's take on things and see at least some form of regret before everyone joined hands and sang Kum Ba Yah. Maybe I'm evil.
Not a bad novel, but I really hope Glory O'Brien's History of the Future is better.
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With King, it is first and foremost her talent for well-developed characters that brings each story to life. I often find myself nodding along when King crafts a relatable emotional response, even though I'm thankfully not familiar with many of the situations she's describing. I've never lost a friend, I've never experienced having to "come out", and I'm glad to be able to say I've never crapped on a table .
If you haven't read this book, then that last sentence probably requires some explanation. Reality Boy is about Gerald Faust who was part of a reality TV show when he was a young child. The show was one of these about problem kids, like Supernanny or whatever the latest crappy program is that attempts to show you how to raise your children. Gerald was an angry kid who expressed his anger and frustration by defecating in unfortunate areas of his house - like the dinner table and his mum's shoes. Which the public watched with disgust (and disgust's partner in crime - fascination).
Now Gerald is older and he's even angrier. He's had to deal with years of torment, parents who don't even try to understand him, and the nickname "Crapper". And he also has a bad relationship with his vindictive older sister - Tasha - who has a whole world of her own problems.
I think I find the possible implications of this story far more fascinating than the book itself. Reality Boy looks at a number of interesting things: the potential damage caused to kids by being thrust into the public eye at such a young age (does anyone even think about how those children on Supernanny might be treated at school?); the way treating someone like you expect them to be can make them exactly what you feared; how someone who is labelled a "problem kid" gets stuck with that label and often blamed when they've done nothing wrong.
As this is King, the book is well-written and had a number of touching parts. Of all her characters, though, I found it most difficult to sympathise with Gerald. I feel like it took a lot longer to connect with him emotionally, and it wasn't until about two thirds into the book when I began to see something beyond a bratty boy who crapped everywhere. In the beginning, his anger and I-hate-life attitude is directed at innocent (if annoying) people and his sister's noisy sex life. I get that no one wants to hear their sister having sex, but it's not like it's the end of the world or worth a whole load of self-hatred.
I also felt a bit bored by the romantic subplot with Hannah - a beautiful but flat character, IMO. My favourite parts were the flashbacks to Gerald's youth when he was being featured on the show and the family dynamics happening around that time.
Lastly: forgiveness. I know it's a good thing and I'm glad when tormented teens can make peace with their past and the people who've grieved them. However, I do not like when the ending of a book features a neat little package of completely undeserved forgiveness. I thought someone here was offered forgiveness too readily without showing any sign of repentance or care for the harm they'd done. I would have liked to get that character's take on things and see at least some form of regret before everyone joined hands and sang Kum Ba Yah. Maybe I'm evil.
Not a bad novel, but I really hope Glory O'Brien's History of the Future is better.
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July 6, 2016
[4.5 Stars]
December 27, 2015
Couldn't decide between 3 and 4 stars. But yes, 4 it is. A mix of crazy (this is a word that I hold in high esteem!) and reality tv - which I hate by the way - Gerald has had just the worse upbringing, a lot of which was documented in the worst way in a horrible 'Nanny' type reality show. Gerald has a psychopath for a sister, a mother that has no idea about anything with a mile of problems of her own, a father who is blasé about the whole thing when all Gerald needs is some love and another sister who gets the hell out of there, but in a way had abandoned him just like everyone else in his world. The story alternates between flashbacks of the filming when he was 5, and now at 17. We witness Gerald work through his internal demons and grow as he discovers his self worth. I absolutely loved Hannah as a character, he really does find the ying to his yang - finally. This is my first A.S. King novel, I think she has a truly great voice and will seek out more of her work. I like how she succinctly covers some of the messed up areas in reality television and the common reasons people watch the stuff.
November 6, 2014
The main character Gerald's family was on a reality "nanny" show. Gerald showed his inner anger toward his out of control sister and passive mom by pooping on camera. Thus becoming known as "the Crapper". Needless to say Gerald's younger life has not been all roses.
I really am surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. It is not a hard read at all. You become attached to Gerald almost immediately and go along with him for the ride. He works at a concession stand and becomes attracted to the girl that works register #1. The Junk-man's Daughter, these 2 characters are like-able. I did want his older sister Tasha to get what was coming to her.
Thanks Netgalley for the ARC.
I really am surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. It is not a hard read at all. You become attached to Gerald almost immediately and go along with him for the ride. He works at a concession stand and becomes attracted to the girl that works register #1. The Junk-man's Daughter, these 2 characters are like-able. I did want his older sister Tasha to get what was coming to her.
Thanks Netgalley for the ARC.
October 30, 2013
4 STARS
Some pre-emptive clarification: I am aware that reality TV as a genre is pretty broad and it's irresponsible to summarily call everyone starring in a reality show a famewhore and anyone who watches it broken and unknowingly depressed, seeking comfort in Schadenfreude.
But some shows, some really horrible reality TV shows, just begs me to.
And Reality Boy reflects on these bizarre human inventions and the collateral damages they incur.
Everybody knows Gerald Faust. Or at least everyone claims to know him thanks to Network Nanny, a cable show that filmed a "Nanny" help his parents in disciplining him and his sisters, Tasha and Lisi. On that premise alone, the psychosocial ramifications and emotional impact on a child as young as Gerald was is already too complex to contemplate but if you add the dysfunctional nature of his family (which was the reason for the filming to begin with) then it just shifts to plain horrid.
Predictably, this child rearing experiment fails, leaving the Faust Family a little more abnormal than they were in the beginning and are now plagued with rage and violence issues, psychotic breakdowns and desertions. Working in a food stand, taking SPED and anger management classes while also boxing (yes, WTF) on his downtime, Gerald has moved on from being "The Crapper" to "The Crapper Who Will Probably End Up Killing Someone, Getting Killed or Both". He has been dismissed to a non-existent future and when the only person he trusted and shared that traumatic past with leaves, it doesn't make sense much to fight that inevitability.
This was a tough book to review for me because the bigger message that it's trying to deliver just doesn't end in one issue and Gerald's complexity is not the simple sum of his mother's neglect, his father's passivity,Tasha's abuse and Lisi's abandonment. Whenever the story shifted back to the past when they were shooting the show with the fake nanny, I forge a sympathetic bond with him as a boy but at the same time Developmental Psychology kicks into overdrive and it will make you wonder if he's going to use a bomb to kill everyone in school or shoot random hotdog buying, hockey fans in the food stand.
He was a guy on the edge with barely-repressed violence that everyone seems to be hell bent on unleashing despite his best efforts not to by receding into "Gersday" trances with Snow White conversations, traveling on butterscotch roads and trapeze hallucinations with Lisi.
There was no romanticizing of his desperate attempts to insulate himself from everyone with dignified strength and aggression. He was a sad and broken character who you can't help but smile whenever a small bit of joy and goodness comes his way in whatever form that may be.
Initially I found his relationship with Hannah a little too charmed and indie-film, but somewhere towards the middle I finally got to appreciate her purpose through her backstory. I find the symmetry of finding potential salvation through a girl like Hannah (a reality TV fan, among other ironic things) after being repeatedly failed by the women in his life fitting and perfect. There were scenes between them that has been done before in this genre but their chemistry in their banter totally made up for a couple of cliches.
Reality Boy offers most of the staples in realistic contemporary YA fare with elements of romance, witty dialogue and equal distribution of quirky and disturbing in the supporting cast. But at the same time it comes across off-beat with the evident lack of a dramatic climax, an ending that felt strangely abrupt and Gerald's monopoly of the storyline. True, he's an interesting enough character, but I wouldn't have minded a bit more depth and insight into Tasha and their mother's backstories. I find the issue between them quite fascinating and unique. I did find the ending not only abrupt but also a stretch of logic. It felt like the metaphor got too abstract and how it related to reality too oversimplified into convenience.
But for delivering a story that resonates in its timeliness and honesty I can't say I wasn't impressed with how this read easily despite the heavy nature of the subject. It was smart without being daunting and conversed what it was trying to say in a clever manner.
I particularly loved how this initially led me to believe the theme was You Can't Always Get What You Want when its actually (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction in the end.
Also on BookLikes.
ARC provided by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers thru NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
Some pre-emptive clarification: I am aware that reality TV as a genre is pretty broad and it's irresponsible to summarily call everyone starring in a reality show a famewhore and anyone who watches it broken and unknowingly depressed, seeking comfort in Schadenfreude.
But some shows, some really horrible reality TV shows, just begs me to.
And Reality Boy reflects on these bizarre human inventions and the collateral damages they incur.
Everybody knows Gerald Faust. Or at least everyone claims to know him thanks to Network Nanny, a cable show that filmed a "Nanny" help his parents in disciplining him and his sisters, Tasha and Lisi. On that premise alone, the psychosocial ramifications and emotional impact on a child as young as Gerald was is already too complex to contemplate but if you add the dysfunctional nature of his family (which was the reason for the filming to begin with) then it just shifts to plain horrid.
Isn't that what fame is, anyway? Being slaves to little people? My slave name was the Crapper. My slave job is to crap and make millions of little people happy.
Predictably, this child rearing experiment fails, leaving the Faust Family a little more abnormal than they were in the beginning and are now plagued with rage and violence issues, psychotic breakdowns and desertions. Working in a food stand, taking SPED and anger management classes while also boxing (yes, WTF) on his downtime, Gerald has moved on from being "The Crapper" to "The Crapper Who Will Probably End Up Killing Someone, Getting Killed or Both". He has been dismissed to a non-existent future and when the only person he trusted and shared that traumatic past with leaves, it doesn't make sense much to fight that inevitability.
