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Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom

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Lucas and Tessa have always had a close friendship. So it's no surprise when Lucas finally realizes his true feeling for Tessa and he asks her to Prom. What no one expected, especially Lucas, was for Tessa to come out as a lesbian-or for Tessa's decision to wear a tuxedo and escort her female crush to Prom, to spark a firestorm of controversy. Humiliated and confused, Lucas must decide if he should stand on the sidelines or if he should stand by his friend to make sure that Tessa Masterson will go to Prom.

257 pages, Paperback

First published March 27, 2012

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About the author

Emily Franklin

35 books109 followers
Growing up, Emily Franklin wanted to be “a singing, tap-dancing doctor who writes books.”

Having learned early on that she has little to no dancing ability, she left the tap world behind, studied at Oxford University, and received an undergraduate degree concentrating in writing and neuroscience from Sarah Lawrence College. Though she gave serious thought to a career in medicine, eventually that career followed her dancing dreams.

After extensive travel, some “character-building” relationships, and a stint as a chef, Emily went back to school at Dartmouth where she skied (or fished, depending on the season) daily, wrote a few screenplays, and earned her Master’s Degree in writing and media studies.

While editing medical texts and dreaming about writing a novel, Emily went to Martha’s Vineyard on a whim and met her future husband who is, of course, a doctor. And a pianist. He plays. They sing. They get married. He finishes medical school, they have a child, she writes a novel. Emily’s dreams are realized. She writes books.

Emily Franklin is the author of two adult novels, The Girls' Almanac and Liner Notes and more than a dozen books for young adults including the critically-acclaimed seven book fiction series for teens, The Principles of Love. Other young adult books include The Other Half of Me the Chalet Girls series, and At Face Value, a retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac (coming in September 2008).

She edited the anthologies It's a Wonderful Lie: 26 Truths about Life in Your Twenties and How to Spell Chanukah: 18 Writers Celebrate 8 Nights of Lights. She is co-editor of Before: Short Stories about Pregnancy from Our Top Writers.

Her book of essays and recipes, Too Many Cooks: Kitchen Adventures with 1 Mom, 4 Kids, 102 New Recipes ~ A Memoir of Tasting, Testing, and Discovery in the Kitchen will be published by Hyperion.

Emily’s work has appeared in The Boston Globe and the Mississippi Review as well as in many anthologies including Don't You Forget About Me: Contemporary Writers on the Films of John Hughes, When I Was a Loser: True Stories of (Barely) Surviving High School by Today's Top Writers, and Because I Love Her: 34 Women Writers on the Mother-Daughter Bond. Emily writes regularly about food and parenting for national magazines and newspapers. She travels, teaches writing seminars, and speaks on panels, but does not tap dance. Emily Franklin lives outside of Boston with her husband and their four young children.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 168 reviews
Profile Image for Brendan.
Author 21 books172 followers
January 6, 2012
Yeah, I gave it five stars. Because it's awesome. So what if I wrote it? Okay, half of it. Anyway, I'm really proud of this one. It's about friendship and forgiveness and courage and prom. Read it, and buy several hundred copies for your nearest and dearest.
Profile Image for Lo.
171 reviews58 followers
August 20, 2013
It's not that I have a problem with LGBTQ folk, but I do with the book.

I started dog-earing "areas of concern" near the middle of the book. I ended up picking almost every single page. These points stood out the most to me:

1. Tessa's stereotypical lesbian style
2. Lucas's huge "typical guy" ego


I have no problem reading stories about religious small-towns. One I particularly liked was Small Town Sinners by Melissa C. Walker, which I realize now wasn't as up close as this one was, but either way you should check it out if you like this type of book.

Point 1:
I'm not sure if Emily Franklin, who I'm guessing is the author who wrote Tessa's part, has ever encountered a lesbian, or if she encountered more than one. On page 31 Tessa says,"Everyone overlooks all the signs, but here's the sign. Me. Not dating boys. Me, in jeans and a tank top. It's sort of who I am."
Just because you're a lesbian doesn't mean you are automatically uninterested in anything considered "girly." I'm actually the same as Tessa--the uncaring style, the not dating, but I'm straight. Plus, there are a lot of lesbians who are "girly" and wear skirts and dresses.
I also don't like how people just assumed Josie would be wearing a tux along with Tessa without even asking her. She could perfectly well be wearing a dress, because, once again, some lesbians are girly.

Point 2:
Lucas is an athlete and Tessa's best friend. And when he finds out Tessa's a lesbian and has never told him, he gets mad, which is completely understandable. But then he goes on to basically tell everybody that Tessa rejected him because she's not interested in guys, which he should know is a huge mistake in a small town. And then he even takes it further and decides to speak to a reporter about how Tessa is so selfish for just being herself. Tessa has been his friend since they were babies, and sure they're fighting, and it feels different than all the other fights, but that never gives you the right to go spread deadly secrets to the world, and nobody has any business forcing someone else to come out of the closet. Peoples' sexual preferences are their own. That's like telling everybody your ex-best friend was assaulted by her father, or sending everyone your ex-girlfriend's pictures. It wouldn't have been so serious if it were a different state maybe, like Maryland or New York, but it wasn't.
And after Lucas has told everyone and Tessa's brother Danny gets so mad they get into a fight, Lucas edges it on, like he has a reason for fighting Danny, even though the only reasons were a) Danny threw a ball at his head because Lucas basically ruined his sister's life, and b) because Danny is related to Tessa so it must but partially his fault Tessa's lesbian. (sarcasm)

