Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews

When the truth is a secret, even friends believe the fiction. Vermont 17-year-old James Liddell is a cute, popular (enough) athlete, and so are his friends. He likes how people behave toward him when he is with his sort-of girlfriend, Theresa—but when he's honest with himself, he has a crush on his friend Tim Hawken. James is only 100-percent honest in the letters he writes to friends and family but never sends. He locks them in a desk drawer and has written so many he's lost count. Then he meets Topher and begins cautiously to come out. When he's just started to crack the closet door, someone steals some of the secret letters and sends them to their intended recipients—and everything threatens to come crashing down, just as James has always feared it would. Can he juggle coming out, a new boyfriend, old friends, and the mystery of who stole his letters? Logan's debut is a funny and realistic coming-out tale set firmly in the present in a small, upper-middle-class, mostly white Vermont town, where black friend Derek stands out. The rounded characters deal with betrayal and honesty and love and near tragedy in ways teen readers, gay or straight, will recognize. If there are an awful lot of "dudes" in the dialogue, that just adds to the verisimilitude. Just the right touch of humor, mystery, drama, and romance should earn this a place on every teen bookshelf. (Fiction. 14-18)

ALA Booklist (Fri Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

James has two secrets, one major and one seemingly innocuous. First, he is a closeted gay teen, and second, he is in the habit of writing heartfelt, secret letters with no intention of ever mailing them. His gradual, sometimes painful efforts at coming out are accelerated when someone steals those letters and begins mailing them to the people to whom they are written. James' initial clumsy attempts to discover who the thief is cause disruptions among his friends, alienating some and puzzling others. Frankly, there are not too many surprises here; the coming-out story is by now a familiar one. That consideration aside, Logan handles his material exceptionally well, building suspense as he dramatizes both the downside of being in the closet and the realistic complications of coming out, while creating, in James, an unusually thoughtful and sympathetic character. His friends and family, too, come alive as believable and multidimensional characters whose relationships with James add depth to this satisfying debut.

Horn Book (Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2017)

James puts up a front of happiness for his friends and family, but he secretly records his confusion and anxiety in letters he never sends. While hed like to fall for his "sort-of girlfriend," his true feelings are for best friend Hawken. Logan uses an easy-to-root-for character and his coming-out process to explore varied and complex forms of bullying and peer pressure.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

When the truth is a secret, even friends believe the fiction. Vermont 17-year-old James Liddell is a cute, popular (enough) athlete, and so are his friends. He likes how people behave toward him when he is with his sort-of girlfriend, Theresa—but when he's honest with himself, he has a crush on his friend Tim Hawken. James is only 100-percent honest in the letters he writes to friends and family but never sends. He locks them in a desk drawer and has written so many he's lost count. Then he meets Topher and begins cautiously to come out. When he's just started to crack the closet door, someone steals some of the secret letters and sends them to their intended recipients—and everything threatens to come crashing down, just as James has always feared it would. Can he juggle coming out, a new boyfriend, old friends, and the mystery of who stole his letters? Logan's debut is a funny and realistic coming-out tale set firmly in the present in a small, upper-middle-class, mostly white Vermont town, where black friend Derek stands out. The rounded characters deal with betrayal and honesty and love and near tragedy in ways teen readers, gay or straight, will recognize. If there are an awful lot of "dudes" in the dialogue, that just adds to the verisimilitude. Just the right touch of humor, mystery, drama, and romance should earn this a place on every teen bookshelf. (Fiction. 14-18)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Debut author Logan gives voice to a confused, closeted teen from a small Vermont town. James Liddel, 17, is a perfectly happy star athlete with a "sort-of girlfriend," Theresa, who adores him, and a crew of close friends. But James has a secret that he's sure will destroy his life: he is gay. Certain that his friends and family will reject him once they find out-not an entirely unfounded fear, as most of his friends regularly lob "homo" and "faggot" as insults-James is only truthful about his feelings in the letters he writes but never intends to send. These diary-like letters (which get out, naturally) reveal the pains James goes to in order to hide from those around him. A series of events, including an attack on the only openly gay boy in school, sets James on a course to disclose his sexuality. Logan tackles the complexities of coming out thoughtfully, presenting realistic (and not always fully supportive) responses to James's revelation, as well as his own sometimes-uncharitable attitudes. Ages 13-up. Agent: Rebecca Podos, Rees Literary. (June)

School Library Journal (Sun May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

Gr 9 Up-Seventeen-year-old James reveals his true self only in letters he keeps locked away and never intends to send. As far as everyone knows, popular athlete James is happy with his sort-of girlfriend, Theresa. But James's letters tell a different story: James is pretty sure he is gay. The only problem is that he is surrounded by people who seem like they might not react well to that news. His friends frequently use homophobic slurs, and his parents say things like they are glad he is "normal," not like his gay classmate who had his skull cracked recently. James meets Topher, whom he secretly starts dating, and considers coming out to his friends and family. But before he can, someone steals some of his letters and starts the process for him. Logan shines at creating strong, nuanced characters who behave realistically and unpredictably. Despite their tendency to trash-talk and their reliance on horrible slurs, James and his friends have deep, meaningful, complex bonds. The protagonist's story is about struggling to come to terms with his sexuality. While he knows who he really is, he is uncomfortable with facing this. In a letter to God, James asks him for "a cure for boys who like other boys." Though readers may be turned off by the near-constant homophobia that permeates the story, Logan's look at a boy reconciling his private and public selves is well written and affecting.

Voice of Youth Advocates

James Liddell, a seemingly average teenage boy in Vermont, has an escape hatch. He writes stories in the form of letters he never intends to send. His daily life seems mundane and normal, yet he leads another life with the freedom we all longed for as adolescents. His "coming out" is expressed in his story/letters. How many readers have written letters never sent? Imagine what would happen if these truths, the real mythology of their lives, were revealed? LGBT teens, as well as straight, will recognize much of their lives in this story. James bring up all of the questions and many of the answers, told in an empathetic, compassionate, and often funny manner, displaying the courage and strength that may teens hope to find along the way. The "front" of being popular, athletic, having a girlfriend, and following the preferred path of adolescence all give way to the life James wants to lead and represents in his letters. What happens when the letters somehow find their way to their imagined recipients? The truth always sets us free, and James comes out of his shell and into the world.This is a wonderful book that will encourage young readers to seek authenticity and stand up for their true selves. This light and breezy tale will captivate teen readers and lift them up above the angst and ennui that can easily envelope them. This is highly recommended for medium to large public libraries as well as middle and high school libraries.Jane Murphy.