This was a tough book to review for me because the bigger message that it's trying to deliver just doesn't end in one issue and Gerald's complexity is not the simple sum of his mother's neglect, his father's passivity,Tasha's abuse and Lisi's abandonment. Whenever the story shifted back to the past when they were shooting the show with the fake nanny, I forge a sympathetic bond with him as a boy but at the same time Developmental Psychology kicks into overdrive and it will make you wonder if he's going to use a bomb to kill everyone in school or shoot random hotdog buying, hockey fans in the food stand.
He was a guy on the edge with barely-repressed violence that everyone seems to be hell bent on unleashing despite his best efforts not to by receding into "Gersday" trances with Snow White conversations, traveling on butterscotch roads and trapeze hallucinations with Lisi.
I am not a Walt Disney character. I am Gerald.
I am Gerald and I will never be anyone but Gerald.
There was no romanticizing of his desperate attempts to insulate himself from everyone with dignified strength and aggression. He was a sad and broken character who you can't help but smile whenever a small bit of joy and goodness comes his way in whatever form that may be.
Initially I found his relationship with Hannah a little too charmed and indie-film, but somewhere towards the middle I finally got to appreciate her purpose through her backstory. I find the symmetry of finding potential salvation through a girl like Hannah (a reality TV fan, among other ironic things) after being repeatedly failed by the women in his life fitting and perfect. There were scenes between them that has been done before in this genre but their chemistry in their banter totally made up for a couple of cliches.
"You're sitting in front of the word asshole which you wrote on my car and you call me dramatic? Seriously. You-the girl who ran away to get murdered," I say. "That's some kettle calling the pot black."
"That's racist," she says.
Reality Boy offers most of the staples in realistic contemporary YA fare with elements of romance, witty dialogue and equal distribution of quirky and disturbing in the supporting cast. But at the same time it comes across off-beat with the evident lack of a dramatic climax, an ending that felt strangely abrupt and Gerald's monopoly of the storyline. True, he's an interesting enough character, but I wouldn't have minded a bit more depth and insight into Tasha and their mother's backstories. I find the issue between them quite fascinating and unique. I did find the ending not only abrupt but also a stretch of logic. It felt like the metaphor got too abstract and how it related to reality too oversimplified into convenience.
But for delivering a story that resonates in its timeliness and honesty I can't say I wasn't impressed with how this read easily despite the heavy nature of the subject. It was smart without being daunting and conversed what it was trying to say in a clever manner.
I particularly loved how this initially led me to believe the theme was You Can't Always Get What You Want when its actually (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction in the end.
Also on BookLikes.
ARC provided by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers thru NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
November 2, 2013
Initial reaction: I wasn't expecting much from this read from the beginning, but I have to admit I really grew to care about Gerald's experiences over the course of the story and I liked how genuine of a character he turned out to be. Caveats everywhere to consider in the scheme of this story - and I can see where it may not hit off well in some measures for content/presentation. Hopefully I can explain that more in the full review.
Full review:
Holy crud, this book impressed me. I didn't expect to feel that way about the book when I first read into it, but as I went along, "Reality Boy" drew me into both Gerald's narrative and experiences. We start the story from the perspective of this teen reflecting on his embarrassing experiences as a five-year old in the media spotlight. Namely his stint on a reality series "Network Nanny," involving a nanny helping his family.
But the family itself is far more messed up than just Gerald's experiences as a five-year-old defecating everywhere during the show's run. One might think at first that this is just a measure for show, that Gerald is a bad kid (and he himself worries about being "locked up" eventually for his behavioral issues. He even bites the cheek of another kid who bullies him at a younger age), but never did this feel like a narrative that included these measures just for show or shock factor. Matter in point, they provide context to just about every scene in which Gerald does something, and usually his "trigger" stems from the actions of his elder sister and surprising revelations from his own mother.
This is not a light read by any measure of the word, I did feel for Gerald in that he struggles between coping with his experiences of the past and dealing with matters in his present, whether it may be the neglect of his family to some serious measures (enough that his other sister left home for college without calling back) to his present relationships (with Hannah, who has issues of her own, but they're gradually revealed).
That said, as strong as a narrative as this was - with wit, honesty, raw depth, and emotional conflict, there were some things that bothered me. I don't know if *all* the defecation scenes were necessary through the narrative, and I had serious issues with the frequent use of the R-word (though it does have a purpose in the novel, and I'm glad that Hannah, among other characters, "hangs a lantern" on the issue and brings it to term. Gerald gradually realizes this through the narrative as well and has a nice coming to terms over it.)
This is probably the best teen book I've read on the subject matter, fascinating, open, and very real, with some nice touches of other details (light romance, coming to terms, etc.). I would definitely recommend it and I'm looking forward to reading more from A.S. King.
Overall score: 4/5 stars
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
Full review:
Holy crud, this book impressed me. I didn't expect to feel that way about the book when I first read into it, but as I went along, "Reality Boy" drew me into both Gerald's narrative and experiences. We start the story from the perspective of this teen reflecting on his embarrassing experiences as a five-year old in the media spotlight. Namely his stint on a reality series "Network Nanny," involving a nanny helping his family.
But the family itself is far more messed up than just Gerald's experiences as a five-year-old defecating everywhere during the show's run. One might think at first that this is just a measure for show, that Gerald is a bad kid (and he himself worries about being "locked up" eventually for his behavioral issues. He even bites the cheek of another kid who bullies him at a younger age), but never did this feel like a narrative that included these measures just for show or shock factor. Matter in point, they provide context to just about every scene in which Gerald does something, and usually his "trigger" stems from the actions of his elder sister and surprising revelations from his own mother.
This is not a light read by any measure of the word, I did feel for Gerald in that he struggles between coping with his experiences of the past and dealing with matters in his present, whether it may be the neglect of his family to some serious measures (enough that his other sister left home for college without calling back) to his present relationships (with Hannah, who has issues of her own, but they're gradually revealed).
That said, as strong as a narrative as this was - with wit, honesty, raw depth, and emotional conflict, there were some things that bothered me. I don't know if *all* the defecation scenes were necessary through the narrative, and I had serious issues with the frequent use of the R-word (though it does have a purpose in the novel, and I'm glad that Hannah, among other characters, "hangs a lantern" on the issue and brings it to term. Gerald gradually realizes this through the narrative as well and has a nice coming to terms over it.)
This is probably the best teen book I've read on the subject matter, fascinating, open, and very real, with some nice touches of other details (light romance, coming to terms, etc.). I would definitely recommend it and I'm looking forward to reading more from A.S. King.
Overall score: 4/5 stars
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
October 22, 2013
Reality Boy is an important book. I rarely say a book is moving, because that's kind of generic and cliche and completely overdone. But this book is moving.
We've all seen reality TV commercials featuring a misbehaving child. The attempts to "fix" the child being broadcasted on national TV. Using their unhappy homes to entertain the masses. But what happens to those kids when they get older? They're teenagers, and everyone knows they're that kid from that show. Reality Boy shows what those kids are like 10+ years later.
Hint: they're pissed.
We've all seen reality TV commercials featuring a misbehaving child. The attempts to "fix" the child being broadcasted on national TV. Using their unhappy homes to entertain the masses. But what happens to those kids when they get older? They're teenagers, and everyone knows they're that kid from that show. Reality Boy shows what those kids are like 10+ years later.
Hint: they're pissed.
April 2, 2016
I meant to just start it, but I read it straight through. I'll write a better review when it isn't 4am.
April 7, 2021
It is no secret that I am a big fan of A.S. King. I recommend her to most fans of slightly dark and odd YA contemporary.
Her books are amazing for various reasons;
✰ The adults matter. When was the last time you saw older people acknowledge and portrayed in a realistic way in a YA book? In Reality Boy, many of these people are unlikable and flawed. King doesn’t take sides, but lets them have a story of their own.
✰ Her stories are a little bizarre.Not only does the magical realism play a big part, but the offbeat, weird writing is unique without being pretentious.
The characters are brutally honest in their narration and let us know all the things people wouldn't say out loud.
✰ King takes well-used topics in fiction such as death, family issues and growing up, and makes them her own. There's no sugarcoating, no pity party, just people struggling. It's all portrayed in a realistic way and No book I read by her has been the same, and she's such a unique voice in YA contemporary.
All these things are true for Reality Boy, but it is my least favorite book by this author. Maybe because Gerald is my least favorite King boy (I mean, it’s unfair when you put him next to Charlie Kahn..), but mainly because the characters had potential, but I never truly felt for them.
Although I’ve never had to come out, lost a close friend or a relative, I’ve still strongly related to the characters in King’s books.I wrote this when I was 15, before I realized I was queer and before I had lost someone close to me. So, now I've done all of this.
With Reality Boy, I felt detached from the story and didn’t care for the plot.
Tasha, Gerard’s sister and the ’villain’, was too one-dimensional. Her only purpose was to make her siblings’ lives a living hell, with little motive. She enjoys hurting people and we never got a solid explanation for that. Few people are born with hatred and anger boiling in their blood, and I was sad to see Tasha remain nothing but a villain, and that’s where this book went wrong.
I wish it had been told in two PoVs, so we knew her side of the story too.
All in all, this was an okay book. I’m glad this author took the time to give us an insight on the world of reality TV, and just wish it had been better executed.
I think I had too high expectations, and expected it to be just as good as Please Ignore Vera Dietz. It's like eating your favorite cake for the first time; after that, nothing else is comparable.
Reality Boy was solid and way better than some contemporaries, but it's the salad I eat the day after, while longing for my favorite cake.Ya feel?
P.S: It's scandalous that only one of my friends has read a book by this author. What are you waiting for? I'm sitting here all alone fangirling, which is not okay.