Truthfully, I found myself starting to like the book near the end when Lucas finally came to his damn senses and tried to support Tessa, which I guess is what pushed me to add the second star instead of leaving it one star.
Profile Image for Melinda.
402 reviews112 followers
April 2, 2016
The writing isn't bad, and the story is fast-paced and easy to read, but it's no surprise to find out after finishing it that both of the authors are straight. Although the book has a lesbian main character and the plot revolves around the homophobia she faces, there's hardly any focus on her lesbian relationship, while the hurt feelings and heterosexual romance of her misogynist male best friend plays a major part of the story. It helps that his mother occasionally points out how gross and selfish he's being — like asking him to stop ogling women in front of her, although it doesn't stop his constant objectification of every girl around him — but it's disappointing how focused the story is on glorifying Tessa's male best friend and their friendship, while skipping over any relationships between women.
Profile Image for L BZ.
59 reviews23 followers
January 11, 2015
This came up in my recommendations list due to my other book choices, and it is a disappointment. It's a coming out story set in Indiana - heartwrenching, but not in a good way, because the titular character, Tessa, is outed by her best friend after she refuses his "grand, romantic" prom invitation. This sack of shit gets his ego bruised and reveals (to his entire baseball team) that Tessa wants to take a girl to the prom. Of course it gets out; news travels fast in a small town. The entire town poops their Pampers and Tessa is gay-bashed and becomes the center of a "controversy" about "family values". The holy rollers pull out the stops and show up to her parents' grocery with signs straight from a Westboro "Baptist" funeral "protest". It gets worse: the school has an actual policy against girls wearing "men's clothes" and bringing same-sex dates to prom, so the school board holds a meeting and cancels prom. Tessa gets blamed. Bricks are thrown through the window. Stale candy is thrown at Tessa. At this point, it gets so bad that it seems like the authors just drew from a hat – "What Outed Gay Teens Go Through - Conservative Small Town Edition" – gave up, and dumped the entire thing on.

Anyway, the press come to her house, her family's store is boycotted, and her locker and house are vandalized. And her "friend" Lucas remains oblivious for a long time - about why he had no right to out her himself, about why Tessa feels the need to be out at all, and even about how fucking manipulative it is to make proposals (even promposals) to someone in public, forcing them into the limelight (to say yes, or be that asshole who didn't).

Lucas tries to redeem himself, but of course he can't do that fully - being an asshole - and most of the book focuses on him, so consequently I spent most of the book fantasizing about beaning him in the head with a sack of grapefruits. In the end, he "solves" it by performing two more grand sweeping gestures. He makes Team Tessa T-shirts which sell out, saving Tessa's family from bankruptcy, and– you guessed it – puts on an alternate prom for Tessa. Tessa Masterson's Big Gay Prom. And they dance all night, and an international pop sensation shows up to perform, and the hot college girl who works at the Mastersons' grocery during the summer happens to show up to fill Lucas's empty love interest slot. Tessa forgives him, apologizes for keeping secrets, and basically lionizes him on television.

Obviously, I have problems with this - especially with Lucas being forgiven at the end, without him realizing the three aforementioned things he's done wrong. Maybe it's just me, but I didn't really want to see him find another love interest at the end, either. I was honestly very unconcerned with his romantic future, considering that he's an attractive college-bound boy on a baseball scholarship. I don't like the symmetry of it – that he was rewarded with love at the slightest sign of decent behavior. Also, I don't like love interests being handed out randomly when no effort is made, but that's a general problem with romantic books.

I realized at the end that I was looking for the wrong thing in this book. I expected to find a book about a difficult coming out process, and a friend's attempt to make things right in the aftermath, but more from the perspective of the coming-out friend. I thought there would be some angst about whether or not the wronged party would forgive their friend, and that a sincere, understanding apology would be made. I thought it would be a celebration of a deep friendship. Instead, I mostly got the struggles of an immature boy who was unprepared for the consequences of his own actions, who misreads his friend so much that he thinks she is deeply in love with him, when she actually likes girls. A boy so unused to rejection that he outs her in retaliation. And spends the entire rest of the book angsting about what he can do to fix it – not for her, but, in his words, so "he can sleep at night".

This was not a book, I realized, about Tessa Masterson. Her chapters go into her perspective, sure; but this is not about her personal journey. She is a foil for Lucas. All I really got from her chapters was flashes of stream-of-consciousness: she loves and respects her parents, she has always had a deep-seated fear of being outed, she has good interpersonal skills, and she tries, heartbreakingly, to please people. She never moves by herself, though. She never gains agency, she never gets acceptance. She gets a party, and she forgives Lucas, and Lucas is the hero. That's the point. This is not a book about helping a gay teenager. This is a book about her asshole friend's overwrought, idealized quest to make himself feel better.

Now, why didn't they state that more explicitly on the inside cover? I could have saved myself a couple hours.
1 review
November 25, 2014
I had to stop myself halfway through the book. The story focuses on the lesbian girl's cishet white friend who proposes to go to prom with her publicly without asking her, or having any kind of inclination that she is romantically interested in him.
I read a summary of the plot, and it seems like the boy ends up making up by outing her and basically ruining her life by making sure that she can go to prom with her crush!! Yay! He feels like the victim of the situation, and gets PISSED because his friend didn't want to come out to him. The book is clearly written by straight folk.
I wanted to like this book so, so much. But it was just so, so bad.
Author 2 books57 followers
March 14, 2012
I had the pleasure of reading an advance copy of “Tessa Masterson Goes to Prom” because, well … I'm cool like that. (Stop laughing. That shtick got me this far, sweetheart. The point is, I got to read it before you did and therefore, get to tell you how kick-ass it is.)

A simple plot summary might suggest that “Tessa...” is merely a ripped-from-the-headlines retelling of the events surrounding Constance McMillan's 2010 Mississippi prom controversy. However, in the deft hands of Brendan Halpin and Emily Franklin, Tessa's characters come alive and the story becomes something unique, specific and utterly delightful.

