Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit

Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jayne Robin Brown is yet another LGBT-focused book that my favorite author Kittredge Cherry called to my attention. In this case, Cherry specifically asked me to evaluate this book for possible inclusion in her catalog of material relating matters of sexuality and spirituality posted on her Jesus in Love Blogspot. I do not hesitate to give this YA novel a strong thumbs up.

The protagonist-narrator, Jo (Joanna) self-identifies as lesbian. Her father, who runs a radio ministry called Wings of Love, has been accepting of her sexuality until he falls in love with and marries Elizabeth, daughter of a VERY homophobic, religiously fundamentalist mother living in Rome, GA. When he moves his ministry to Rome, he decides that Jo should go back in the closet until such time as she graduates from high school the following summer, meanwhile trying to fit heterosexual norms in a new school. It seems he fears that his daughters flamboyance will cause hassles with the in-laws as well as impair his effectiveness with his new radio clientele. He holds out the carrot of letting his daughter have a slot in his radio ministry for a youth-oriented program called Keep it Real in which she can explore subjects relating sexuality and spirituality for the NOW generationas long as she doesnt go off the deep end. Reluctantly, Jo agrees to this bargain; unfortunately, she falls in love with Mary Carlson, who is trying to come out herself. Needless to say this leads to the main crisis of the story how to honor her promise to her father without lying to her new love.

Browns novel is well crafted. As she says in her Authors Note, she wanted this novel to be something a young queer person of faith could hold on to as a bright spot while they navigate the waters of finding themselves. I believe she accomplishes this goal very effectively.

The characterizations are vividly drawn and very real. Especially delightful is the depiction of Mary Carlsons twin, B.T.B (Barnum Thomas Bailey), a boy on the spectrum who is obsessed with elephants, and who becomes pivotal to the story. Since I myself spent nearly 40 years involved with the LGBT community of Atlanta, and had occasions to learn about the ultra-conservatism of the nearby city of Rome, I found the authors depictions of the ambience of the two locales completely accurate ant thoroughly delightful.

Obviously, this book describes a totally different milieu than existed when I moved to that city in 1978, and it is profoundly encouraging to be reminded how different things are now than they were then, when a story such as this could never have been even imagined. Yes, things ARE getting better and profoundly changing; inclusive and affirming ministries such as the one Jo and her friends participate in are reality now. In addition, stories such as this which incorporate gay coming-of-age narratives right along with straight ones are a true gift, and deserve all the accolades they can get.

Im a youth leader at a progressive, metropolitan Methodist church, and while our Youth Ministry doesnt shy away from being upfront about our values and accepting all, I grew up in the South, and this story feels so familiar. I read a lot of YA, often looking for good books to share with my youth. I also happen to be gay, and a person of faith, and know all too well what it means to feel that you have to choose one or
the other. This is a great book to discuss with high school youth, and a great story about the power of faith communities in supporting queer youth. Often we read stories about how people of faith harm queer youth, but not enough about what faith communities can do to help children come out and believe in themselves. We need more stories like this! The only caution I would say regarding this book is, I wasnt too keen on the infantilizing of the central disabled character; although, in many ways, I could see that the author didnt want to delve too far into the disability conversation when the central point was queerness and faith. As a writer, I argue that if youre going to add a character of a marginalized group, you have to follow through, rather than just throw in a shade of color for diversity points. Same goes for the students of color in the story. I would have loved more on their struggles as marginalized folks in predominantly white Christian spaces. While it needs to be critiqued, the books not great depiction of disability and the illustrated everyday ableism is good fodder for discussion on supporting differently abled peers that would be good for church youth. I definitely recommend this book for youth ministry leaders!

This ambitious YA novel tackles more than just being a gay teen. The author writes about small town prejudices, Christian morality, teen sexuality, blended families, friendship, being gay AND a person of faith, and being true to yourself. That is quite a load and a bit much for one book. I think the main point is about how LGBTQ people struggle to find a religion or faith that is not damming. Nonetheless, there is a lot to think about in this book.

The story is about high school senior Jo Gordon. She is gay and has been out for years. She lives with her evangelical radio preacher father in Atlanta. He is supportive and loving. He marries a younger woman from small town Rome, Georgia. Rome is filled with potentially small-minded people. The Gordons move to Rome at the start of Jos senior year. Her parents ask her to go back in the closet, fearing the towns reaction to a gay teen but especially fearing the reaction of her new step-grandmother. They also fear that being out will make life hard for Jo. She reluctantly agrees, but strikes a bargain with her dad. Jo has longed to have her own evangelical radio show aimed at teens, their real concerns, as well as sexuality and inclusion. Or as Jos tagline succinctly states: Keep it real and keep it kind. Her father agrees, but on condition that she keep things watered down at first.

Jo starts out the year with good intentions, including a cute girl make-over. She is accepted pretty quickly by the students, especially those in a youth fellowship group at her church. Life is initially both uncomfortable and easy. The real trouble starts when she beings to have serious feelings for a popular girl, who may be gay herself. Jo follows her heart and things go very badly. She is being anything but real and ends up telling layers of lies to her friends. The truth comes out, also in a bad way, making the situation even worse. Jo realizes that her father asked her to do something both impossible and cruel, which makes her question his acceptance of her. But there is a happy ending for all.

This is a captivating story and an interesting twist on LGBTQ literature for teens. Jo is a likable and accessible narrator. I agree with the publisher that this book is for 9th grade and up. If you are an adult buying this for a teen, there is sex, which I would consider at about at PG level. Even for a middle aged hetero lady, there were some steamy scenes! On the minus side, there were some stereotyped characters and the ending was way too tied in a bow tidy. I suspect the author wanted a hopeful ending, but teens may find it unrealistic. Still, this was an enjoyable novel on important topics.

This is a really sweet YA novel. I really love Jo as a protagonist; she’s very strong willed, and I find her very relatable as a character. Her relationship with Mary Carlson is wonderful, though I feel like a lot of their problems would have been solved a lot quicker if Jo had just been more honest in the beginning.

A nice read and interesting reflection on sexuality and faith. Even though I consider myself non religious and question Christianity, the characters were sweet and genuine. Maybe Im a bit old for reading YA novels, but the content was right for a young audience and its a good new tale on a queer story about hiding your sexuality despite already being out.

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