Other books I've read by A.S King:
Please Ignore Vera Dietz 5/5 stars - all-time favorite, heart-shattering amazingness. READ IT.
Everybody Sees the Ants 4/5 stars - funny, relatable and hopeful.
Ask the Passengers 3.5/5 stars - a story about coming out that I appreciated more than liked.
Her books are amazing for various reasons;
✰ The adults matter. When was the last time you saw older people acknowledge and portrayed in a realistic way in a YA book? In Reality Boy, many of these people are unlikable and flawed. King doesn’t take sides, but lets them have a story of their own.
✰ Her stories are a little bizarre.Not only does the magical realism play a big part, but the offbeat, weird writing is unique without being pretentious.
The characters are brutally honest in their narration and let us know all the things people wouldn't say out loud.
✰ King takes well-used topics in fiction such as death, family issues and growing up, and makes them her own. There's no sugarcoating, no pity party, just people struggling. It's all portrayed in a realistic way and No book I read by her has been the same, and she's such a unique voice in YA contemporary.
All these things are true for Reality Boy, but it is my least favorite book by this author. Maybe because Gerald is my least favorite King boy (I mean, it’s unfair when you put him next to Charlie Kahn..), but mainly because the characters had potential, but I never truly felt for them.
Although I’ve never had to come out, lost a close friend or a relative, I’ve still strongly related to the characters in King’s books.
With Reality Boy, I felt detached from the story and didn’t care for the plot.
Tasha, Gerard’s sister and the ’villain’, was too one-dimensional. Her only purpose was to make her siblings’ lives a living hell, with little motive. She enjoys hurting people and we never got a solid explanation for that. Few people are born with hatred and anger boiling in their blood, and I was sad to see Tasha remain nothing but a villain, and that’s where this book went wrong.
I wish it had been told in two PoVs, so we knew her side of the story too.
All in all, this was an okay book. I’m glad this author took the time to give us an insight on the world of reality TV, and just wish it had been better executed.
I think I had too high expectations, and expected it to be just as good as Please Ignore Vera Dietz. It's like eating your favorite cake for the first time; after that, nothing else is comparable.
Reality Boy was solid and way better than some contemporaries, but it's the salad I eat the day after, while longing for my favorite cake.
P.S: It's scandalous that only one of my friends has read a book by this author. What are you waiting for? I'm sitting here all alone fangirling, which is not okay.
Other books I've read by A.S King:
Please Ignore Vera Dietz 5/5 stars - all-time favorite, heart-shattering amazingness. READ IT.
Everybody Sees the Ants 4/5 stars - funny, relatable and hopeful.
Ask the Passengers 3.5/5 stars - a story about coming out that I appreciated more than liked.
July 7, 2013
Gerald was the "star" of two episodes of a reality television show when he was 5 and 6 that followed families in peril that needed the help of "Super Nanny" guidance. What made Gerald memorable was what he did to seek "revenge" against the family bent on reining in his behavior he would defecate somewhere and it would be filmed. It's through this he earned his infamy.
Now, years later, he's still known as Crapper. He has no friends in school, and he's in the special education classes. He's been told he's worthless, that his two episodes of reality television years ago have forever marred his reputation, and he's the center of relentless bullying. Like Lucky Linderman in King's Everybody Sees the Ants, Gerald has developed a complex coping mechanism that involves falling into a fantasy world. His centers around Disney characters, and they help settle him and remove him from his present when he needs that safe space.
But this isn't necessarily a story about bullying. It's a story about Gerald's broken family. His sister Tasha
From the onset, the premise is really exciting. What DOES happen to someone who grew up in the national eye? But in thinking about this further, the premise is incredibly flimsy here. Gerald's fame was TWO EPISODES of a Nanny show that aired when he was 5 years old. I am left wondering how all of his classmates are aware of this? Sure, they could watch clips of it on YouTube. But the show aired 10 years ago. Did they really hold on to this for that long? Remember: two episodes. This wasn't an entire series. Not an entire season. Two episodes.
Do we remember the face Honey Boo Boo became famous from a couple episodes of Toddlers and Tiaras? Not really. We remember her for her own spin off.
Gerald had no spin off.
This weakness bothered me because there was a lot of other great stuff here. Gerald's mom and sister are terrible and terribly sad. The lengths his mother goes to to protect Tasha and deny her real needs -- even years and years past when she needed the initial help -- are tragic. The reality show was the band aid, the way of trying to take attention away from the sister. But again, it's too thin, too of-the-moment.
More than that, there's Hannah's story, too.
But maybe what really did not work for me was this: I don't think the sadness comes through. We develop sympathy for Gerald, of course, but we don't develop that same sympathy for the characters who really need it -- his mother and sister. Because they're cast simply as "the bad people." They aren't really in the story. They're talked around. Their back stories are shared. But they aren't PRESENT in the story in a way that causes readers to pause and take note of what makes them real and what makes them so sad. It's almost as if there are too many layers to this story, and they don't connect in a way to amplify one another. We almost needed a tiny bit less of Gerald and a little bit more of those secondary characters in order to really understand the sadness and desperation of all the characters here.
The writing is great, of course, but I couldn't help feel as though there were some elements a little too repetitive in nature to those in King's ANTS. Maybe because I read ANTS three or four times, but I felt like Gerald's coping strategies were too close to Lucky's. That maybe he, too, was simply too similar to Lucky. Perhaps this is purposeful, but in some ways it felt like an easy means through the story of bullying and broken families. There is a small road trip in this story, as well as a sweet romance. There is a story of escape and, maybe most powerful, a story about trust -- the kind you seek and the kind you earn.
I felt like there was MORE to this story. MORE than the reality television. MORE than the classmates remembering it. And I wanted and needed that MORE, too, from the secondary characters who really gave Gerald his voice here.
Now, years later, he's still known as Crapper. He has no friends in school, and he's in the special education classes. He's been told he's worthless, that his two episodes of reality television years ago have forever marred his reputation, and he's the center of relentless bullying. Like Lucky Linderman in King's Everybody Sees the Ants, Gerald has developed a complex coping mechanism that involves falling into a fantasy world. His centers around Disney characters, and they help settle him and remove him from his present when he needs that safe space.
But this isn't necessarily a story about bullying. It's a story about Gerald's broken family. His sister Tasha
From the onset, the premise is really exciting. What DOES happen to someone who grew up in the national eye? But in thinking about this further, the premise is incredibly flimsy here. Gerald's fame was TWO EPISODES of a Nanny show that aired when he was 5 years old. I am left wondering how all of his classmates are aware of this? Sure, they could watch clips of it on YouTube. But the show aired 10 years ago. Did they really hold on to this for that long? Remember: two episodes. This wasn't an entire series. Not an entire season. Two episodes.
Do we remember the face Honey Boo Boo became famous from a couple episodes of Toddlers and Tiaras? Not really. We remember her for her own spin off.
Gerald had no spin off.
This weakness bothered me because there was a lot of other great stuff here. Gerald's mom and sister are terrible and terribly sad. The lengths his mother goes to to protect Tasha and deny her real needs -- even years and years past when she needed the initial help -- are tragic. The reality show was the band aid, the way of trying to take attention away from the sister. But again, it's too thin, too of-the-moment.
More than that, there's Hannah's story, too.
But maybe what really did not work for me was this: I don't think the sadness comes through. We develop sympathy for Gerald, of course, but we don't develop that same sympathy for the characters who really need it -- his mother and sister. Because they're cast simply as "the bad people." They aren't really in the story. They're talked around. Their back stories are shared. But they aren't PRESENT in the story in a way that causes readers to pause and take note of what makes them real and what makes them so sad. It's almost as if there are too many layers to this story, and they don't connect in a way to amplify one another. We almost needed a tiny bit less of Gerald and a little bit more of those secondary characters in order to really understand the sadness and desperation of all the characters here.
The writing is great, of course, but I couldn't help feel as though there were some elements a little too repetitive in nature to those in King's ANTS. Maybe because I read ANTS three or four times, but I felt like Gerald's coping strategies were too close to Lucky's. That maybe he, too, was simply too similar to Lucky. Perhaps this is purposeful, but in some ways it felt like an easy means through the story of bullying and broken families. There is a small road trip in this story, as well as a sweet romance. There is a story of escape and, maybe most powerful, a story about trust -- the kind you seek and the kind you earn.
I felt like there was MORE to this story. MORE than the reality television. MORE than the classmates remembering it. And I wanted and needed that MORE, too, from the secondary characters who really gave Gerald his voice here.
July 17, 2016
Reality Boy was my first A.S. King book. I must now read everything else she has written. King's writing is that good.
July 2, 2016
Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales
Quick & Dirty: The truth behind ‘reality TV.’
Opening Sentence: I’m the kid you saw on TV.
The Review:
Reality Boy explores how difficult it is to change someone’s perspective following fame from a reality TV show. Gerald is (in)famous for being the ‘crapper;’ the kid that pooped everywhere on reality TV because of his behavioural issues. As a teenager, he hasn’t been able to rid himself of that persona and has spent his life unsuccessfully trying to change his image in a town that does not forget.
“So where to, then, Ger?” Dad asks, swirling his drink with his index finger.
I don’t know what to say. I don’t want to do anything, really. I just want a chance to start over and have a real life. One that wasn’t fucked up from the beginning and broadcast on international TV like a freak show.
