Fangirl meets Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda in this funny and poignant coming-of-age novel from New York Times bestselling author Christina Lauren about two boys who fall in love in a writing class–one from a progressive family and the other from a conservative religious community. Three years ago, Tanner Scott’s family relocated from California to Utah, a move that nudged the bisexual teen … move that nudged the bisexual teen temporarily back into the closet. Now, with one semester of high school to go, and no obstacles between him and out-of-state college freedom, Tanner plans to coast through his remaining classes and clear out of Utah.
But when his best friend Autumn dares him to take Provo High’s prestigious Seminar–where honor roll students diligently toil to draft a book in a semester–Tanner can’t resist going against his better judgment and having a go, if only to prove to Autumn how silly the whole thing is. Writing a book in four months sounds simple. Four months is an eternity.
It turns out, Tanner is only partly right: four months is a long time. After all, it takes only one second for him to notice Sebastian Brother, the Mormon prodigy who sold his own Seminar novel the year before and who now mentors the class. And it takes less than a month for Tanner to fall completely in love with him.more
“A God worthy of your eternal love wouldn’t judge you for who you love while you’re here.”
Would you also like to feel all the emotions about a bisexual boy falling in love with a gay Mormon who’s terrified of his sexuality being discovered? Well, this is definitely the book for you! Up until Autoboyography, I’d only ever read Christina Lauren’s adult books, and I’d been nervous that I wasn’t going to love their YA stuff as much. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
When Tanner and his family lived in California, he was openly bisexual. But since the family relocated to Provo, Utah, things are… different. A town of mostly Mormons probably wouldn’t take too kindly to a bisexual teenage boy. Or an interfaith family with an ex-LDS mom and a Jewish dad. So the Scott family keeps their secrets. At home, they’re full of pride and love, but in public, for the sake of fitting in, they keep certain things hidden. And that’s easy enough for Tanner, up until a dare from his best friend lands him in the Seminar, a semester long writing intensive where all the students draft a novel. The teaching assistant is none other than Sebastian Brother, the local Mormon golden boy who sold his own Seminar novel from the previous year. From the first moment Tanner lays eyes on him, he’s in over his head. Tanner thinks Sebastian is gorgeous and kind and probably not gay. But when Sebastian ends up mentoring Tanner, everything changes. Sebastian is interested too, but he’s a devout Mormon and everything he’s ever believed in tells him he’s a sinner. The more they work together and grow ever closer, the more Tanner and Sebastian struggle with the idea of why love could ever be considered wrong.
“In summary: love and respect, but only if you’re willing to live by their rules… and if not, then exclusion is the only answer.”
This book was absolutely wonderful. It was such an insightful take on what it means to be gay and a member of a church, especially a church known for not accepting anything outside of the norm. I also appreciated that the authors didn’t just bash the whole concept of religious institution, they really tried to make you understand that so much of this issue isn’t just black and white, there’s an awful lot of grey area, especially for people who have grown up only having one frame of reference. I was incredibly glad to read in their acknowledgements that between personal experiences and a ton of research, Christina Lauren really made a point to know what they were talking about when they wrote this. It felt honest, because it really did come from a place of knowledge.
I’ll admit, prior to reading “Autoboyography”, I didn’t know a ton about the LDS Church. Pretty much everything I know comes from following a few Mormon crafters on social media and things I’ve learned from movies and tv shows and, well, The Book of Mormon musical… But Christina Lauren did a wonderful job of including the perfect amount of facts that you don’t need an encyclopedia knowledge of the religion to understand what’s going on, but not too much that you felt like you were just being lectured to. And they didn’t just bash Mormonism or blindly praise it – they addressed all the religious topics from a respectful, but questioning stance. It dives pretty deep into the ever-present challenges of religion vs the LGBTQ+ community, and it’s all handled stunningly well.
“He’s not recruiting me to the oiled-up Gay Bliss Club of Northern Utah, but to the LDS Church.”
Normally I am not a fan of insta-love, which this has in spades. But they made it work. They developed the story and, more importantly, the characters in a way that you couldn’t help but dive right into Tanner and Sebastian’s love. I loved Tanner’s voice throughout the book. I found him hilarious and insightful, but also real. He makes mistakes, HUGE mistakes, but because he’s a well-written character, you understand the motivation behind his actions. And you find yourself constantly rooting for him to succeed. His love for and with Sebastian manages to be heartwarming and heartbreaking all at the same time. It’s been a long time since I’ve had such an emotional response to a couple in a novel.
“Why wouldn’t you just be with a girl, then?” he asks quietly. “If you were attracted to them? Wouldn’t it be so much easier?”
“That’s not something you get to choose.”
I loved that they spent a lot of time exploring what exactly bisexuality means, again from a place of knowledge and personal experience. It was nice to have a YA novel not just make a character bisexual for the sake of inclusivity or to make it more hip. They took the opportunity of having Tanner be bisexual to truly address some of the common misconceptions about it and normalize it. It felt like an important discussion, but again didn’t feel preachy.
“Autoboyography” was definitely my favorite book I read during my Pride month self-challenge of reading as many LBGTQ+ books as possible. But it also easily became one of my favorite books ever. I have a feeling this is going to be one of those books that I reread every few years and fall in love with all over again ever single time I do.
Just loved this one! So steamy and smexy!
OK, so. I’m not one of those 6-star, 10-star, etc. reviewers. It’s a 5-star scale for a reason.
But THIS? This book gets every star in the sky. All of the stars that Sebastian and Tanner fell in love under. This book took root in my heart and made a home in my soul.
It’s a beautiful, emotional, and sometimes difficult story, a chronicle of love and faith and family and the unimaginable joy of first love, while being honest and real about the struggles and pain that young men face on this particular journey.
This isn’t a book you close and move on from. This is a book that sticks with you, that you think about long after it’s over, a book you read again and again, learning and loving more every time.
This was such a beautiful book. I loved the setting and background surrounding Tanner and Sebastian. The acceptance of Tanner’s family was something that I really loved and how it clashed with his growing feelings for Sebastian who grew up in a Mormon family with certain expectations. It was so great seeing Tanner fall in love with Sebastian and how their home life affected their relationship. It definitely causes some tense moments as Sebastian struggles with his feelings for Tanner and how its much easier for Tanner with the support of his family backing him. I fell in love with these characters and their life. My heart was in my throat at some moments and I became so mad at others. But I couldn’t image being in Sebastian’s shoes.
I really loved this book and the personal meaning this book has for these two ladies. I’m so glad they wrote this book.
Oh my gosh I couldn’t stop reading I wanted it to never end. When I read it the first time I had also fallen in love with both Tanner and Sebastian. tanner is that kind of guy that will do anything to be with anyone no matter the risk it takes to be with them but then coming to Sebastian he is more of that rule following kid never disobeys his parents but when it comes to love he will do anything. it’s true what they say after all “opposes attract “
Christina Lauren have a golden touch to any genre type of book they write. It was written for a younger reader, but I so enjoyed reading it! It has a message that I hope will take root. That love is love. Great book! Hope there is a Older reader book in the works?