Set against the backdrop of conservative small town which is slowly disintegrating, Tessa and her best friend Lucas struggle with questions of honesty and love. The poignant relationship between the pair, best friends since early childhood, was for me, a reminder of that bittersweet moment in time when romantic interests first overthrow the deep bonds of friendship in their emotional importance.

The big messages here are those of acceptance and loyalty. It's not hit-you-over-the-head stuff, but clearly woven through the unfolding events in a manner that should be accessible for both the intended Young Adult audience and the adult readers who love them. As a cultural commentary, I can only hope that this lovely little book will feel dated within the next decade, and be read then as a peek into what it was like BEFORE.

Halpin shines here (as always) with his ability to create teenage characters who walk, talk, think and behave like teenagers. It is one of the things which drew me to his work initially and one of the things which keeps me coming back.

“Tessa Masterson Will Go To Prom” has taken up residence on my bookshelf, and not the casually overstuffed bookshelf in the bedroom, but the Here-To-Stay shelf in the living room. In this house, that's saying something. Mostly, it says, “These are the books we DON'T want the dog to pee on.” but in the story of our lives, that's kinda important.
Profile Image for Clare.
458 reviews28 followers
July 12, 2016
Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom is the story of a lesbian teen who just wants to go prom with her girlfriend… told almost entirely through the lens of her straight male best friend who feels slighted when she doesn’t return his interest. Girls like Tessa are needed in young adult fiction, but I would prefer them to be the heroines of their own stories, not the motivation for someone else’s.
Profile Image for Christina (A Reader of Fictions).
4,343 reviews1,761 followers
June 30, 2016
Last year, I read Notes from the Blender by Brendan Halpin and Trish Cook. It was completely adorable, with excellent teen characters and touching on real issues. Halpin has done it again, this time partnering with Emily Franklin.

Multiple points of view can either be amazing in a book or completely awful; there doesn't seem to be too much of an in between. Both of Halpin's books that I have read are great examples of good ways to do it. Of course, it's a bit easier with two authors, each writing their own character. Still, I love it entirely, because it gives both of the characters their own unique voices.

The opening scenes, where Luke becomes convinced that Tessa is crushing on him, are absurd but in a totally true-to-life way. His analysis is way off, obviously, but who's isn't? He starts evaluating everything, reading only the things that add up to the answer he expects to find. Of course, none of this would have happened without the prodding of other people. This is clearly an argument against matchmaking.

The controversy about whether Tessa and Josie should be allowed to go to the Prom just makes me fighting mad. I mean, how could that possibly hurt anyone else? Of course, even worse is that I know there's a book about this because things like this really happen, because so many people in this country are still so parochial that they think it matters who people fall in love with. Come on, America, get over it! Oh, and at this point, I need to include a fantastic quote from Luke's part of the narration; keep in mind that it could be different in the final copy of the book:

"There are people who think I'm a hero because I'm standing up for biblical values. Like I've ever read the Bible in my life. Maybe if I did, I could find the part about how making a girl's life into a living hell is something that God thinks you should do."

Really, this was just the sweetest book. I completely love the message, one of acceptance and open-mindedness. There's no hating on Christianity or religion in general. Halpin and Franklin aren't trying to demonize anyone. I want to add a copy of this to my personal library and shelve it metaphorically next to Will Grayson, Will Grayson, though not literally, because I shelve alphabetically by author. This book made me cry and laugh out loud. Not many do that.

Now, go listen to some Lady GaGa (aka Miss Kaboom) and let your freak flag fly, be it what it may. We're all better when we're ourselves!
Profile Image for Heidi.
781 reviews180 followers
April 12, 2012
Originally reviewed here.

So…this one’s getting filed under ‘book guilt’ because I honestly had that mental/emotional debate with myself where I wasn’t sure I could be honest about my mediocre feelings for this book. Why? Because while I do want to be respected as an honest reviewer, I also don’t want people to get the impression that I harbor views or beliefs that I most adamantly do not. On the flip side, I can’t pretend to be gung-ho about a book that I didn’t entirely enjoy reading, that wouldn’t be fair to me or that book. So I just want to say here and now that I am 100% pro gay-rights, and my thoughts on Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom aren’t some anti-gay statement. I don’t feel guilty for giving the book a ‘meh’ review, but I do feel guilty that I even considered fudging things to make myself feel better about it.

I have to confess—there are few things I was more ambivalent about as a teen (and still am) than prom. So maybe that should have been a clue right there that a book starring the word ‘prom’ wouldn’t really be the perfectly fitting glass slipper I’ve been waiting on. And then when right at the beginning, Luke (one of our two protagonists) asks Tessa (the other) to prom with a grand gesture the whole town can see, I really should have just stopped. Because I’m that girl. The one who hates grand gestures and public displays of love of a giant scale. I hate it when people propose on billboards at sports events, heck, I hate it when people propose in public period. Something about it just makes me so uncomfortable and awkward. These were the clues I should have taken and just not read this book, but I didn’t want to let something like the P word intimidate me out of a read, so I powered forward.

Here’s the lowdown. I’ve determined that I’m not really a fan of the ‘let’s get together and write a book from two characters’ points of view…we can each write a character and go back in forth in first person perspective!’ books. I read Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares which was also a miss for me, and even though I really liked The Future of Us, I can acknowledge that this is not a style I enjoy. And then there was the fact that this book had “ABC Family Special” written all over it. You know, if ABC Family were the type of channel to support “the gay agenda” (I’m assuming they’re not, but I could be wrong. Modern Family is on ABC). It was very agenda-driven. A ‘we have a message!’ type book, that’s so steeped in warm fuzzies and fond sentiments by the end I kind of felt like I was drowning in it. Sure, it makes you feel good inside to see the things you believe about friendship, love, family, and being who you really are regurgitated so blatantly on a page, but it doesn’t challenge you or make you think. Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom is a great book for teens who may need to see a happy ending come out of a ‘gay in small-town middle America’ story, but I don’t think that it’s going to change anyone’s mind in regards to their stance on sexuality. And that’s okay! Not every book needs to be the book that challenges the way people think, and sometimes people really need the support and to feel good at the end of the day, but it was all a bit too hug-it-out for me.