It took a while for this book to grow on me but eventually I started understanding the main character. I felt for Gerald because although he really does have anger management issues, most of them stemmed from being the highlight of reality TV. He is constantly struggling to stay in control and keep his anger checked but is emotionally scarred from having his privacy violated as a child. Everyone has seen the show but no one realises that it was mostly staged. They just see a kid throwing tantrums and entertaining viewers by pooping in his mum’s shoes. Viewers do not see a little boy living with a psychopath for a sister and parents that either don’t care or pretend to see anything wrong with their messed up family.
Given what he went through, it was inevitable for Gerald to be slightly ‘different.’ However, I sympathised with his character because Gerald is constantly mocked for being the crapper. It’s almost like everyone is pushing him to the edge so he becomes that angry child again and creates a scene; which is something Gerald struggles not to do every single day.
But no matter how much anger management coaching I’ve had, I know that if I had a gun, I’d shoot Nichols in the back as he walks away with his beer. I know that’s murder and I know what that means. It means I’d go to jail. And the older I get, the more I think maybe I belong in jail. There are plenty of angry guys like me in jail. It’s like, anger central. If we put together all the jails in this country and made a state out of them, we could call that state Furious.
It was odd reading about a victim of bullying that can defend himself all too easily but the only thing that prevents him from snapping is not wanting to go to jail. Gerald’s calm reflection on whether or not to kill his mum or sister was disconcerting to read but it helped to better understand him. His behaviour isn’t excusable, clearly he isn’t getting the medical help he needs, but his past helps to identify with his situation. I shouldn’t feel sorry for Gerald because of his murderous fantasies but when he describes how his family treated him as a child, how his sister tried drowning him at the age of three, it’s no wonder he’s unhinged!
I don’t know. Something snapped, I guess. After five years of locking myself in my room with no one remotely concerned about that fact, and then a year and a half of being called the Crapper, I ate a kid’s face. Sometimes these things happen.
It was tough to read how Gerald is considered to be the ‘trouble child’ on the TV show, when his erratic behaviour is actually because of his nutcase of a sister provoking him behind the scenes. Tasha was probably the evilest sibling I have ever read about; constantly bullying him, taking pleasure in his pain and generally making his life hell. I wasn’t in the least bit surprised to learn that she was a psychopath because no person in their right mind would be entertained by suffocating their baby brother!
I felt older than seven.
What other seven-year-old could claim he’d escaped being murdered by his own sister at least a dozen times? What other seven-year-old could claim that when he went to school, he was seen as part movie star and part maniac?
Hannah and Gerald’s romance / friendship was unusual because they clearly have their quirks and a lot of emotional baggage. They are both dealing with issues and aren’t mentally all there, so technically shouldn’t really be in a relationship, but can’t help it. It’s not romantic in the sense that one isn’t saving the other, and they often argue because of their unique ways of dealing with problems, but I liked the truth of it. Their relationship takes a huge amount of effort but it’s obvious that Gerald and Hannah are made for each other.
She tips her head to the side and frowns at me a little. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Sure. Gym sucks, that’s all.”
“Mightily,” she says. “Indeed.”
Who else would say that? Gym sucks mightily indeed. I love her.
There are an increasing number of books on mental illness / family related issues, and Reality Boy shares a unique and interesting take on this issue. It was a leeeetle tricky to enjoy from the beginning, but once I found the story’s rhythm, it became a noteworthy read.
Notable Scene:
And the harder I cry, the more she hugs me and the softer she is. The longer I cry, the more I realize what’s happening.
I am being hugged. In ten years, I have been recognized, scrutinized, analyzed, criticized, and even terrorized by a handful of the millions of Network Nanny viewers. Never was I hugged.
FTC Advisory: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers provided me with a copy of Reality Boy. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
Quick & Dirty: The truth behind ‘reality TV.’
Opening Sentence: I’m the kid you saw on TV.
The Review:
Reality Boy explores how difficult it is to change someone’s perspective following fame from a reality TV show. Gerald is (in)famous for being the ‘crapper;’ the kid that pooped everywhere on reality TV because of his behavioural issues. As a teenager, he hasn’t been able to rid himself of that persona and has spent his life unsuccessfully trying to change his image in a town that does not forget.
“So where to, then, Ger?” Dad asks, swirling his drink with his index finger.
I don’t know what to say. I don’t want to do anything, really. I just want a chance to start over and have a real life. One that wasn’t fucked up from the beginning and broadcast on international TV like a freak show.
It took a while for this book to grow on me but eventually I started understanding the main character. I felt for Gerald because although he really does have anger management issues, most of them stemmed from being the highlight of reality TV. He is constantly struggling to stay in control and keep his anger checked but is emotionally scarred from having his privacy violated as a child. Everyone has seen the show but no one realises that it was mostly staged. They just see a kid throwing tantrums and entertaining viewers by pooping in his mum’s shoes. Viewers do not see a little boy living with a psychopath for a sister and parents that either don’t care or pretend to see anything wrong with their messed up family.
Given what he went through, it was inevitable for Gerald to be slightly ‘different.’ However, I sympathised with his character because Gerald is constantly mocked for being the crapper. It’s almost like everyone is pushing him to the edge so he becomes that angry child again and creates a scene; which is something Gerald struggles not to do every single day.
But no matter how much anger management coaching I’ve had, I know that if I had a gun, I’d shoot Nichols in the back as he walks away with his beer. I know that’s murder and I know what that means. It means I’d go to jail. And the older I get, the more I think maybe I belong in jail. There are plenty of angry guys like me in jail. It’s like, anger central. If we put together all the jails in this country and made a state out of them, we could call that state Furious.
It was odd reading about a victim of bullying that can defend himself all too easily but the only thing that prevents him from snapping is not wanting to go to jail. Gerald’s calm reflection on whether or not to kill his mum or sister was disconcerting to read but it helped to better understand him. His behaviour isn’t excusable, clearly he isn’t getting the medical help he needs, but his past helps to identify with his situation. I shouldn’t feel sorry for Gerald because of his murderous fantasies but when he describes how his family treated him as a child, how his sister tried drowning him at the age of three, it’s no wonder he’s unhinged!
I don’t know. Something snapped, I guess. After five years of locking myself in my room with no one remotely concerned about that fact, and then a year and a half of being called the Crapper, I ate a kid’s face. Sometimes these things happen.
It was tough to read how Gerald is considered to be the ‘trouble child’ on the TV show, when his erratic behaviour is actually because of his nutcase of a sister provoking him behind the scenes. Tasha was probably the evilest sibling I have ever read about; constantly bullying him, taking pleasure in his pain and generally making his life hell. I wasn’t in the least bit surprised to learn that she was a psychopath because no person in their right mind would be entertained by suffocating their baby brother!
I felt older than seven.
What other seven-year-old could claim he’d escaped being murdered by his own sister at least a dozen times? What other seven-year-old could claim that when he went to school, he was seen as part movie star and part maniac?
Hannah and Gerald’s romance / friendship was unusual because they clearly have their quirks and a lot of emotional baggage. They are both dealing with issues and aren’t mentally all there, so technically shouldn’t really be in a relationship, but can’t help it. It’s not romantic in the sense that one isn’t saving the other, and they often argue because of their unique ways of dealing with problems, but I liked the truth of it. Their relationship takes a huge amount of effort but it’s obvious that Gerald and Hannah are made for each other.
She tips her head to the side and frowns at me a little. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Sure. Gym sucks, that’s all.”
“Mightily,” she says. “Indeed.”
Who else would say that? Gym sucks mightily indeed. I love her.
There are an increasing number of books on mental illness / family related issues, and Reality Boy shares a unique and interesting take on this issue. It was a leeeetle tricky to enjoy from the beginning, but once I found the story’s rhythm, it became a noteworthy read.
Notable Scene:
And the harder I cry, the more she hugs me and the softer she is. The longer I cry, the more I realize what’s happening.
I am being hugged. In ten years, I have been recognized, scrutinized, analyzed, criticized, and even terrorized by a handful of the millions of Network Nanny viewers. Never was I hugged.
FTC Advisory: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers provided me with a copy of Reality Boy. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
January 21, 2015
I gave up on reality shows a long way back. I remember one of the first, Temptation Island and the Real World and some dating ones and John and Kate etc but I got so annoyed at how people are in front of the camera that I just roll my eyes when yet another reality shows hits the air.
So after reading Please Ignore Vera Dietz I immediately wanted to see what was next for AS King and was a little disappointed that it would be about a reality show. But something also told me that I would eventually read this and of course I did. LIke all books, this one came at a time only when I was ready. I still hate reality show but this book, the story of Gerald Faust who was splat in front of cameras at age 5, a show about Network Nanny (maybe like Supernanny?) the actress/nanny comes to your house and tries to fix the kids.
The book is told through Gerald's eyes and we see how F-d up his family is. It doesn't seem that way at first, in fact you might be turned off by Gerald because opening scene is him saying that he was the kid on that show who took a dump on the dining room table.
I am glad I stuck it out because I really came to like Gerald. I thought of him (and i hate doing this...) but I thought of him as a modern Holden Caulfield. So we learn that he has a horrible sister, Tasha and a cool one named Lisi. Lisi took off to Scotland and left her older sister and little brother and parents behind. Gerald deals with abuse from Tasha and only has his dad who sort of gets it but his mother is totally team Tasha. I won't go into that because it will give away all that Gerald learns about his family but I will say that the read was a great delight. I learned a little bit of what can possibly happen to kids who are put in front of millions and how of course what you see on tv isn't what is real.
I love coming of age stories, especially about realistic kids (this one wasn't a John Green too articulate teenager) this one was completely readable---and angry-- and you come to find out why and how not all parents are even mediocre despite them trying to do what's best with what they have.
