In Mike We Trust

by P. E. Ryan, 321 pages

After his boat-loving father's drowning death during a storm, high-schooler Garth spends his time building detailed ship models, wishing he weren't so short, and trying not to give his overly-anxious mother more reason to worry. She's so consumed by fear that, when he tells her he's gay, she begs him to keep it to himself until he's "older"--not because she can't accept it, but because acknowledging it could expose him to the dangers of bullying and hate crimes. She even freaks out when he tries to call a counseling hotline for LGBT youth. So, he hides his sexuality from everyone (except his best friend Lisa), builds his models, and has nightmares about not being able to save his father. Until, that is, his Uncle Mike--his father's fun-loving, estranged twin--shows up at their dingy apartment door asking to crash for a few weeks. Suddenly, Garth has a male role model again, a sage confidante, and a social life. How could Garth's dad have had a falling out with such a seemingly great guy? So Uncle Mike drags Garth into some questionable business ventures...and gets him to lie to his mother...and his best friend...and his new friend.... It's only for a couple of weeks. No big deal, right? Right?

The dangers of lying--whether about where you went today or who you are inside--take center stage in this coming-of-age YA novel. While I enjoyed the story and characters very much, I didn't like it quite as well as Ryan's other teen books. Garth's naïveté and impressionable nature are understandable given his age and home life, but even after he realizes early on that his uncle isn't as ideal as he'd convinced himself he was, the boy still goes along with his schemes, desperate for whatever father-figure-ish companionship he can get. It's frustrating watching the train wreck he knowingly helps make of things as he becomes almost as blame-worthy as his inveterate charlatan of an uncle. One of the things I like about the book, though, is Mike's fairly realistically flawed character. He really cares about Garth and gives him some good advice about being himself, but then turns around and pressures the boy into lying about nearly everything else in his life. He's neither a conveniently perfect role model nor a completely heartless villain. Also, I appreciate that not all of Garth's messes are neatly tied up before the final page. I just wish he had a little more backbone and that his story wasn't so overtly message-driven, as the latter element is distracting and takes away from the book's realism. Quibbles aside, I still wish Garth good things. He's just a kid, after all. And they need all the support they can get.