The “ripped-from-the-headlines” story that Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom was based on concerned a Mississippi student, Constance, whose high school prom was cancelled after the school informed her she could not attend prom with a girl, or wearing a tux. You can read a short ACLU summary here. Now, admittedly, I don’t know the gritty details of this story, but I had a hard time swallowing a lot of the events in Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom. For example, the school does nothing when Tessa’s locker is repeatedly vandalized, to the point that her school work (and presumably) textbooks are destroyed. In fact, they seem to support the vandalism, and even the custodian will do nothing to help clean the locker indicating that she deserved it. The school suspends students who openly support Tessa, and indicate that they will attempt to negatively affect students’ acceptance and scholarships into colleges as a result. I find it pretty tough to believe that professionals in this situation, regardless of personal beliefs, would openly support and participate in this type of bullying of any student for any reason. I find it particularly hard to believe that not a single adult in this school seems to have stood up for this student. Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom was so busy highlighting the negative to make it all that much bigger of a turnaround by the end that they diminished the positive to an unrealistic level.

My final nitpick is that they used fake brand names close to but not quite the same as the real thing—I hate when books do this. Can someone explain this to me? Is this a result of not wanting/having to pay some sort of fee for mentioning Twilight and Good Morning America? Because honestly? It just makes the whole book feel like a knock-off brand to me too. And I don’t care what people try to tell you, knock-offs are pretty much never as good as the name brand.

I will close in saying that there were some great, positive aspects to this book, and I think a lot of readers will love it. I’d even recommend it if I met the right person for it. Tessa’s family was wonderful, and my favorite character in the book was Luke’s mom who was downright awesome. Luke was a bit of a douchenozzle, but as I’ve gone on long enough I suppose I shouldn’t go off on him too, especially since he spends so much time trying to make up for himself. At any rate, don’t take my review as the end-all-be-all of Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom.
Profile Image for Samantha.
171 reviews6 followers
March 22, 2016
I found this book via one of the many recommendations offered by Goodreads. I'd never heard of it before (and lgbt books are a thing that I definitely invest a lot of time looking for), and now I know why.

There are a few problems with this book. First, the stereotyping of lesbians (femme lesbians are a thing, and not all people who aren't femme are gay). This is just pure shoddy writing at best, and very well demonstrates how heterosexual the authors are.

Then there's Lucas, the supposed best friend to Tessa. Except, when he misjudges a very, very public proposal to ask her to prom and she declines and explains to him that she's gay... His male ego becomes the primary source of all of the resulting conflict. Instead of realising how difficult it is to come out (especially in rural Arizona), he takes it upon himself to soothe his wounded pride not just by outing her (which is bad enough), but by making a series of malicious, dangerous and frankly disgusting public statements that breed the violence that Tessa and her family have to endure.

But it's okay, because we graciously get all this explained to us throughout the book that because he is a guy he's an 'ass'; and because he *eventually* realises and feels some remorse for his actions (and inaction), it's okay. It's okay because he's a male and made lame attempts to make up for inciting violence upon his best friend, of forever.

Then, there's something else that really bugged me, and it's something that is actually very, very important when you realise that this is very much an LGBT coming out story.

Tessa Masterson does not kiss anyone.

Her brother is practically always snogging his girlfriend.

Even Lucas somehow manages to get himself a girlfriend and gets a good ol' snog.

But Tessa? No, Tessa gets to hug Josie.

That's it. The heterosexual couples/characters discuss sex on prom night, and even talk about the electricity of holding someone's hand, or placing your hand on their waist. For Tessa, she has to make do with a hug. Despite the fact that this story is primarily about a lesbian teenager fighting to go to prom to have the same fun as the hetero couples; despite the fact that the authors go to great lengths to point out that the school prom is widely known to be where many first have sex... Tessa isn't even granted the ability for a small kiss.

It's inexcusable that Lucas was made a hero, but it's downright insulting to read a coming out story written within the past year or so that allows for heterosexuals to be given free reign of their sexualities in an LGBT book whilst it is simultaneously being denied to the gay characters.

This was an incredibly disappointing read. LGBT fiction and the people deserve better than this. If you want a recommendation on LGBT coming out books? Read anything else you can find. Even books written in the 70's/80's deal with this subject better than this.

(Please forgive any typos, review written on my phone)
Profile Image for Akiva ꙮ.
838 reviews53 followers
June 27, 2016
EDIT: Apparently the authors are straight. SUDDENLY, MUCH BECOMES CLEAR. I'm going to add some comments to my original review.
Argh. Okay.
Actually, aaaarrrrrghhhhh is more accurate.
I didn't realize the story was ripped from the headlines, and it feels vaguely exploitative.
This story is entirely ripped from the headlines and it's very exploitative. As other reviewers have pointed out, they take Constance McMillen's life and turn it into a life lesson for a fictional entitled straight male baseball star.
I like Tessa. I like Tessa a lot. She's definitely a baby butch, but it's subtext in the story, not text. Without consciously thinking about it, she decides she's going to wear a tux to the prom. But she'll still wear heels and a purse, that makes it just for fun, right? Definitely not because femininity doesn't feel right. Nope.
This hurts the worst. It's not the author(s) subtly addressing what it's like to be a gender variant teenage girl, it's just them being utterly ignorant about what it's like to be a gender variant teenage girl. They wanted the story about Tessa's tux, but they didn't want to have to sympathetically write an (icky, ugly, mannish) butch lesbian---who would want to read about someone like that?