So after reading Please Ignore Vera Dietz I immediately wanted to see what was next for AS King and was a little disappointed that it would be about a reality show. But something also told me that I would eventually read this and of course I did. LIke all books, this one came at a time only when I was ready. I still hate reality show but this book, the story of Gerald Faust who was splat in front of cameras at age 5, a show about Network Nanny (maybe like Supernanny?) the actress/nanny comes to your house and tries to fix the kids.
The book is told through Gerald's eyes and we see how F-d up his family is. It doesn't seem that way at first, in fact you might be turned off by Gerald because opening scene is him saying that he was the kid on that show who took a dump on the dining room table.
I am glad I stuck it out because I really came to like Gerald. I thought of him (and i hate doing this...) but I thought of him as a modern Holden Caulfield. So we learn that he has a horrible sister, Tasha and a cool one named Lisi. Lisi took off to Scotland and left her older sister and little brother and parents behind. Gerald deals with abuse from Tasha and only has his dad who sort of gets it but his mother is totally team Tasha. I won't go into that because it will give away all that Gerald learns about his family but I will say that the read was a great delight. I learned a little bit of what can possibly happen to kids who are put in front of millions and how of course what you see on tv isn't what is real.
I love coming of age stories, especially about realistic kids (this one wasn't a John Green too articulate teenager) this one was completely readable---and angry-- and you come to find out why and how not all parents are even mediocre despite them trying to do what's best with what they have.
March 23, 2019
“Maybe most other people are messed up, too. It just wasn't aired on TV.”
It is difficult for me to write a decent review for this book though actually there are lots of lessons to learn and realize about Reality Boy that I just can't put into words so I will just leave you a few words on how I perceived and understood the book.
Reality Boy, in my opinion, showcased the true meaning of reality in everyday-life sense. It involved showing to the world who you truly are and what really you can do and not just an individual who crap in other's favorite possession.
The book gave me the sad and unfortunate feeling of being left unnoticed and lacked of love by the parents, the family. Yet it also gave the heart-warming feeling of how a random person or persons can understand and truly care about you, not just the past-you but also of what you are right now.
Want to read
March 8, 2013I rated this even though I haven't read it because one tool rated it one star and I hate to see that. I'll be on the look out for this at ALA
April 17, 2017
If you want to see more bookish things from me, check out my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfer...
Gerald Faust has been known around town as The Crapper since he was 5 years old and a star on a reality TV show called Network Nanny. Now 17, Gerald is angry and resentful of the way the show perceived him. His sister, Tasha, is a psychopath and his mother and father do nothing but enable her. To make matters worse, the only person he trusted, his other sister, Lisi, moved to Scotland to get away from the dysfunctional family. Gerald is about to snap, until he meets Register #1 girl.
The story is told in alternating past and present perspectives, which I loved. I enjoyed the witty banter Gerald had with himself as well as Hannah. I hated how often the R-word was used in the book, but I do understand the relevance and meaning behind it. I'm not sure how I felt about Gerald and Hannah's romance... at times I really enjoyed it but at others it just seemed unhealthy. I liked the writing style and I especially loved when we got to be transported to 'Gersday'.
Gerald Faust has been known around town as The Crapper since he was 5 years old and a star on a reality TV show called Network Nanny. Now 17, Gerald is angry and resentful of the way the show perceived him. His sister, Tasha, is a psychopath and his mother and father do nothing but enable her. To make matters worse, the only person he trusted, his other sister, Lisi, moved to Scotland to get away from the dysfunctional family. Gerald is about to snap, until he meets Register #1 girl.
The story is told in alternating past and present perspectives, which I loved. I enjoyed the witty banter Gerald had with himself as well as Hannah. I hated how often the R-word was used in the book, but I do understand the relevance and meaning behind it. I'm not sure how I felt about Gerald and Hannah's romance... at times I really enjoyed it but at others it just seemed unhealthy. I liked the writing style and I especially loved when we got to be transported to 'Gersday'.
April 28, 2014
5 Gersday Strawberry stars
For a Full and edited review go to: http://booksandbree.blogspot.com/2014...
Word’s cannot describe how utterly original this book was. It was nothing like I expected, when I first read the plot I was like ehhh reality T.V and I wondered how there could be a whole book for it. But after reading it, I feel guilty for even watching reality T.V!
The story follows Gerard, he was on a Nanny show when he was 6 and it haunted him forever. The show only showed the bad parts of him, like how he crapped on everything, and completely ignored his psychotic sister and mother. After the show was done he lived in the same little town were everyone knew him as “The Crapper”.
“Can’t he see the permanent boom mike suspended in front of me? The reflectors? The spots? Can’t he see the cameramen following me around the hall? The behay-vah chart with all the black spots that I wear on my chest”
He grows up with anger issues and his mom constantly telling him that he’s retarded and not good enough. Gerard himself shows psychotic tendencies when he took a bite of a bully’s face. He basically lives in his own self-pity and injustice until he meets Heather, a cute co-worker that likes him. When she starts to get in his life he starts to rethink everything, how much he can achieve in life and that he can demand more out of life. The problem is that to escape his awful situation he would escape into “Gersday”, his own Disney fantasy, and even with Heather around he couldn’t get leave Gersday.
My favorite thing about this book was the flashbacks, every 2- 3 chapters we would have a flashback to when he was still in the show and they were filming it. This way we got to see the “Behind – The – Scenes” and his relationship with his Nanny. The supporting characters like Lisi and Circus boy Joe were fun and added to the seriousness but also coming – of-age book
This is the kind of book that you won’t want to put down, and one you’ll never forget.
TL;DR Gif
For a Full and edited review go to: http://booksandbree.blogspot.com/2014...
Word’s cannot describe how utterly original this book was. It was nothing like I expected, when I first read the plot I was like ehhh reality T.V and I wondered how there could be a whole book for it. But after reading it, I feel guilty for even watching reality T.V!
The story follows Gerard, he was on a Nanny show when he was 6 and it haunted him forever. The show only showed the bad parts of him, like how he crapped on everything, and completely ignored his psychotic sister and mother. After the show was done he lived in the same little town were everyone knew him as “The Crapper”.
“Can’t he see the permanent boom mike suspended in front of me? The reflectors? The spots? Can’t he see the cameramen following me around the hall? The behay-vah chart with all the black spots that I wear on my chest”
He grows up with anger issues and his mom constantly telling him that he’s retarded and not good enough. Gerard himself shows psychotic tendencies when he took a bite of a bully’s face. He basically lives in his own self-pity and injustice until he meets Heather, a cute co-worker that likes him. When she starts to get in his life he starts to rethink everything, how much he can achieve in life and that he can demand more out of life. The problem is that to escape his awful situation he would escape into “Gersday”, his own Disney fantasy, and even with Heather around he couldn’t get leave Gersday.
My favorite thing about this book was the flashbacks, every 2- 3 chapters we would have a flashback to when he was still in the show and they were filming it. This way we got to see the “Behind – The – Scenes” and his relationship with his Nanny. The supporting characters like Lisi and Circus boy Joe were fun and added to the seriousness but also coming – of-age book
This is the kind of book that you won’t want to put down, and one you’ll never forget.
TL;DR Gif
Shelved as 'dnf'
January 23, 2014Pages: 125
A.S. King is one of my favorite authors, and I've been eagerly anticipating Reality Boy. There's a lot of good stuff in here, like King's ability to so accurately write the opposite gender, but I'm just really not into the story line. Thus far, it's TOO depressing, I can't identify with Gerald in the slightest, I don't find poop jokes funny, and I really hate that swearing is written in punctuation marks like it's a comic strip.
Maybe I'll come back to this one some day, but I'm really not feeling it right now.
UPDATE months later because I found the perfect gif to explain why I couldn't handle this book. Dear Gerald,
A.S. King is one of my favorite authors, and I've been eagerly anticipating Reality Boy. There's a lot of good stuff in here, like King's ability to so accurately write the opposite gender, but I'm just really not into the story line. Thus far, it's TOO depressing, I can't identify with Gerald in the slightest, I don't find poop jokes funny, and I really hate that swearing is written in punctuation marks like it's a comic strip.
Maybe I'll come back to this one some day, but I'm really not feeling it right now.
UPDATE months later because I found the perfect gif to explain why I couldn't handle this book. Dear Gerald,
April 27, 2015
After thinking about it, I'd give this a 3.5! Although it was entertaining, it didn't really impress me!
July 1, 2016
I think A.S King could write a book about literally anything and it would be pretty great. Seriously, she is gifted.
February 17, 2017
4.5
Adorei esse livro! Uma das minhas melhores leituras do ano.
Só não dou 5 estrelas porque esperava que a Tasha e a mãe sofressem consequências piores por serem tão repugnantes.
Adorei esse livro! Uma das minhas melhores leituras do ano.
Só não dou 5 estrelas porque esperava que a Tasha e a mãe sofressem consequências piores por serem tão repugnantes.
June 9, 2018
✫✬⭐️ 3,4/5 STARS ⭐️✭✫
Genre: Young Adult> Contemporary > Realistic Fiction
POV: 1st-POV > 1 POV > Boy
EW: Some things felt flat
WOW: The "Reality show" part
ROMANCE: Yes
INSTA LOVE: Nope
DO I SHIP IT: Kinda
__________________
✎Review:
This was a nice read. I love the whole Reality show concept, but as myself, i don't really watch those shows. I think for the people who do, they would love it a lot more.
I also need to tell you that there is a lot of swearing, which i quite enjoy. It makes the characters a bit more personal.. that sounds crazy.. I hope you understand me hahaha.
For the romance... let me tell you this, it just reminded me a lot of the romance in the show 'The end of the f*cking world'. It's not the same or anything, but it really give me the same vibe. Which i enjoyed. But i do think that the love interest is kinda a bitch. But i don't really hate her, i just don't care that much for her. I love a friendship that is building up in here. And the relationship with parents is also good addressed.
