Doing It

This book honestly deals with the struggles that young teens go through in trying to navigate their sexual desires. Seen mostly through the eyes of three boys, and occasionally though their love interests eyes, this book gives an honest depiction of what it is like to be a teen and want to follow through on one's sexual urges- without completely taking away the vulnerable human feelings that each character feels.
While controversial for some due to its depictions of sexual acts and thoughts, this book is a great showcase for other teens who might not know who to talk to about their feelings on the subject or who need help understanding why sex can be so complicated. And for those who do find it controversial- maybe they have just show more forgotten what its like to be a teen and how hard it can be to deal with the ranging hormones, yet not have complete self-control over ones own thoughts, feelings and actions. show less

A sex comedy for teenagers, and absolutely brilliant it is too. Gleefully filthy but never gratuitous [sex in this story always comes with consequences and complications], this book is up there with Junk and Bloodtide as some of this author's best work. Burgess is a fine, moral writer: a British national treasure. And as for whether Doing It is 'too rude to be a childrens' book' – well, you probably overheard worse from the kids on the bus this morning. Unmissable.

Plot: Dino, Jon and Ben are three teens that want to have sex. The narrative follows all three boys in their sexual escapades.

Evaluation: Melvin Burgess received a lot of flack for this novel. The teenage boys that discuss sex in this book are very frank about it. The sex is also graphic. I thought there was nothing wrong with seeing the point of view of teen boys since I had already read Forever, which concerned love and sex from a female perspective. In an article that I read about Melvin Burgess and his works ("Sympathy for the Devil"), he stated that when he first set out to write Doing It, he went around to all of his friends and acquaintances and asked for their “early knobby stories.” Some of the stories that his friends told show more him were crude, pathetic, funny and even charming. For the most part, I think the main point of his novel is that sex isn’t something to be ashamed of and that everyone has a story about his or her very first sexual encounter. It can even be argued that Doing It has some of the same qualities of Forever, in that it gives a frank point of view concerning sex and what it’s like for the first time someone “does it.”

Even though the book is from a male perspective, the limited female perspectives were pretty interesting as well. I thought that Jackie was just as thoughtful about sex as Katherine was in Forever. It is obvious that she is unsure as to whether she should sleep with Dino. She thinks about it a lot and even though she wants to physically sleep with him, she knows that she is emotionally unprepared to give herself over to Dino. I thought that this internal wrestling of emotions that Jackie experiences is similar to the feelings that Katherine experiences. It's also interesting to note that both Dino and Michael do not understand why their girlfriends need to be "emotionally ready" to have sex. The concept seems foreign to both guys. show less

This is a touching and hilarious look at the emotional lives of three teen boys. The first chapter was as shocking as I'd been led to expect, but most of the quotes I'd read in reviews had been taken out of context. I really enjoyed seeing the thoughts of these boys:
- Dino, convinced he's in love with the best looking girl in school, but continually frustrated when she won't sleep with him
- Ben, having a relationship so secret he can never breath a whisper of it to anyone
- Jon, appearing conflicted over his attraction to an overweight friend
The three of them are obsessed with sex, confused by their feelings, and trying to create relationships with girls, families and each other.
The shifting point of view between different first show more person speakers and an omniscient narrator, lets us dip into the thoughts of different characters, seeing scenes form different angles.
The girls too have a voice, they are not cardboard characters, they are more than the objects of desire the boys paint them as.
I wish I'd read this before I went to college show less

A surprisingly complex story told by alternating narrators, predominantly three seventeen-year-old males preoccupied with sex. One young man is involved with a young woman almost as self-absorbed as he is, the second is struggling with dating a young woman whose body does not confirm to his peer group's stereotypes, and the third is trying to extricate himself from an abusive relationship with his drama teacher. Be warned: this novel is not for those with delicate sensibilities. Burgess is a fine writer who handles uncomfortable scenes with sensitivity and honesty — there was a lot about this book to like. Just don't expect to find it in every high school library.

5Q 3P. Doing it gets a 5 in quality because, as someone who was once a high school boy, I can vouch for the accuracy with which Melvin Burgess writes about the crudeness, the hormones, and the habits of highschool boys. The only reason this received a 3 in popularity is because I can see alot of girls needing to be given a push to get into it, but once they start I imagine they will be disgusted and intrigued to see the interworking of a boys mind.
Doing it follows the sexual misadventures of three British high school aged boys. They all have raging hormones and want (and occasionally have) sex, but they all also want something more. Whether its love, or acceptance, or getting out of a relationship, the boys Burgess writes about are like show more all boys, sometimes gross, sometimes cruel, and infinitely more complex than most people tend to give them credit for. This excellently written tale may nauseate some, but ultimately gives a thoughtful look into how 17 year old boys think, act, and feel. show less

3Q, 4P

The detailed descriptions and graphic portrayals of three teenage boys coming into their own sexuality make a controversial and interesting reading. The characters come to life and seem true to teenage boy form. Each seems genuine and might be easily related to someone we know or knew in high school.

Despite the interesting characters and unique situations that the characters find themselves in the book seems to be entirely one-note. The boys seem to become archetypes brought to life instead of real people as each character is only understood in terms of the role each fulfills within the story. This is in part because of the brief relation of the female point-of-view with the story.

Overall will fit well within the YA genre but show more not necessarily a must-read. show less