Eight Seconds

HFerris (Invincible Summer) tackles issues of tolerance, homosexuality and self-discovery in this insightful and atmospheric novel set in rodeo country. On the surface, John, the 18-year-old narrator, seems to fit right in: as he puts it, being a guy entails ""riding spirited horses, being able to castrate fifty calves in an afternoon, and burping the alphabet after chugging a long-neck beer,"" as well as getting in fights and dating pretty girls. Even so, he feels like an ""outsider."" When his father sends him to a five-day rodeo school, John discovers a newfound passion in the danger and unpredictability of bull riding, in which the rider attempts to stay on the violently bucking bull for eight seconds, all the while being judged on style and grace. He also forges a highly charged friendship with Kit, another boy at rodeo school, whom John subsequently finds out is gay. John turns on Kit to silence a rumor, one of the many realistic, often subtle story elements that allow the reader to understand the nature of John's attraction to Kit well before John does. At the credible conclusion, readers find John coming to terms with his newfound self-knowledge but not yet able to share it with others. A fast-paced ride that will leave readers thinking. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)