This is more a story that you read to learn. Not a fluffy book for the romance. I liked it, and i will tell people to check it out if i think they would like it.
---------------------
♥The Characters:
In general:
I think the main-character is a smart dude. And the love interest is stupid. I do think that this is a realistic cast of characters, but still, i didn't really had a favorite.
I hate his younger sister, she can choke in her own spit.
I love his older sister, but she should be a better sister.
I hate his mom, she is just the worst. Not even worth calling mom.
I love the dad, but he's the men, go open your mouth.
I like the main character, love how his minds work. Love also the fact that he shits all over the place (i legit laughed about it. I don't know why, i always made jokes about it.)
I do not like the love interest. I don't hate her. She is just dumb.
I love his friend, he's legit a cool kid.
And that's about it.
_____________________________
❀TV-SHOW OR MOVIE?
I can see this as a Netflix movie, or maybe even a Sony Classic or something. Nothing with a big hype around it tho. It's a nice thing. I would have said tv-show, but i guess the whole romance part is already in The end of the f*cking world, and i think that thats enough :)
________________________
✗Little notes:
-Go read it if you want something completely new and fresh
-Go read it if you like Ellen Hopkins books.
-Go read it if you liked the wired romance from the end of the fucking world.
-And don't expect this book to be this life changing lesson. It's just a nice, but serious read.
_____________________________
❖REST OF THE SERIES:
-Stand -alone.
♢Could there be more books?:
Nahgg, for sure not. The story that had been told ended. There is nothing else to tell, unless you want to make it a Romance novel.
Thanks for reading, and have a awesome day!
Genre: Young Adult> Contemporary > Realistic Fiction
POV: 1st-POV > 1 POV > Boy
EW: Some things felt flat
WOW: The "Reality show" part
ROMANCE: Yes
INSTA LOVE: Nope
DO I SHIP IT: Kinda
__________________
✎Review:
This was a nice read. I love the whole Reality show concept, but as myself, i don't really watch those shows. I think for the people who do, they would love it a lot more.
I also need to tell you that there is a lot of swearing, which i quite enjoy. It makes the characters a bit more personal.. that sounds crazy.. I hope you understand me hahaha.
For the romance... let me tell you this, it just reminded me a lot of the romance in the show 'The end of the f*cking world'. It's not the same or anything, but it really give me the same vibe. Which i enjoyed. But i do think that the love interest is kinda a bitch. But i don't really hate her, i just don't care that much for her. I love a friendship that is building up in here. And the relationship with parents is also good addressed.
This is more a story that you read to learn. Not a fluffy book for the romance. I liked it, and i will tell people to check it out if i think they would like it.
---------------------
♥The Characters:
In general:
I think the main-character is a smart dude. And the love interest is stupid. I do think that this is a realistic cast of characters, but still, i didn't really had a favorite.
I hate his younger sister, she can choke in her own spit.
I love his older sister, but she should be a better sister.
I hate his mom, she is just the worst. Not even worth calling mom.
I love the dad, but he's the men, go open your mouth.
I like the main character, love how his minds work. Love also the fact that he shits all over the place (i legit laughed about it. I don't know why, i always made jokes about it.)
I do not like the love interest. I don't hate her. She is just dumb.
I love his friend, he's legit a cool kid.
And that's about it.
_____________________________
❀TV-SHOW OR MOVIE?
I can see this as a Netflix movie, or maybe even a Sony Classic or something. Nothing with a big hype around it tho. It's a nice thing. I would have said tv-show, but i guess the whole romance part is already in The end of the f*cking world, and i think that thats enough :)
________________________
✗Little notes:
-Go read it if you want something completely new and fresh
-Go read it if you like Ellen Hopkins books.
-Go read it if you liked the wired romance from the end of the fucking world.
-And don't expect this book to be this life changing lesson. It's just a nice, but serious read.
_____________________________
❖REST OF THE SERIES:
-Stand -alone.
♢Could there be more books?:
Nahgg, for sure not. The story that had been told ended. There is nothing else to tell, unless you want to make it a Romance novel.
Thanks for reading, and have a awesome day!
September 17, 2019
This was a big surprise. Based on the premise and, yes, the title and cover, I wasn't expecting much, but this book popped up in GR's recommendations and I'm glad I took a shot.
I've often thought about Jon and Kate, Honey Boo Boo, Dance Moms, etc. and generally, I think the adults get what they deserve for signing on, but those kids.... man, they didn't sign up for that. Every minute broadcasted will exist forever. Everyone in their neighborhood and school will know who they are, and it's not usually a good thing. This story imagines the life of a seventeen-year-old whose five-year-old self's good side never made it onscreen.
I loved how relatable Gerald was, with all this negativity but dealing with it the best way he can. He never spent much time figuring out where his anger comes from. All he knows is that it started the season his family starred on a nanny show, and it didn't stop after the cameramen left. Now he's in 11th grade taking special ed classes (at his mom's insistence), has zero friends, and works nights at a concession stand. He attends anger management sessions a few times a week and deals with aggression by working the heavy bag at the gym or drifting into Ger's Day - an alternate reality where he's always safe and happy, and nothing bad ever happens.
In spite of how it sounds, the way it's written never made me feel emotionally manipulated. Rather, I felt proud of him for trying hard to stay in control - even when he fell short, he still had a sense of self-awareness that it happened. Gerald's character seemed realistic, with authentic reactions and thought processes. I smiled every time I saw him progress and acknowledge his own worth.
I dunno, someone else may read this and not be wowed. For me, it struck a chord and resonated.
I've often thought about Jon and Kate, Honey Boo Boo, Dance Moms, etc. and generally, I think the adults get what they deserve for signing on, but those kids.... man, they didn't sign up for that. Every minute broadcasted will exist forever. Everyone in their neighborhood and school will know who they are, and it's not usually a good thing. This story imagines the life of a seventeen-year-old whose five-year-old self's good side never made it onscreen.
I loved how relatable Gerald was, with all this negativity but dealing with it the best way he can. He never spent much time figuring out where his anger comes from. All he knows is that it started the season his family starred on a nanny show, and it didn't stop after the cameramen left. Now he's in 11th grade taking special ed classes (at his mom's insistence), has zero friends, and works nights at a concession stand. He attends anger management sessions a few times a week and deals with aggression by working the heavy bag at the gym or drifting into Ger's Day - an alternate reality where he's always safe and happy, and nothing bad ever happens.
In spite of how it sounds, the way it's written never made me feel emotionally manipulated. Rather, I felt proud of him for trying hard to stay in control - even when he fell short, he still had a sense of self-awareness that it happened. Gerald's character seemed realistic, with authentic reactions and thought processes. I smiled every time I saw him progress and acknowledge his own worth.
I dunno, someone else may read this and not be wowed. For me, it struck a chord and resonated.
December 4, 2013
It’s getting harder and harder to write reviews of A.S. King’s books that are more than three-words long; ‘Just read it.’ ‘You’ll love it.’ ‘I loved it.’ Especially when she consistently writes provocative and disarming literature like ‘Reality Boy’.
This is a book about Gerald Faust, whose family appeared on the television series ‘Network Nanny’ when he was five-years-old upon letter-request of his mother. Their segment was a ratings-hit; camera crews captured Gerald punching walls and his older sister. They glimpsed his mother’s favouritism of eldest daughter, Tasha, and disregard for her late-in-life children Lisi and Gerald. And the cherry on top of the ratings bonanza came when Gerald started to act out by taking dumps all over the house: on the dining room table and inside his mother’s favourite shoes, on Tasha’s bed and on the top step of the staircase. Gerald became known as ‘The Crapper’.
What the cameras didn’t capture was the truth about the bony-beautiful actress hired to play ‘The Nanny’, the numerous re-takes of scenes depicting a ‘happy’ and ‘fixed’ family for the episode to conclude with and the real reason Gerald acted out with violence and Lisi hid away in her room; Tasha. Tasha, their oldest sister, who had been tormenting them for years. Tasha, their mother’s first and favourite. Tasha, who their father can merely roll his eyes at. Tasha, who hurts them when nobody is looking.
Now aged seventeen, Gerald is still known in certain circles (and thanks to YouTube) as ‘The Crapper’. Lisi graduated from high school and got into college … in Scotland, far away from their gated community and psychopath sister. Tasha, meanwhile, dropped out of college and is currently living in the basement of their McMansion where she has deliberately loud, floorboard-shaking sex with her dropkick boyfriend. Gerald has an anger-management coach (assigned to him after an incident involving eating the face of a classmate … it’s a long story). He’s in SPED (special education) class at school and has made a family of his fellow misfits. He works at the PEC centre food stand, serving hockey fans and music-lovers and pining for fellow loner girl on register #1.
“I’m not famous. I’m infamous,” I say. “There’s a big difference.”
‘Reality Boy’ drifts between flashbacked filming snapshots of the ‘Network Nanny’ episode that failed to fix the Faust family but had damning repercussions on Gerald. Gerald is remembering those days in the weeks before his 17th birthday – when he starts truly pining for register #1 girl (despite his anger management coach warning him off dating) and as tensions with Tasha start to reach a boiling point. Not helping matters is the fact that his beloved sister, Lisi, left for Scotland three months ago and hasn’t been in touch since. And Gerald keeps casting his mind back to long-buried memories of what Tasha did to him and Lisi when they were too young to fight back…
I don’t think I’m too dangerous to date anymore. I mean, I know Roger thinks girls are infuriating and that I shouldn’t be opening myself up to that shit, but she’s cute. She’s funny. We’re both weird. She’s weird because she writes in that little book. I’m weird because I used to crap on stuff. And because I wear war paint to school. And because I ate part of some kid’s face once when I was thirteen.