Memo for straight people: The girls who dress up their tuxes like Vogue models with strappy heels and a cute rhinestone clutch are not the ones whose photos get banned from the yearbook.
I don't agree with the book's thesis about grand gestures being vitally important. This might be a personal hangup, but if you wanted me to forgive you for blabbing about something I'd told you in confidence in the most hurtful way possible, the way to go about it would not be to use the same "tell the world" approach to pressure me into forgiving you.

I did like that love didn't have to be a grand gesture, or last forever, to be important and to change your life. And that friendship is a kind of love.

So... it's a YA novel, in other words, and it fails to avoid the usual pitfalls of YA novels.
Straight people need to be stopped.
5 reviews
March 19, 2015
I read this book with the hopes that it would be the story of a lesbian teen who wants to go to prom with her girlfriend, but instead I got a story about a straight boy who can't deal with the fact that his best friend/crush has rejected him, and proceeds to ruin her life.

The authors focused too much on Lucas; even when it was Tessa speaking, she was always thinking about Lucas this and Lucas that. No wonder Josie broke up with her, Tessa barely paid attention to her.

If you were looking for a lesbian relationship, look else where, because all you will find here is a story of male-female friendship.
Profile Image for April.
2,102 reviews960 followers
October 14, 2012
I like reading books that seem to be inspired by current events. Y’all remember back when that school in Mississippi wouldn’t let that girl Constance go to prom because she was gay? Well, Tessa Masterson Will Go To Prom by Brendan Halpin and Emily Franklin explores this sort of story in greater detail.

Read the rest of my review here
Profile Image for Luce.
516 reviews36 followers
April 29, 2015
I don't usually leave reviews for books but for this one I think I need to. I had never heard of this book until the day I bought it. The reason I took a chance with it is because I like LGBTQ teenage fiction, and because it seemed relevant to not only things going on in my life, but the very real struggles of LGBTQ teenagers going on in the world in general.

I was a bit hesitant at the start. The book is written in first person, alternating between Tessa and Lucas's POVs, and sometimes Tessa's thoughts were hard to follow and I wasn't sure about the way Lucas's were written either. But once I got used to the writing style and the characters I realised I was confusing the quality of the writing with the characters' thoughts, if that makes sense. It wasn't that the writing was somewhat incoherent, but that Tessa's thoughts were - as thoughts sometimes are. Once I got up to the main 'action' of the book, I got really really into it and ended up finishing it almost in one go.

Another thing was that I HATED Lucas at the start. I hated him more than I have ever hated a protagonist before (including Bella Swan, and I hated her a lot). I've been in a similar situation to Tessa's in that I had a guy friend who had a crush on me but I just was not interested in being more than friends with him and had to try to figure out a way to let him down nicely but firmly, so I could relate, to a point. It annoyed me that Lucas had the nerve to call Tessa selfish when really he was the one being a self-obsessed asshole. But he didn't stay one. I'm trying not to give spoilers, but as the public backlash intensified, he started to realise that maybe he was wrong. Which was good. I started to like him more after that, and by the end of the book I had forgiven him.

Some reviews on here have criticised the stereotypes that the book is seen to endorse. Okay, Tessa was a bit of a cliched, stereotypical lesbian - but they do exist, that's why they're the stereotype. I'm also from a small town (albeit in Australia, which is quite a bit different to America) and I thought the way that Brookfield (and the attitudes of its residents) was presented was very accurate.

(I also enjoyed the thinly-veiled references to Twilight and Lady Gaga.)

I would recommend this book to anyone - LGBTQ or straight, teenage or slightly past that (like me). Even if you don't normally go in for YA fiction you should read this because it not only reflects current issues but the struggles of every kid who has been outcast just for deciding to be who they really are, by people who have known them their whole lives. I've never read or heard of a book like this one. I don't think there are any, which makes this one important.

If you're still reading this review, first off, well done xD secondly, my advice to you is: even if you're unsure at the start of the book, keep reading. It was definitely worth it in the end. I laughed, I cried, I cheered, and I finished reading with the biggest grin on my face.
Profile Image for Khris Sellin.
607 reviews7 followers
March 31, 2012
Great YA book about a serious issue.
Tessa and Lucas have been best friends their whole lives, growing up in a small Midwestern town, when Lucas suddenly realizes (after some prodding from others) that they were meant to be more than friends. Prom is coming up, so he decides to ask her in a big, grand way... AND she turns him down. Because, best friends or not, she's got a secret. She likes girls. And there's one particular one she's had her eye on and wants to take to prom as her date. Lucas is floored by this news, hurt that she never shared this with him, and, as a teenager, and as a guy, does something really stupid in reacting.

Suddenly Tessa's secret is out, and she becomes the center of controversy and of a media frenzy. The small-minded, religious types start voicing their protest very loudly, and the school has to make a decision whether to cancel prom because of it. Now Tessa becomes the target of hatred from those who feel she's ruined prom for everyone, on top of everything else.

Lucas, of course, feels terrible about the situation and wants to redeem himself to his best friend. But what can he do to ever make it up to her and somehow make things right again?

Great story about friendship and tolerance.
Profile Image for Eliana.
110 reviews5 followers
November 7, 2014
I really, really, really wanted to like this book. But I just didn't.

Obviously the authors meant for Luke to be a likable character, but it's really hard for me to feel sympathy for someone who outs his best friend just because he's bitter about being friendzoned.

