When Sebastian Brother, a former student and soon-to-be published author, becomes a TA for The Seminar sparks fly. However, Sebastian is a devout LDS, he's slated to take his Mission (two-year long missionary work anywhere in the world) in the summer and his Father is the local LDS church Bishop. Their mutual attraction is forbidden. The novel focuses heavily on the power that parents play in their children's lives. How their acceptance or rejection can either help their child grow and flourish, or close themselves off and turn them into an emotional robot. We see the affects of this through Tanner's parents acceptance and Sebastian's parents rejection. How both sets of parents have rules they put in place to protect their sons, but also how these rules stifle and harm who they are or who they love. Tanner's parent's are worried about his relationship with an LDS young man, so they put in place rules to try to deter the relationship from even occurring. Sebastian's parents are very clear on their stance about homosexuality, so Sebastian must continuously hide his true self behind a curtain of the perfect LDS son, future Bishop, mission worker. This involves him having perfected a fake smile and blind obedience. The novel also touches on the affects of religion on an individual, how faith can be both comforting/welcoming, but also suffocating. There are moments when the Church of Latter-day Saints is shown as being a peaceful place, full of welcoming people and love. But then we see the other side, the false smiles, the disapproval and shame. Sebastian also talks about his own personal faith and beliefs, how he prays and feels he is not wrong, that his attraction to Tanner is right. Tanner speaks of believing in something, not necessarily religion, but a higher power that affects his life in positive ways. So, even while religion is used to shame and enforce out-dated beliefs, faith is also shown to be a place of revelations, love and acceptance of self. At the beginning of the novel, Tanner seems to be the more immature of the two; but, as their relationship unfolds, you see the life Sebastian has lead has made him emotionally immature. However, Tanner and Sebastian's relationship works so well, they ground each other, help each other, build each other up. I just love how this story made me think and question. Made me think of how people are treated. How there are still so many people who must hide themselves, who feel shame for being who they are, that are treated unfairly. The novel made me question how I was raised; what I might have been taught from a young age versus what I was taught and how it molds my life and affects my decisions. I come from a loving family, which was caring and accepting and did not shelter us from the world or from the different forms of love. I was raised to accept and respect and love others for who they are. I was lucky. Such a beautiful book, worth the read. I highly recommend this novel, as it has been one of my favourite reads of this year.
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