Read this book.' - Chris Crutcher, author of Deadline, Whale Talk, and Period 8'Konigsberg's lovely novel invites us to walk with Rafe through his season of assumed identity and his costly emergence into honesty. Openly Straight is smart, funny, and unflinching. Praise for Openly Straight:Winner of the Sid Fleischman Award for HumorYALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults SelectionLambda Literary Award Finalist'Funny, unexpected, peppered with terrific dialogue - and best of all, achingly honest.' - Ned Vizzini, author of It's Kind of a Funny Story and House of Secrets'For anybody who ever wished they could be someone else (and who hasn't?), Openly Straight provides a fun and intriguing, twisting-and-turning romp through sexuality, identity, friendship, and love.' - Alex Sanchez, author of Rainbow Boys and Boyfriends with Girlfriends'Bill Konigsberg hands a great high concept to a really compelling narrator and presents us with a terrific read. who doesn't even know that love is possible. And most of all, he falls in love with Ben. He meets a teacher who challenges him to write his story. But then he sees a classmate breaking down. To have it be a part of who he is, but not the headline, every single time.So when he transfers to an all-boys' boarding school in New England, he decides to keep his sexuality a secret - not so much going back in the closet as starting over with a clean slate. And while that's important, all Rafe really wants is to just be a regular guy. He's been out since 8th grade, and he isn't teased, and he goes to other high schools and talks about tolerance and stuff.

He likes to write.And, oh yeah, he's gay. Pre-order the companion novel Honestly Ben now (out 3/28/17)!Rafe is a normal teenager from Boulder, Colorado. The award-winning novel about being out, being proud, and being ready for something else.

Openly straight book review