The homophobia displayed in this book also turned me off. I'm no stranger to books with heavy, depressing subjects, and of course I know these aren't the views the authors themselves hold, but it's hard to keep reading a book when every page displays homophobic protests with hardly enough pro-lgbt views to balance it out. I'm aware it's realistic in some cases, and I've definitely read other books with lgbt people struggling with homophobia, but for some reason this one just didn't sit right with me.



As much as I wanted to like it, this book just didn't do it for me.
Profile Image for Davina.
197 reviews1 follower
April 13, 2012
One element of Halpin's books that I appreciate is that the parents are always involved. Too often with teen books the parents have little or no value, which just isn't true to life. Halpin (and his co-writer when the case may be) always takes the time to create parental characters who have an important affect in the teen(s) character's life. I'll finish this edit later..;library closing. ;)
Profile Image for Kristin.
965 reviews90 followers
March 17, 2012
So great, I teared up a lot. I loved Luke and Tessa's relationship. It was interesting to see both sides of Tessa's coming out and how it affected not just her and her family but also her best friend. I could have used more about the impact on her not-quite-girlfriend, and that was one of the main reasons I couldn't quite give it 5 stars. (That and even though Tessa certainly struggled, something about the way the school board meeting and other big confrontations were written didn't quite capture the struggle for me.) Luke was a fascinating character, a baseball playing boy with a single mother who's watched too many chick flicks but undoubtedly has a good heart, even if he loses his way for awhile. Towards the end I was tearing up a lot. Not quite crying, but definitely had tears running down the face. So touching.

Now, I'm not gay myself, but I suppose you would call me an "ally" because I have many gay friends and their struggle is something close to my heart. I've never known someone before they came out, but I imagine that this book captured that feeling to an extent. Luke's feeling that Tessa betrayed him by lying, his effort to explain to people that she's still the same person, his struggle to find something to do to help Tessa through a difficult time. I don't know if it's because I'm coming to the book from a straight perspective, but on looking back it seems like Luke's viewpoint was more real. I did like Tessa's voice a lot, but at the same time it seemed like coming out was hard for her, but it didn't really have the level of emotional struggle that I would expect. Still, maybe it's because in the world of this story, Tessa seemed awfully focused on Luke. (Did I mention that I loved their relationship?)

I think this could be a good book for a gay teen. Like I said, I don't know how realistic it was, but at the same time I think that it gives an overwhelmingly hopeful perspective of coming out. Even though there is certainly a lot of opposition to Tessa, her best friend, king of grand statements, and other select members of the community are just SO supportive that the hate pales in comparison to all that love. It's definitely a feel good story by the end. As you can probably tell from the rest of my review, I really think this would be a good book for the straight friend of a gay teen who is unsure of how to react to the changed reality brought on by the revelation of the truth.

Just wow. This one goes up there with Will Grayson, Will Grayson.
Profile Image for Emily.
673 reviews
August 13, 2013
Quite the ride, this book. Like several others I've read recently, it alternates voices. First up is Lucas*, who's just realized he's in love with his long-time best friend, Tessa, and asks her to prom in a big, public way. Then, Tessa, who's realized she can't reciprocate Lucas's love because she's a lesbian and tells him so as she explains why she can't go to prom with him. Lucas doesn't take her rejection well and angrily (cruelly) outs her to everyone by telling a classmate and then his football teammates that Tessa is (1) going to prom with a girl and (2) planning to wear a tux.

Thus ensues a firestorm of prejudicial behavior by not only Tessa's classmates and school administrators, but also her community as well as protesters from all over the state who come to put in their conservative two cents. And it gets worse when the school board decides to cancel prom, even to the point that it's possible that Tessa's parents might lose their business (a business that employs Lucas's mom and many other people in their small town).

Lucas, of course, eventually realizes he's been an idiot and feels badly about the whole thing. What he decides to do is touching and hopeful, but the ending (while fun to imagine) felt like an out-of-place homage to David Levithan's Boy Meets Boy, topped off with (SPOILER ALERT) the appearance of a Lady Gaga-esque pop star with a ridiculous name.

On one hand, the ending imagines what's possible when people accept and love each other as they are. That I appreciated. On the other hand, I had a hard time accepting Tessa's willingness to thoughtfully forgive everyone all of their despicable behavior. Lucas included. He needs a big gesture from her? What?! That just didn't ring true for me. (Not to mention, he's ultimately rewarded with a smart, hot girlfriend, while Tessa's breaks up with her. Hm.)

I did have a favorite quote from the book that I think I may use a lot this semester: (Tessa)"...but what can I say, it's really hard to see something when you're not looking for it. Or, I guess, when you're looking for the opposite." That IS true.


*Okay, Tessa's voice is actually the first the reader encounters, but it's all preface. The story really begins in Ch. 2 with Lucas's proposal.
Profile Image for Natasha B.
12 reviews
January 21, 2015
I was really excited when I found this book in my library (which is sadly deprived of lesbian fiction) but when I read this book I found a lot of steroetypes and things I didn't like about it (see below). I still gave this 2 stars though because the storyline got better as it went along and there was some clever dialouge and writing. As well as Tessa being occasianally relatable to me as a queer teenage girl.

First of all, at the start mostly Lucas's chapters was extremly frustrating to read. He constantly went on and on about how Tessa was a liar, an asshole etc, just because she didn't come out to him sooner. He showed that he was extremly unsympathetic and self centred at this point. I know that books are supposed to repersent different people and ideas but I just found it extremly irritating and hard to read. I had trouble in these early chapters finding any sympathy with Lucas, which is ultimately something you want to do with a main character. I couldn't connect to him at all.

