Review of Boy Wander
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Chinazo Anozie
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Review of Boy Wander
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Boy Wander" by Jobert E. Abueva.]
Boy Wander by Jobert E. Abueva is a coming-of-age memoir that details the author’s life from childhood to adulthood. Abueva had a privileged life, and his family was well-to-do. His father traveled a lot due to his work, and they frequently moved around. Unfortunately, Abueva was sexually molested at a very young age. Perhaps as a result of this, he was prematurely introduced to sexual content (as early as 12 years old or even earlier), and this was the beginning of many sexual encounters for Abueva, some in return for money, which are explicitly detailed in this book.
My heart broke reading how Abueva got molested at such a young age. It was clear that, at the time, he wasn’t fully aware of or even understood what was going on, and I believe this subsequently affected him in dealing with his sexuality. Abueva’s confusion became more evident as he increasingly and actively began to seek out these encounters. For example, while visiting an ice rink with his family, Abueva had a sexual encounter with an adult stranger who offered to pay him. Abueva didn’t get paid for the act and was more upset about this than anything else. I couldn’t get over the fact that he was more upset about not getting paid than the fact that he had been statutorily raped (in my opinion) by an adult.
I did not enjoy reading some of his encounters, as many occurred before he turned 18 and with adults, too! As time went on, Abueva even seemed proud of these encounters. I believe it's because he never got the proper care and attention after the first encounter with his father’s worker. I’m not sure Abueva ever told anyone of it, especially as he gradually began to discover that he was gay. In yet another example, after figuring out a spot in a particular hotel in Tokyo where he could be solicited for sex, he met a New Yorker who protested his age (he was, I believe, 16 at the time) and called it abuse but still got intimate with him.
My major disappointment about this book is that other than an event that happened in New York when he was 18 (I don’t want to reveal much to avoid spoilers), I didn’t get much sense of emotional maturity or self-awareness from Abueva that one typically sees in coming-of-age novels. I thought the book ended too abruptly, and I would have loved to see how that event influenced him as he entered a new chapter in his life.
However, I commend Abueva’s bravery and honesty in sharing his story. I also enjoyed reading Boat Girl, the poem he wrote and published after being inspired by a family from war-torn Vietnam whom his family had hosted. Considering all the above, I’m rating this book 2 out of 5 stars. This book contains explicit sexual content that may not be suitable for sensitive readers.
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Boy Wander
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
Boy Wander by Jobert E. Abueva is a coming-of-age memoir that details the author’s life from childhood to adulthood. Abueva had a privileged life, and his family was well-to-do. His father traveled a lot due to his work, and they frequently moved around. Unfortunately, Abueva was sexually molested at a very young age. Perhaps as a result of this, he was prematurely introduced to sexual content (as early as 12 years old or even earlier), and this was the beginning of many sexual encounters for Abueva, some in return for money, which are explicitly detailed in this book.
My heart broke reading how Abueva got molested at such a young age. It was clear that, at the time, he wasn’t fully aware of or even understood what was going on, and I believe this subsequently affected him in dealing with his sexuality. Abueva’s confusion became more evident as he increasingly and actively began to seek out these encounters. For example, while visiting an ice rink with his family, Abueva had a sexual encounter with an adult stranger who offered to pay him. Abueva didn’t get paid for the act and was more upset about this than anything else. I couldn’t get over the fact that he was more upset about not getting paid than the fact that he had been statutorily raped (in my opinion) by an adult.
I did not enjoy reading some of his encounters, as many occurred before he turned 18 and with adults, too! As time went on, Abueva even seemed proud of these encounters. I believe it's because he never got the proper care and attention after the first encounter with his father’s worker. I’m not sure Abueva ever told anyone of it, especially as he gradually began to discover that he was gay. In yet another example, after figuring out a spot in a particular hotel in Tokyo where he could be solicited for sex, he met a New Yorker who protested his age (he was, I believe, 16 at the time) and called it abuse but still got intimate with him.
My major disappointment about this book is that other than an event that happened in New York when he was 18 (I don’t want to reveal much to avoid spoilers), I didn’t get much sense of emotional maturity or self-awareness from Abueva that one typically sees in coming-of-age novels. I thought the book ended too abruptly, and I would have loved to see how that event influenced him as he entered a new chapter in his life.
However, I commend Abueva’s bravery and honesty in sharing his story. I also enjoyed reading Boat Girl, the poem he wrote and published after being inspired by a family from war-torn Vietnam whom his family had hosted. Considering all the above, I’m rating this book 2 out of 5 stars. This book contains explicit sexual content that may not be suitable for sensitive readers.
******
Boy Wander
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
Latest Review: The Hands of a Warrior by M.A. Dozier
