Homophobia

The experience of gay teens in the novel is used by the author to show how dangerous homophobia can be to the mental health of young LGBTQ people. Yami, Cesar, Bo, and Jamal are all gay teenagers, and they each have different experiences navigating their identities in a homophobic world. What holds true for all of them, though, is that homophobia acts as an antagonistic force in their lives.

Bo and Jamal are the love interests in the novel, and they both have opposite experiences as queer teens, but they both experience homophobia that is detrimental to their well-being. Bo is adopted by two loving parents who support her full-heartedly. Even when her conservative Catholic school attempts to make her feel shame about being a lesbian, her lawyer mother and loyal father support her and refuse to let anyone push her around. However, they cannot stop...