Secondly, Tessa perpetrated stereotypes. Yes, it is true that some lesbians are 'masculine' or 'butch' but Tessa's constant statements about how 'he should have known, I never wear skirts' and 'it's obvious I'm a lesbian I am not a girly girl' were both inaccurate and supported stereotypes. I was hoping that in some point in this book, these stereotpyes would be questioned but they never were and they were presented as almost true.

Thirdly, Tessa's chapters focused blantanly more on Lucas, then her girlfriend who she supposedly really liked. I understant the focus of this book was supposed to be friendship and forgiveness but I would have liked if there was at least a little bit more focus on her girlfriend, Josie and there relationship as that really was key to the storyline. When they break up Tessa doesn't even seem upset. I know that this was not a good time for their relationship due to events in the town but still a breakup is always upsetting. Once the breakup scene Josie is almost never mentioned again, which I found a bit weird.

All together this book was an okay teen fiction but not really a powerful book about LGBT+ people or issues for me personally.

This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Book Him Danno.
2,403 reviews61 followers
July 22, 2012
I picked this up at my local library without reading the back. When I started reading I realized what the book was about and thought, ‘OK I’ll give it a few more pages.’ Well I’m glad I did. This book will make you laugh, it will make you cry and it will make you think about how you treat people who are not the same as you are. I really enjoyed this book and I think you will also.

Who said that we all have to be the same to get along? I hope no one because it isn’t possible for one thing and it would be extremely boring if it was. I like the difference in people it keeps things changing and it keeps me thinking. I am a every Sunday church going Christian and I have to say that people who use Jesus Christ as reason to hate and discriminate against others(for any reason under the sun) do not understand Christianity at all. Christ taught of love and non-judgment, he taught of peace and goodwill to all. He never taught of hate and discrimination, he never taught of bombing abortion clinics, or violent protests again homosexuals, Christ taught of patience, long-suffering, charity and most of all love. Not just love for those that are like us and easy to love, but for all people. Christianity is about love, not hate…..never hate.

This book made me really think about the way I treat those who are different from me….those who are from a different race, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, intelligence, value system, religion, and I have to say that I did not enjoy what I saw in myself. Work is needed on my part to be a true Christian and to truly follow Christ. Christ is love, don’t mix that up with right or wrong…..Love is all that matters in this world.

The authors may not have intended for this to be the theme of their work, but to me I had a hard time seeing anything else. Thank you for this book and the feelings it brought up in my heart.

Profile Image for Preet.
98 reviews5 followers
May 4, 2012
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Sure, the subject matter is somewhat "controversial",but that isn't why I enjoyed it.

I liked how both authors took an event that's been happening in present times and first gave us an inside look into the subject matter and made it humorous to read. I can't say how on point the story was as I haven't been through anything similar, but I felt this story was very real. This is mostly due to the characterization.

I loved Tessa's character because she wasn't a girl who really had any issues about who she was. She knew who she was and was comfortable with that fact. What she was really dealing with was what was happening around her when she decided to take a stand about who she truly was. Lucas, on the other hand, showed the other side of not really being accepting of someone. Though I understood his hesitation, seeing a friend not accept a person was pretty heart-breaking!

What I found to be an important aspect of this story was the fact that the authors respected different views. There was never a right and wrong side when it came to religious objections. Which, when it comes to these type of stories, is a pretty large detail when dealing with this type of subject matter. This isn't to say that this book wasn't political, but it was insightful while being respectful.

The pacing was a little slow for me, but the enjoyable characters and light humor in the story still made this a really easy read. I'd recommend it because the topics of friendship, community and acceptance are real and bring a humorous insight to the subject of equality in our current school system. Read it, learn, enjoy.

Soundtrack:

Accept Yourself - The Smiths
Every Way - Circa Survive
World - Five For Fighting
Who I Am Hates Who I've Been - Relient K
Profile Image for Danica.
15 reviews
February 4, 2016
This is not a book about a lesbian teen. This is a book about a cis hetro white male (Lucas) making terrible decisions, acting selfishly and eventually being portrayed as a hero because he's had a simple change of heart. The writing is weak and most of the characters, if not all, are stereotypes that speak in cliches and awkward 'teen slang'. The plot is okay, but it all goes down the drain with a very unrealistic ending. The only character I liked was Kate, and yet she, along with Tessa, the girl portrayed as our heroine, only exists to prove how fantastic Lucas is.
'Tessa Masterson Will Go To Prom' is a feeble LGBT story that makes its title character nothing like what she should be. She should be the centre of the novel, proving her sexuality does not affect who she is, developing and changing on her own behalf. Instead she exists for Lucas to be a hero.
There is something likeable about this novel however, though I can't place my finger on it. I wouldn't recommend it, but I wouldn't label it a complete waste of time. Kudos to the authors for writing this, as its LGBT plot and characters are interesting and likeable, despite them being incredibly cliche and the authors seeming to be rather uninformed.
Maybe they should have named it 'Miss Kaboom Will Go To Prom', though. I never want to hear about her or anybody shaking it ever again.
Profile Image for Holly Casio.
8 reviews10 followers
January 1, 2018
There are so many great lgbt ya books out there that there's really no need to ever read this. While this book is supposed to be the coming out story of Tessa and her quest to go to prom with her girlfriend it was infuriating to find that actually this is the story of Lucas who dangerously outs Tessa as revenge for being put in the 'friendzone.' Sadly there are no real consequences for Lucas and his belief in the friendzone (there's no such thing as the friendzone btw) or the fact that he turned a homophobic religious small town against his former bff. Tessa is the only one who faces any real consequences and she and her family are put in danger throughout the story. The book feels like an exercise in diversity by blatantly straight authors because not once is there any focus on Tessa's relationship with her girlfriend, with more attention given to the poor ego of the straight ex best friend who essentially almost ruined her life. While there are great lgbt YA books, there is still a lack of lesbian centred YA stories and so it's disappointing as hell to see a wasted opportunity like this. Read more queer books by queer authors instead of this
Profile Image for Trisha.
2,017 reviews111 followers
July 29, 2012
I am a bit fond of these authors' collaborations. And this is about so much more than Tessa's outing: community, acceptance, and the scariness of people throwing the notion of values around in ways to suit themselves.

