Boy Toy by Barry Lyga

Lyga, Barry. Boy Toy.
Houghton Mifflin. 2007.
ISBN-13: 9780547076348.
$8.99. Paperback. 409 pages.

Readers Annotation 
18-year-old Josh remembers his first sexual experience with Eve. The problem is that he was 12 and she was his teacher.

Plot
When Josh Mendel was 12 years old his life changed radically. Sexually abused by is history teacher, Evelyn (Eve) Sherman, Josh has spent the last five years avoiding contact with everyone except his best friend, Zik. Faced with the impending release of Eve from prison, Josh experiences post-traumatic flash backs of his time with his abuser. Now a high school senior, Josh is preparing for college, the biggest baseball game of the season, and the prom. Yet he can’t help recalling his first sexual encounters as he begins a tentative relationship with Rachel, who was once a good friend. Rachel won’t take no for an answer in her pursuit a reconciliation with Josh. However, Josh’s fear of reprisals and loss of control cause him to reconsider his past and present. There is much that Josh doesn’t understand about his time with Eve. Josh’s parents try to be supportive, but with their own relationship crumbling they cannot see that he needs their help. Josh feels that the entire town knows what happened to him, and they judge him for his actions. It is through his relationships with Zik and Rachel that Josh gains the courage to find Eve and confront her about her actions.

Critical Evaluation
The author, Barry Lyga, portraits the characters in this book honestly. Josh’s life changed forever after his encounters with Eve. His anger issues, and his PTSD symptoms are true for a young person who has been sexually abused. The moments of sexual pleasure are honest and straightforward, but not erotic. Lyga doesn’t pull punches in dealing with such controversial material. However, I found it difficult to believe that a young man who has been in continuing therapy for five years would not have attempted to make amends to his friend Rachel earlier. I thought that his paranoia was overplayed until Josh reveals what his baseball coach said to him. Even five years later, Josh is a powder keg waiting to explode when confronted with this part of his past. Josh’s need to escape the town he has lived in for years is exemplified in his desire to go to a college far away where he won’t be known by anyone. All of the situations Josh’s find’s himself in – choosing a college, quitting baseball, developing a healthy relationship all seem to depend on escaping home. The final chapters regarding his final confrontation with Eve are difficult to believe. Most abuse victims do not seek out their abusers, nor do they believe that they were the instigator of the crime after 5 years of therapy. I found it difficult to believe that no one ever told Josh (especially his therapist) that he was not at fault. This novel deals with heavy issues and is controversial because of it. This book won “The Cybils Award” in 2007.

Information about the author
There is little biographic data about Lyga. Wikipedia notes that he was born on September 11, 1971, and currently lives in the Southwest. You can find a little more information about him on his website at http://barrylyga.com/new/about.html. He also has a blog at http://barrylyga.com/new/671.html. You can also follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/barrylyga.

Genre
Narrative fiction, contemporary issues

Curriculum ties 
None

Challenge Issues
Sexuality, sexual abuse, violence

Challenge defense ideas
· Become familiar with the book and its content.
· Refer to the collection development policy of the library.
· Refer to reviews from Booklist, School Library Journal, and Publisher’s Weekly available for viewing on amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0064471764/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books
· Try to get reviews of the book from teens that have read it.

Booktalking Ideas
1.  Discuss how Josh is really good at math and baseball, but has trouble with relationships.
2.  Talk about how Josh blames himself for what happened with Eve and Rachel.

Reading Level/Age
Young adult. 16+.

Why I included this title
I heard many good things about this book and felt that I should read it.