Things Do Not Always Seem To Be What They Really Are: Geography Club

Title: Geography Club                      Date of Publication/ Publister: February 17, 2004, HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

Summary:

            Russell Middlebrook is a sophomore at Goodkind High School who feels out of place because he constantly has to hide sexuality from his piers. He is afraid to let his friends and other kids at school to know that he is gay in fear that he would be harassed by the other kids and would become the least popular guy in school. Just like Brian Bund, a outcast high school junior that is constantly harassed by all the jocks. However, one night when browsing in a gay chat room, Russell found another gay teen that happened to go to his school. They started to talk and then decided to meet each other at the local park, but when Russell arrived there he noticed that the gay teen in the chat room was Kevin Land, a popular jock in their school. As the week passes by, Russell and Kevin begin dating each other in secrete, afraid that both their high school reputations would be ruined. However, soon though Russell is unable to keep his secret relationship just to himself and decides to tell one of his best friends, Ming. But to his surprise after telling Ming about his sexual orientation, she tells him that she is a lesbian and that she has a girlfriend named, Teresa. Russell then came up with the idea that all of them should meet up sometime and on the following Saturday they all met up and also invited another gay student in their school, Ike. As they hung out together they realized that they had a lot in common and should hang out more, but then everyone realized that they each had different schedules and would attract too much attention to themselves if their friends saw them together. Instead they decided to start a after school club to spend time together and named the club the Geography Club, so no one would want to join them or suspect them of being homosexual.

            Following the week after the Geography Club was created, Russell's other best friend tells him that he finally got a date with Kimberly Peterson, but she would only go out with him if Russell would double date Trish. At first Russell felt uneasy about it because he had no attraction towards females, but agreed anyway because Gunnar never went on a date before. During this date, Russell learns that Kimberly just using Gunnar, so that Trish can go out with him. However, Russell unwillingly agrees to go on the second date for Gunnar's sake, but soon learns that on their date they were going to sleep over at Trish's beach house. Russell then freaks out and leaves during the date and Gunnar swore that he would get him back for ruining his date. To Russell's horror the following week, he realized that Gunnar had actually spread a rumor in the school that he was the anonymous gay teen who wanted to start a Gay- Straight Alliance and the other students started treating him as if he was a second Brian Bund. It was a living nightmare for Russell and he did not know what to do, for even Kevin stopped talking to him in fear that they would think he was gay too. Russell was miserable, but then out of the blue one day at the morning announcements, Brian Bund says that he was the one who wanted to start a gay straight alliance in the school. The classrooms instantly then was filled with laugher and Russell's classmates started apologizing to him. Russell then realized how much of a big sacrifice Brian did for him and he along with Brian, Ming and Ike then converted the geography club to the gay straight alliance club. They did this to support all the other gays and lesbians in their school and take a stand against bulling and harassments towards homosexuals even if it meant that they would lose their high school popularity.

Quote:

"...when the teachers and other students found out about the Goodkind High School Gay--Straight Alliance. Would we be banished to Outcast Island? Or would we...be allowed to stay in the Borderlands of Respectability? ...I didn't care. None of us did" (Hartinger 225).

Reaction:

            Things were starting to look up for Russell with the fact that he found out that he was not the only homosexual student at his school and that he had a jock of a boyfriend. However, his world starts falling apart after Gunnar spreads the rumor that his the anonymous gay kid their school who wanted to start a Gay-Straight Alliance. But when the school outcast Brian decides to take the fall for Russell, Russell realizes that the whole school was ignorant and that no student should be ashamed of what their sexual orientation is. Thus is why Russell and his friend's decided to start the Gay-Straight Alliance to support the homosexuals in their school even if they would lose all their popularity.

The Endless Road In Obtaining The American Dream: Always Running

Title: Always Running                           Date of Publication/Publisher: September 6, 2005, Touchstone

Summary:

When Luis Rodriguez was nine years old, he and his family immigrated to Los Anglos, United States from Mexico, in search of a better life. However, no matter how much Luis and his family tried to fit in, they were still aliens in the eyes of an Anglo, or Caucasian American and were constantly mistreated by them. After being ignored by teachers in school, Luis quickly gave up on academics and joined a local gang called, The Animal at a very young age. Luis then moves out of his home and drifts from one homies’ house to another. While in the gang Luis would past time with his homies by stealing, getting high, and raging war with a rival gang called, The Sangra Diablos.

After living on the streets for a certain period of time, Luis realized how even the police in the city was corrupted by provoking most of the gang rivalries’ and beating every kid they arrest.

As Luis finishes his final year in high school, he starts losing interest for the gang life and questions what was purpose of fighting in this endless gang war his gang fought with Sangra. Instead of getting high all day, Luis makes an effort to improve his education and aspires to become a writer. Luis also makes an effort to help some of the gang members see that there was more to life than just the gang and that there was a whole other world that they were missing. However, by doing this, the gang leaders considered that Luis was betraying the gang and tries to kill him by doing a drive by. Luckily however, Luis was able to duck for cover in time, but he knew he had to leave town because they would come back and try to kill him again. As Luis says farewell to his family, he looks at the city one last time and reminisce here, before getting into the car and heading out of the city. It would be years later before Luis returns to Los Anglos, only this to start a family of his own.

Quote:

“ The homeboys tried to kill me, vatos whom I had known as brothers…slept next to in jail…they were dudes I fought for…I would have died for them” (Rodriguez 238).

Reaction:

Luis was beginning to see that there was more to life than just gangs or drugs and was making an effort to change his life for the better. However, when Luis noticed that his homies from his childhood were dieing one after another, he realized something had to be done. So Luis went and told his gang members that the gang life was not everything and that there was still many other things they have not experienced yet. However, the gang leaders thought of Luis as a traitor for trying to persuade others members to leave the gang and decided to kill him. But to Luis’s luck he was able to run into cover when they tried to kill him. This forced Luis to leave town in fear that they would come back and try to kill him again, if they knew he was still alive.