But ultimately, Tessa's friendship with Lucas is key, so I did wish they spent less of the book annoyed with each other.

Nothing like the grand gesture in YA lit.

Highly recommended.
Profile Image for Widya Vello.
143 reviews22 followers
March 23, 2018
For an coming of age book, this one wasn't so easy to dealt with. Too much homophobic slur, bullying and I felt so bad for Tessa. Well what could you expect for such a small town? And Lucas at first was a total asshole, just because his best friend rejected him at his grand confession, he outed her to the whole school which like domino effect becoming like zombie apocalypse scale to the entire state. And also, Tessa's girlfriend wasn't a great supporter. But fortunately Tessa got wonderful family, cool parent and awesome brother. I loved Danny a lot (really wanted to have a brother like him!)
Thankfully, the writing style is a click for me. I enjoyed every words and conversation (minus the slurs of course). Also from half of the book, it's getting better. I loved how Luke trying his best to win his friendship back and the grand gesture in the end was such a heartwarming.
So 4 starts from me ;)
Profile Image for Sally.
Author 2 books139 followers
April 9, 2012
So this book is pretty damn cool :D Although there were quite a few times where I seriously wanted to leap into my kindle and go a little postal on most of that town... but then there were also a couple of times where I legit fist-punched the air.

Seriously though, WHAT a town. What a horrible cess-pit of discrimination and narrow-mindedness and just plain nastiness. Tessa could have totally grabbed a machine gun and gone nuts in the town centre, and any sensible judge would have patted her on the back and let her off on a few hundred counts of justifiable homicide. This is a book that WILL make you angry - but it will also make you fist-pump in triumph when the stupid characters have their stupidity thrown back in their faces. Although sadly this doesn't happen enough.

Boy, I really wanted to punch Lucas - before he grew a pair (and a brain) and started thinking things through, and finally making amends. (Also, wow he's kind of blind... I mean they're watching TPC and Tessa's talking about making out with Katharine Hepburn and he doesn't even twig!) I like how you only get to really know Lucas and Tessa, and a little of their nears and dears like Danny and Kate. AND that all their parents are good guys. I like how none of the nasty jerks are the main characters, so their slurs are a bit less hurtful to read, a bit more distanced.

Oh my god, the school staff though. I seriously can't believe that adults could be so heartless and prejudiced but I guess there are some of them in the world.

The crux of the story btw is that the school board decide to CANCEL that year's Prom, rather than let Tessa take her female date along. Seriously. Tessa, give me that imaginary gun and let me finish them off. So Tessa then ends up the most hated girl ever because it's HER fault the prom was cancelled. Not the fault of all the narrow-minded idiots who have no arguments that I can possibly understand... And Tessa's family's store ends up another victim of all the gay-bashing, with people boycotting it and protesting outside it and everything.

There luckily is a more or less happy ending on the cards. The store gains support through Luke finally deciding to do something good. When the class bitch organises a "straight" fake prom, Luke organises a gay one on the same night so Tessa can still go to prom. And the gay prom ends up packed with gay kids from all over the state, and a famous singer turns up, and it's all awesome. But I would have liked to see something like the straight prom ending up being boring, and half the kids there wandering over to the gay one or something. And I'd have liked for all the people who were being idiots to maybe wake up and realise that they were too stupid to live and maybe apologise to Tessa. Wishful thinking, I know. But seriously, these are adults! Freaking out because a girl wants to bring another girl to her prom. They freak out so hard they have town meetings over it and, as I said, end up canceling the whole event.

I get kind of het up about certain issues. ;) But just because I can't understand. I really can't. How does it bother anyone else in the world who a person decides to kiss, you know? Okay, I'm gonna start ranting. No one wants that.


ETA: I just found out that this was actually based on a true story. I absolutely can not believe it.
Profile Image for Lissa.
1,209 reviews128 followers
September 11, 2015
Lucas and Tessa have been best friends since grade school, and everyone seems to be waiting for the pair of them to start dating. Lucas decides to ask Tessa to the prom in a big way, and it backfires when Tessa tells him that she's been keeping a secret from him - she's a lesbian. Lucas is hurt, and soon it gets out (partially due to Lucas) that Tessa is a lesbian, she wants to take a girl to the prom, and she wants to wear a tuxedo to the prom. This ignites a homophobic uproar, and it looks like Tessa might not get to go to the prom at all - and that her friendship with Lucas is broken beyond repair.

I am so happy that this generation of LGBTQ youth have books like this available to them. Not too long ago (about 15 years ago, before I had even heard of the internet), I was in a similar situation to Tessa. My best friend (who happened to be a gay guy) and I wanted to go to the prom together - except with me in the tux and him in the dress. Unfortunately, we didn't keep that too secret, and the principal stated that if anyone came to the prom in "non-gender-conforming" clothing, we'd be expelled for the rest of the year. And since my best friend and I both had full-ride scholarships to college and couldn't wait to get the heck out of that backwards town, we stayed home and played video games instead (I have to say that playing Super Mario Kart until 3am hyped up on Mountain Dew and candy probably was much more fun than the prom, had we attended it).

So I can totally relate to this book. Every insult that Tessa endured (and there were a lot of them), it almost felt as if it was directed at me (and many of them had been in the past). The book, as a consequence, was kind of a hard read. But I loved how everything worked out for Tessa, and I felt some weird form of vindication at the end of it.

Definitely recommended.
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