I read A.S. King’s ‘Reality Boy’ shortly after stumbling across a BBC article about violent sibling bullying titled; ‘I wished I hadn’t been born.’ At the time I thought that was a harrowing read – but I had no idea the depths of this violence and its repercussions until I delved into Gerald’s world in ‘Reality Boy’.
Gerlad is himself a violent young man – there are incidents from his past, and he has an anger-management coach. He’s aware of his “triggers” and he sometimes fantasizes about succumbing to his impulses. He’s tightly-wound and wounded, a little bit frightening for his intensity and the heartbreaking history that made him. But he’s one of the best male protagonists I’ve read in a long, long time and I’m not the least bit surprised that he’s the imagining of A.S. King – one of the best young adult writers around today and an absolute humanist when it comes to portraying grey-hued, ‘broken’ characters.
At a time when news of king-hitting, wild and aggressive young men dominate the newsfeed – A.S. King presents Gerald who, at first glance, is just like any number of other angry young men. And, indeed, I’m sure a slew of viewers who tuned into ‘Network Nanny’ thought they had him all figured out as a no-hoper, juvenile delinquent when they watched the Faust family episode. But that’s not the real Gerald. The truth is far more complex and unconventional than could be translated to primetime television – Gerald is in fact a young man who no one has ever listened to. But when we meet him he’s just starting to realise that he has demands; he wants to be heard, he wants to be treated a certain way and he has every right to demand such things.
This was a central discussion of the book – demand. It got me thinking at what age children start to realise that they can have expectations for themselves and others? They can certainly demand a better life, and to be treated with care and deserve love. What happens to children who aren’t raised knowing that they should expect certain kindnesses and protection? What happens to those kids?
Maybe most other people are messed up, too. It just wasn’t aired on TV or, you know, aired on Tom What’s-His-Name’s face.
I love A.S. King. In one book she subtly and deftly raises questions around fame-hunger in society, quick-fix psychology, bullying, societal misperceptions and family dysfunction all in a brutal and compelling coming-of-age book that’s unlike anything being tackled in the YA readership today. She’s in a league all of her own and whenever somebody says; “YA isn’t for me” I just wish I could hand them an A.S. King novel and then walk away. Because, damn, what A.S. King writes can hardly be relegated only to the YA readership – she writes heartbreakingly flawed and complex human characters for everyone.
This is a book about Gerald Faust, whose family appeared on the television series ‘Network Nanny’ when he was five-years-old upon letter-request of his mother. Their segment was a ratings-hit; camera crews captured Gerald punching walls and his older sister. They glimpsed his mother’s favouritism of eldest daughter, Tasha, and disregard for her late-in-life children Lisi and Gerald. And the cherry on top of the ratings bonanza came when Gerald started to act out by taking dumps all over the house: on the dining room table and inside his mother’s favourite shoes, on Tasha’s bed and on the top step of the staircase. Gerald became known as ‘The Crapper’.
What the cameras didn’t capture was the truth about the bony-beautiful actress hired to play ‘The Nanny’, the numerous re-takes of scenes depicting a ‘happy’ and ‘fixed’ family for the episode to conclude with and the real reason Gerald acted out with violence and Lisi hid away in her room; Tasha. Tasha, their oldest sister, who had been tormenting them for years. Tasha, their mother’s first and favourite. Tasha, who their father can merely roll his eyes at. Tasha, who hurts them when nobody is looking.
Now aged seventeen, Gerald is still known in certain circles (and thanks to YouTube) as ‘The Crapper’. Lisi graduated from high school and got into college … in Scotland, far away from their gated community and psychopath sister. Tasha, meanwhile, dropped out of college and is currently living in the basement of their McMansion where she has deliberately loud, floorboard-shaking sex with her dropkick boyfriend. Gerald has an anger-management coach (assigned to him after an incident involving eating the face of a classmate … it’s a long story). He’s in SPED (special education) class at school and has made a family of his fellow misfits. He works at the PEC centre food stand, serving hockey fans and music-lovers and pining for fellow loner girl on register #1.
“I’m not famous. I’m infamous,” I say. “There’s a big difference.”
‘Reality Boy’ drifts between flashbacked filming snapshots of the ‘Network Nanny’ episode that failed to fix the Faust family but had damning repercussions on Gerald. Gerald is remembering those days in the weeks before his 17th birthday – when he starts truly pining for register #1 girl (despite his anger management coach warning him off dating) and as tensions with Tasha start to reach a boiling point. Not helping matters is the fact that his beloved sister, Lisi, left for Scotland three months ago and hasn’t been in touch since. And Gerald keeps casting his mind back to long-buried memories of what Tasha did to him and Lisi when they were too young to fight back…
I don’t think I’m too dangerous to date anymore. I mean, I know Roger thinks girls are infuriating and that I shouldn’t be opening myself up to that shit, but she’s cute. She’s funny. We’re both weird. She’s weird because she writes in that little book. I’m weird because I used to crap on stuff. And because I wear war paint to school. And because I ate part of some kid’s face once when I was thirteen.
I read A.S. King’s ‘Reality Boy’ shortly after stumbling across a BBC article about violent sibling bullying titled; ‘I wished I hadn’t been born.’ At the time I thought that was a harrowing read – but I had no idea the depths of this violence and its repercussions until I delved into Gerald’s world in ‘Reality Boy’.
Gerlad is himself a violent young man – there are incidents from his past, and he has an anger-management coach. He’s aware of his “triggers” and he sometimes fantasizes about succumbing to his impulses. He’s tightly-wound and wounded, a little bit frightening for his intensity and the heartbreaking history that made him. But he’s one of the best male protagonists I’ve read in a long, long time and I’m not the least bit surprised that he’s the imagining of A.S. King – one of the best young adult writers around today and an absolute humanist when it comes to portraying grey-hued, ‘broken’ characters.
At a time when news of king-hitting, wild and aggressive young men dominate the newsfeed – A.S. King presents Gerald who, at first glance, is just like any number of other angry young men. And, indeed, I’m sure a slew of viewers who tuned into ‘Network Nanny’ thought they had him all figured out as a no-hoper, juvenile delinquent when they watched the Faust family episode. But that’s not the real Gerald. The truth is far more complex and unconventional than could be translated to primetime television – Gerald is in fact a young man who no one has ever listened to. But when we meet him he’s just starting to realise that he has demands; he wants to be heard, he wants to be treated a certain way and he has every right to demand such things.
This was a central discussion of the book – demand. It got me thinking at what age children start to realise that they can have expectations for themselves and others? They can certainly demand a better life, and to be treated with care and deserve love. What happens to children who aren’t raised knowing that they should expect certain kindnesses and protection? What happens to those kids?
Maybe most other people are messed up, too. It just wasn’t aired on TV or, you know, aired on Tom What’s-His-Name’s face.
I love A.S. King. In one book she subtly and deftly raises questions around fame-hunger in society, quick-fix psychology, bullying, societal misperceptions and family dysfunction all in a brutal and compelling coming-of-age book that’s unlike anything being tackled in the YA readership today. She’s in a league all of her own and whenever somebody says; “YA isn’t for me” I just wish I could hand them an A.S. King novel and then walk away. Because, damn, what A.S. King writes can hardly be relegated only to the YA readership – she writes heartbreakingly flawed and complex human characters for everyone.
July 3, 2013
This was hands down the most compelling galley I brought home with me from ALA – the story of a kid who is dogged through adolescence by his childhood “participation” in a (fake) reality TV show not unlike Supernanny. Gerald is the “Crapper,” who defecated on tables, in handbags, and various Barbie accessories when he was a preschooler/elementary schooler. The British nanny (who isn’t who she seems) is brought to help Gerald & his two sisters when his mother writes a desperate letter to the show. Gerald’s dad is just as unhappy as the rest of them, and the whole family is miserable. We see Gerald’s mother struggle with a son she considers “retarded,” a younger sister who feels completely out of place, and an older sister whose behavior grows more and more erratic and disturbing with time.
We join Gerald long after the cameras were packed away and the lighting dismantled, but the show haunts him at every turn. His therapist has recommended boxing, but this is only encouraging Gerald’s violent tendencies. He’s invented a fantasy world called Gersday, where he can spend time doing only the nicest things with characters who are kind and sweet to him, but escaping to Gersday is getting harder and harder. As if that wasn’t enough, Gerald has met a compelling young lady at his afterschool job slinging hot dogs at the local coliseum. He figures that nobody’s going to want to date The Crapper – who’d want to be associated with that?
Through flashbacks mixed with present-day scenes, Gerald invites us into his world and shows us what it’s like to drown in the misconceptions of others. And honestly, that’s really what this book is about – the hidden stories behind carefully crafted narratives, public personas vs. private ones, and what happens when your expectations are shattered by a reality you didn’t want and didn’t ask for. Like Gerald’s therapist reminds him, we all project our own experiences and expectations on other people to a certain extent – whether it’s making assumptions about a reality TV show family or the new coworker in the next cube. As Gerald peels back the curtain on his experience, the reader starts discovering more and more of the truth behind the screen – and it’s both more and less shocking than you may expect. This is a a book right in step with our times, perfect for an age in which we grow closer and simultaneously further apart using screens and social media with the ability to edit our stories down to a version of the truth that skims the surface of our lives like a fancy veneer atop particle board furniture.
