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New BoySnagging.org In association with Amazon.co.ukOnline Shop | Property Guides | Kitchen & Home | Garden Tools | Power Tools | Consumer Electronics Get the Snagging Checklist Here!  Dewey Decimal Number: 813 EAN: 9780140279108 Edition: New Ed ISBN: 0140279105 Label: Penguin Books Ltd Manufacturer: Penguin Books Ltd Number Of Pages: 208 Publication Date: June 04, 1998 Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd Studio: Penguin Books Ltd Related Items: Editorial Review: Amazon.co.uk Review: The New Boy of William Sutcliffe's hilariously touching debut novel causes a bit of a stir when he arrives at Mark's posh private school. For a start, Barry is devastatingly handsome and causes girls and boys to buckle at the knees. Mark is more than a little jealous, considering himself to be much less attractive. But he spots an ally in Barry and the two quickly become friends though Mark's feelings for Barry are often confused. For a start, he finds himself lusting after the boy in the showers but refuses to think it's because he is gay. Meanwhile, Barry is getting busy with most of the female population within a 50-mile radius, including an affair with one of his own teachers. Mark quickly realises that if he is ever going to be a hit with the opposite sex, he needs Barry's help. But he learns that Barry is hiding a few secrets of his own. This wonderfully funny and engaging novel is a fast and captivating read, as Sutcliffe hits so many marks about the clichés of school life. The neurotic teachers, the geeky pupils and the rites of passage will all strike a chord within most readers, and the characters are effectively and warmly drawn. Mark and Barry's relationship is so wonderfully captured; their brief conversations are mainly populated with swearwords and degenerate into arguments by their end. There are examinations of both religion and, more importantly, homosexuality, and it's a comfort to see these issues treated with a respectful sense of humour. In the end though, New Boy isn't so much a novel about being gay, more about being who you want to be. --Jonathan Weir Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Very Funny IndeedI loved this book, every single side splitting page. Not giving this book its due credit because the main character is difficult to empathise with is madness. When I was at School in the same era, every one was a 'Mark'. I was reluctant to initially read the book assuming that it would honey comb school life like so many books do. This showed school life in all its nasty natural glory. Mark is extremely pitiful and funny all in the same breath. Though the ending was disappointing, for one who aches for a happy ending! It is a book I can recommend to all my friends. When you see painful and awkward films like 'Chuck and Larry' you can really appreciate this all out and out comic book with real laughs where its OK to be confused and lust over whatever gender, albeit reluctantly. We often laugh at the protagonist not with him i.e. line in the book 'Some guys would wait outside the girl's school for glimpses of girls' we all thought this was so gay. Life through the lens of a sexually confused homophobe who is not necessarily the nicest person you would meet is a fantastic read indeed. If the book had went where most people reading it thought it would go or would have liked it to then this fantastic book would be relegated to gay fiction and not enjoyed the success it has. Rating:  - A good readMy mistake was going into this book with expectations of eventual events which, hertbreakingly never happened. Comming up to the end I was so dissappointed that Mark and Barry didn't get together - for some reason I thought that was what the blurb hinted at - dumb idea really. However, aside from that, this book was extremely witty with a very believable narrator - with a mind almost scarily like my own - and an excellent quality of writing. Rating: - New BoyNew Boy is a fantastic book which incorporates realistic characters, a fantastic and believable plot, with the odd twist and turn here and there. It chooses a topic not many authors like to deal with, watching someone elses "coming out" which is very different from many of the other books I have read, when the main character is the one doing the "coming out". It's an easyily read book, without any stress or worry! Fantastic and I recomend it to everyone I talk to about books! Rating: - One of the best books I have ever read!I read "New Boy" around two years ago and have just got around to reviewing it. I have never forgot reading this book, I read a few pages of my friends copy and knew I had to buy it. A boy struggling with his sexuality...he is fantastic. He is open and he is honest. The writter does a very good job explaining how he feels and why this might be. The other characters are very believable and overall it is very well written. Perfect for ages 14-19. Once you have read it you will never forget it! Rating: - Adrian mole meets South Parks - Very goodThe politically incorrect thoughts of a sixth form Jewish Adrian Mole. Ok, the narrator is a bit simpleminded sometimes and may not at all time be the best of choice as a friend but this makes a very good, funny, entertaining story; the end being at times touching. It is not a gay novel, the caracter is just confused about is sexual identity, this is not the typical coming out story you could expect but all the better. A rather unique book, I was very pleasantly surprised.  Try searching the Internet for "New Boy" or Ebay for "New Boy". You might also be interested in the following great products:
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