The New Kid

by Eliot Schrefer

At fifteen years old, Humphrey has spent his life as the new kid, moving from town to town as his parents keep losing jobs. The latest move brings him to Haven, Florida, where his family rents a motel room for lack of money. Humphrey gradually makes his way into a circle of the local cool kids, but when his friendship with one handsome boy and the boy's mother leads to illicit and confusing sexual attractions, he begins to question the nature of his...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743299094
• ISBN13: 9780743299091
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.5" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

An excellent new coming of age novel

I applaud the author of The New Kid. The coming of age novel has languished in angst without the benefit of substance or cohesive style. Schrefer's debut novel is fresh and sophisticated. The characters respond with realism and are never shallow. My only qualm, the only reason I did not give this work 5 stars, is a fored bit of plotting towards the book's end, a disaster that seemed unnecessary and rather soap-operish. Note that this is the vanguard of the post-gay movement, which may cause some discomfort in those readers who happen to be gay and older than 35; we are far more used to characters that question their sexual identity and then make that an important theme of the rest of the book. Not so with this novel. However, the discomfort causes thought and questions perspective, which is a good thing. I look forward to Schrefer's next work.

A Teenage Bildungsroman

This novel is about growing up and the ensuing pains that accompany it. The tale is divided into three parts, the first and last narrated by Humphrey and the middle by his sister Gretchen. While Humphrey juggles the social circles of his new high school with the confusing feelings of adolescent sexuality, his sister falls prey to the lies that we tell ourselves when we are in love. Growing up is indeed hard and Schrefer does an exceptional job in describing the myriad of unspoken ways in which it is. I do not want to give away the novel here since it's such an excellent read, but I loved this book due to the fact that I identified with Gretchen wholeheartedly: the self-delusion, self-absorption, and navel-gazing that occur when we fall in love too deeply and lose track of ourselves---and the people around us. Humphrey, who is younger but more self-aware than his sister, has a journey to adulthood that is watermarked by a shocking peripeteic development toward the end of the novel. His journey is therefore much more complicated and subtle than his sister's. But we emerge with confidence that he will make a fine young man. We also emerge with confidence that Schrefer is a fresh new voice to keep watching.

Amazing book!

I was really blown away by this book. Eliot Schrefer poetically and insightfully weaves together the emotionally complex stories of the two main characters leaving the reader completely glued. This is definitely one of those books where you wish your commute to work were a little bit longer so that you could keep reading.

Finally a gifted young author who isn't a show-off

Like the first reviewer, it was the cover that first got me, and then when I started reading I was totally sucked in. Just when I start to think all young authors get huge advances for writing pretentiously about situations they know nothing about, I saw good old fashioned writing about fascinating, living and breathing characters. I definitely found myself looking forward to Humphrey's sections most. he just feels like a sweet, lost kid. I'm glad I bought this one. I haven't read the first book, and probably won't since the subject matter doesn't interest me too much, but I'll definitely keep an eye out for this talented author.

A talented new voice

This is a book that I stumbled upon at a local book store. The cover art caught my attention. I'd never read anything about it. I started reading it then and there and became almost instantly enthralled. The writing is both polished and compelling. What's it about? Imgaine a hybrid of "A World of Normal Boys" and "The Line of Beauty" (both excellent books - so I consider this a compliment). Fifteen year old Humphrey is a mostly typical teenager, confused by his burgeoning libido. He finds himself attracted to girls, but also to his friend Wade. Without giving too much away, Humprhey ends up a victim of a violence. After a short hospital stay he is invited to spend the summer with his sister and her rich fiance's family on the Riviera. What promised to be a wonderful escape from a chaotic home life, quickly sours when the wealthy family is revealed to be far more troubled than anyone could expect. The events depicted seem wholly organic, flowing seamlessly until they coalesce in a shattering climax. I'll not give a more detailed synopsis, as this is a novel with many plot twists and surprises. Revealing too much would be bad form. Eliot Schrefer has a wonderful descrptive gift, he is major talent and defintely someone with a very bright future.