I anticipate many reality TV memoirs in the next ten years, as kids like the Duggars, Gosselins, SuperNanny families, and others age up to the point where they feel compelled to share their stories in another medium. Some will do it for money, sure, but others will do it so that people can hear more about what their shows didn’t show. I won’t be surprised if their stories are as compelling as Gerald’s.
We join Gerald long after the cameras were packed away and the lighting dismantled, but the show haunts him at every turn. His therapist has recommended boxing, but this is only encouraging Gerald’s violent tendencies. He’s invented a fantasy world called Gersday, where he can spend time doing only the nicest things with characters who are kind and sweet to him, but escaping to Gersday is getting harder and harder. As if that wasn’t enough, Gerald has met a compelling young lady at his afterschool job slinging hot dogs at the local coliseum. He figures that nobody’s going to want to date The Crapper – who’d want to be associated with that?
Through flashbacks mixed with present-day scenes, Gerald invites us into his world and shows us what it’s like to drown in the misconceptions of others. And honestly, that’s really what this book is about – the hidden stories behind carefully crafted narratives, public personas vs. private ones, and what happens when your expectations are shattered by a reality you didn’t want and didn’t ask for. Like Gerald’s therapist reminds him, we all project our own experiences and expectations on other people to a certain extent – whether it’s making assumptions about a reality TV show family or the new coworker in the next cube. As Gerald peels back the curtain on his experience, the reader starts discovering more and more of the truth behind the screen – and it’s both more and less shocking than you may expect. This is a a book right in step with our times, perfect for an age in which we grow closer and simultaneously further apart using screens and social media with the ability to edit our stories down to a version of the truth that skims the surface of our lives like a fancy veneer atop particle board furniture.
I anticipate many reality TV memoirs in the next ten years, as kids like the Duggars, Gosselins, SuperNanny families, and others age up to the point where they feel compelled to share their stories in another medium. Some will do it for money, sure, but others will do it so that people can hear more about what their shows didn’t show. I won’t be surprised if their stories are as compelling as Gerald’s.
October 14, 2013
Sixteen year old Gerald Faust has grown up with the social stigma of having been featured on a reality TV show when he was a 5 year old child. Network Nanny, a show similar to Supernanny, swooped in to try to “fix” the problem children but failed to address the real problems, a violent psychotic sister and an emotionally detached mother leaving a very resentful 5 year old who acted out in the only way he knew how. His outrageous behavior made him somewhat of a local celebrity, although Gerald didn’t see this as something to have been proud of. The combination of his embarrassment about those things shown on Network Nanny and his anger, hurt, and resentment about what he has to deal with in his crazy dysfunctional home has made Gerald an extremely volatile kid. The coping skills he has acquired, some on his own and some through his Anger Management sessions, keeps his violent outbursts in check but also makes him very socially awkward.
The first thing I have to praise about Reality Boy was the authenticity of the characters. The author goes to some dark places and pokes and prods so that the reader can understand the feeling and motivation behind each of her characters actions. I felt for Gerald and spent most of the book furious with his negligent parents, reality TV, and a world where things like this go unnoticed or unremarked upon. Gerald’s inner dialog, while sometimes extremely odd, allowed me to connect with him and understand his inner turmoil, his self-doubt, and his rage.
The romance was understated and thankfully not the focal point of the book. It felt genuine and I enjoyed Hannah almost as much as I liked Gerald. Hannah had her own emotional baggage which seemed to sometimes clash with Gerald’s and at other times, be a perfect fit. I loved how quirky they both were and how these quirks seemed to forge a bond between them. It was very nicely done.
There isn’t much negative to say about Reality Boy. I enjoyed reading this much more than I was expecting to having never read anything by this author previously. The only flaws I can think of may be that some parts tended to be a bit repetitive and the story maybe lagged a bit here and there. However, these issues are minor compared to how fascinating and original I found this story to be. I was completely drawn in and invested in Gerald’s story.
I would absolutely recommend Reality Boy to fans of contemporary YA. This book has heart, spirit, and originality. I look forward to reading more of this author’s books!
Rating: 4.5
The first thing I have to praise about Reality Boy was the authenticity of the characters. The author goes to some dark places and pokes and prods so that the reader can understand the feeling and motivation behind each of her characters actions. I felt for Gerald and spent most of the book furious with his negligent parents, reality TV, and a world where things like this go unnoticed or unremarked upon. Gerald’s inner dialog, while sometimes extremely odd, allowed me to connect with him and understand his inner turmoil, his self-doubt, and his rage.
The romance was understated and thankfully not the focal point of the book. It felt genuine and I enjoyed Hannah almost as much as I liked Gerald. Hannah had her own emotional baggage which seemed to sometimes clash with Gerald’s and at other times, be a perfect fit. I loved how quirky they both were and how these quirks seemed to forge a bond between them. It was very nicely done.
There isn’t much negative to say about Reality Boy. I enjoyed reading this much more than I was expecting to having never read anything by this author previously. The only flaws I can think of may be that some parts tended to be a bit repetitive and the story maybe lagged a bit here and there. However, these issues are minor compared to how fascinating and original I found this story to be. I was completely drawn in and invested in Gerald’s story.
I would absolutely recommend Reality Boy to fans of contemporary YA. This book has heart, spirit, and originality. I look forward to reading more of this author’s books!
Rating: 4.5
September 9, 2013
For a book about poop, this one has a lot of heart.
Gerald Faust is hopelessly unpopular at school, but not for the usual reasons. Yes, he's in SPED, but that's a non-issue here: the big problem is his reputation as The Crapper. Eleven years ago, Gerald debuted on Network Nanny, a reality show not unlike a certain ABC production you might recall from recent history. America saw Gerald throw tantrums, punch walls, and take a shit on the dining room table.
But what viewers didn't see was a saga too complicated and intricate for reality TV, in which Gerald's older, psychopathic sister Tasha would abuse him mentally and physically, and his parents would do nothing to protect him. They didn't see all of Gerald's positive behavior, they only saw what directors chose to show them.
And so Gerald became The Crapper.
The violent, disillusioned, trapped little Crapper.
Until his 17th birthday, when he decides to take action.
Overall, this was a quick and enjoyable read. Though I knew from the get-go that this book would have a lot of poop talk, it still caught me off guard, just a smidge. Also, I'm not a fan of the, "Your love is the only thing that keeps me from murdering people" trope, especially for a teenage audience; that kind of dependency can fuck you up, (wo)man.
But still, I will happily recommend this to my customers, especially those seeking less sparkle-vampire magic and more... "reality."
(Pun always intended.)
Buy this title from Powell's Books.
Gerald Faust is hopelessly unpopular at school, but not for the usual reasons. Yes, he's in SPED, but that's a non-issue here: the big problem is his reputation as The Crapper. Eleven years ago, Gerald debuted on Network Nanny, a reality show not unlike a certain ABC production you might recall from recent history. America saw Gerald throw tantrums, punch walls, and take a shit on the dining room table.
But what viewers didn't see was a saga too complicated and intricate for reality TV, in which Gerald's older, psychopathic sister Tasha would abuse him mentally and physically, and his parents would do nothing to protect him. They didn't see all of Gerald's positive behavior, they only saw what directors chose to show them.
And so Gerald became The Crapper.
The violent, disillusioned, trapped little Crapper.
Until his 17th birthday, when he decides to take action.
Overall, this was a quick and enjoyable read. Though I knew from the get-go that this book would have a lot of poop talk, it still caught me off guard, just a smidge. Also, I'm not a fan of the, "Your love is the only thing that keeps me from murdering people" trope, especially for a teenage audience; that kind of dependency can fuck you up, (wo)man.
But still, I will happily recommend this to my customers, especially those seeking less sparkle-vampire magic and more... "reality."
(Pun always intended.)
Buy this title from Powell's Books.
October 26, 2013
Released earlier this week, REALITY BOY is being marketed as a contemporary YA/Adult crossover. Contemporary Young Adult means no magic, futuristic technology, or running for your life. Typically these novels move at a slower pace and center around buzz topics such as abuse, suicide, disability, sexual orientation, or terminal illness. (Usually with a side of romance/sexual coming-of-age.)
The term "crossover" means they're expecting the adults to enjoy this as much as teens, but in this case, it seems they're also using it as a license to fill this children's book with adult content. Although I only made it through the first third of the book, the stats I collected so far should give you an idea of whether you want to buy it for your teen.
Language - Extreme
Sexuality - Heavy
Violence - Heavy
Adult Themes - Numerous
For those that don't mind the coarse content (or lack of external plot), you'll probably fall in love with the characters. A.S. King writes well and with compassion. It's an important book as far as addressing mental disability and the necessary role of parents. I just wish she could have done it with a few less F-words.
Reality Boy gets an (R) rating (bordering on NC-17) for content.
Two stars.
(A copy of this book was given to me by the publisher in exchange for a review.)
See blog for specific content review:
http://storysurgeongeneral.blogspot.c...
The term "crossover" means they're expecting the adults to enjoy this as much as teens, but in this case, it seems they're also using it as a license to fill this children's book with adult content. Although I only made it through the first third of the book, the stats I collected so far should give you an idea of whether you want to buy it for your teen.
Language - Extreme
Sexuality - Heavy
Violence - Heavy
Adult Themes - Numerous
For those that don't mind the coarse content (or lack of external plot), you'll probably fall in love with the characters. A.S. King writes well and with compassion. It's an important book as far as addressing mental disability and the necessary role of parents. I just wish she could have done it with a few less F-words.
Reality Boy gets an (R) rating (bordering on NC-17) for content.
Two stars.
(A copy of this book was given to me by the publisher in exchange for a review.)
See blog for specific content review:
http://storysurgeongeneral.blogspot.c...
November 4, 2013
How do you review a book that completely knocked the breath out of you?
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