Reader Responses

"I really, really enjoyed Barry Lyga's novel, Boy Toy.  I wasn't sure if I was going to when I read the summary, mostly because I wanted to hear more about Kyra and Fanboy.  But I found that this novel surpassed my expectations.  I was once again struck by how well Mr. Lyga creates completely believable teenage characters.  I feel as if I am in my high-school when I read his novels; the characters are people I expect to meet when I round the corner.  Their internal turmoil as well as their external voices are spot-on."
-- Giselle (age 19)

"The mechanics of the novel were perfect. I was expecting Boy Toy to be an easy-reading, typical, young adult novel but I couldn’t have been more wrong. This novel should be read by everyone."
-- Holly (age 16)

"I could not put this book down! The greatest thing about Boy Toy is that it's so much more than just a story of a boy who got molested, it's high-school, relationships, baseball, love, fear, friends, family, inner-turmoil, figuring out life and so much more."
-- Amanda (age 19)

"I loved it!  I could not stop reading it from the first day I picked it up. I stayed up one night straight through the night reading this sucker!  It was that addicting."
--Shawn (age 19)

I recently received some reviews from Gretchen Ipock at Sellers Library in Upper Darby, PA. She had some teens read the book and respond to it. Here are some excerpts, but visit here to read more. And to read Caitlin's complete essay (which is really funny and terrific), click here.

• "Although Boy Toy tackles the very current subject of sexual abuse, it should not be relegated to the pile of teen problem novels."
  --Gretchen (YA librarian)
• "I recommend Boy Toy to anyone who enjoys stories about love and difficult truths. Boy Toy has become one of my all-time favorite books."
  --Alexa (age 15)
• "Overall, it was a very interesting read and shows Barry Lyga’s versatility as a writer."
  --Kara (age 17)
• "Boy Toy was my literary poltergeist for the past few days, and it refused to leave me alone until I sat down for a few hours and finally finished it."
  --Caitlin (age 17)

  "...one of the most challenging pieces of young adult literature that I have read in a long time....  Barry Lyga is one of the better YA authors out there."
--Melissa (read the complete review on her MySpace blog)

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Showing comments 1 to 10 of 14 | Next | Last

1

Boy Toy
By: Shawn on Wed June 20, 2007, 19:40:56

I completely agree! I loved Boy Toy! It was a story that all high schoolers can relate to and Barry did a great job about making the book the character. I could not put the book down and was absolutely absorbed and caught up in it and was amazed at how I saw bits of myself, my friends and even stereotypical male and female behavior in the characters! How he captures teenage characters is genius! You must read Boy Toy!

2

Boy Toy
By: Gage Branda on Wed October 24, 2007, 19:02:16

Boy Toy is an amazing book and will definitely will be kept for future re-reading. I can't wait to read your future books.

3

i luv the book
By: desiree on Sun December 09, 2007, 18:46:30

hey i just finished boy toy an i love it!!!im going tot share it with all my friends please write more books!!!

4

Excellent Writing!
By: Kelsi Conner on Wed January 02, 2008, 04:21:37

As a teen, I found Boy Toy and The Adventures of Fanboy and Gothgirl to be extremely accurate! Other books show the -Watered down- version of High school, Barry did a GREAT job of TELLING IT LIKE IT IS! No, Everyone DOESN'T get along ALL THE TIME. Different Cliques make lower cliques on the food chains lives Hell! Thank you for finally letting the truth out!
P.S. Mister Lyga, I Think you would do an excellent job if you wrote a book about Vampires.
Keep up the good work!
KC

5

feelings
By: disha on Mon January 21, 2008, 22:17:22

as i read boytoy i was so amazed by barry lyga's honest writing. i couldn't stop myself ,it was like god i have to finish this book. i felt really bad for josh. all those years when he thought he was in love by eve; it all came crashing down when he faced his paret's divorce news and the true confession out of eve's mouth. it felt like i could hear his heartbreaking and his overwhelming realization of his physical abuse. thank you for a wonderful book with honest and raw feelings of a complex teenager

6

Boy Toy
By: Seth Dellon on Tue February 12, 2008, 12:32:21

"Boy Toy" moved me. I read a lot of books, and write a lot of reviews, but I haven't been affected by a book like I was by "Boy Toy" in a really long time. I wrote two reviews: http://cbeblog.blogspot.com/2008/02/getting-under-cut-off.html and http://822writingcompany.blogspot.com/2008/02/im-dirty-and-so-is-boy-t oy.html

Thank you for writing this and letting me experience it.

7

Amazing
By: Sian on Tue March 04, 2008, 19:26:46

At first i was a little unsure about if i wanted to read this book because of the title, but I was glad I did. It's a great story of truth and love, and I enjoyed it immensley. thanks for a great book!

8

This Outstanding Book
By: Carli on Fri March 21, 2008, 15:41:58

I can't believe how this book can't be #1 best-seller. I love the idea of normal life, how kids can refer to it as something they might have gone through. It makes me feel that one kid isn't the only one, and that any abuse is wrong. Barry Lyga shows how he really feels about it in this book, and I reccomend it to any teenager.

9

Boy Toy
By: Jonathan on Tue March 25, 2008, 20:06:54

Mr. Lyga has done it again! I picked up his first novel randomly off the shelf, because all the shelves in the Young Adult isles seem to be for girls... but TAoFaGG (long abreviation). I loved it. I found this months later, and saw the author. I picked it up, and I loved it. It's real stuff. It's not "Everything's going to be okay." lies. It's life. And Lyga knows what he does. An amazing author, with two, soon three, amazing books.

10

Boy Toy
By: Justin on Wed April 02, 2008, 15:10:42

Boy Toy was a great book to read and it actually is a wonderful book hat can be created into a movie that a lot of kids my age would love to go see and be able to see what they have missed out on. Barry you did a great job with this book! I wish I could have read the one before this one!

Showing comments 1 to 10 of 14 | Next | Last