Teen Writers Bloc

It took me months to track down a copy of Perry Moore’s Hero. I couldn’t even find a copy at The Strand. The one time I actually saw it on a shelf at the Union Square Barnes & Noble, the front cover was crinkled (a pet peeve of mine) and I had no money to spend. The second time I saw it, about a month later, I was in a Barnes & Noble in Poughkeepsie, browsing the Teen Literature section and my fingers happened to strum along the right shelf. There it was. And quicker than I could say “gay superhero,” I was at the checkout counter with my credit card ready to go.

Hero caught my attention a while back, when I was trying to track down teen lit about gay characters. When I saw that it was about a gay teen with super powers, I was obsessed with tracking it down. Who knew it would take me five months (I don’t believe in buying anything online, which would’ve shaved an absurd amount of time off my search), but when I finally found it, I couldn’t put it down.

It’s a slow burner, starting off with a bit too much back story, but I realized as I read that I couldn’t rush it. The relationships Moore was constructing needed time to simmer so when they boiled and bubbled and exploded, everything would resonate. What I responded to most was the struggle of gay protagonist, Thom Creed, and his balance of his private life with his family life and the life he wanted for himself. Even though Thom had super powers, he still wasn’t able to escape the “shame” that most gay teens face: “My father won’t approve or understand,” “I’ll be shamed and/or shunned,” “my family will get shunned from society,” “I’ll never have a normal life.” This struggle is something that Moore balanced beautifully. It’s something that struck an emotional chord with me.

Hero also deals with issues of gay-bashing and bullying, which makes it extremely timely. One of the super-hero’s-in-training Thom trains with throughout the book, Ruth, whose abilities include seeing into the future, becomes a sort of “It Get’s Better” friend to Thom, and allows him to see that first glimpse of acceptance, that “it’s ok to be who you are.”

But, at the end of the day, Hero is more than just a book about a gay teen. It’s a book about being a teen in general. It’s a book that shows how hard it is to juggle school, family and the development of personal identity. It’s a book that shows us that to become the person you need to be, you might have to do things you don’t want to do and ruffle some feathers. It’s a book about the gray area between right and wrong. It’s a book about self-acceptance. It’s a book for adults and teens, boys and girls, straight and gay. It’s a book for comic book fans, and it’s a book for those who’ve never picked up a comic. It’s teen lit at its best.

Imagine my extreme sadness when I got home from work today and saw in my in-box that Perry Moore had passed away this morning. It said the 39 year old executive producer of The Chronicles of Narnia films was found unconscious this morning by his partner. When I googled it to confirm, I found that he’d been working on a sequel to Hero, as well as new book series.

As I sit at my computer with my paperback of Hero next to me, I can’t help but think about how the world lost a true talent today. But I know that his words and message will continue to reach teens all over the world. Perry Moore will live on in the hands of teens who read about Thom Creed. He will live on in the minds of those teens he made a difference to. He will live on in my mind forever. Rest in peace, Perry. Thank you.

Photo Credit: Getty Images, Hyperion

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