Between Mom and Jo

Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com

BETWEEN MOM AND JO is the first book I've read by Julie Anne Peters, but it won't be my last. In fact, as soon as I finished this book, I went and read KEEPING YOU A SECRET and LUNA. And while we're on confessions, this is also the first book I've read dealing with GLBT (gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender) issues, but again, it won't be the last. This book grabbed at my emotions, affecting me with every word so deeply that I finished it in only a matter of hours--and have been thinking about it ever since.

Nicholas Nathaniel Thomas Tyler has always only known one type of family life. He's the only child of mom Erin--and mom Jo. His earliest memories revolve around one or the other of his mothers, but it's show more usually Jo who is prominent, making him forget about the need for stitches at age three or tangling with the homophobic teacher he had in third grade. His mothers, of course, have their ups and downs like all parents do. Mom Erin complains about mom Jo's drinking and her inability to hold down a steady job; mom Jo can't stand mom Erin's stony silences when she's angry. For Nick, having two mothers is just the way life is. He's heard all the "queers" and "faggots" through the years, he's wondered about the father that donated sperm for his conception, and he's been haunted over whether having two lesbians for parents will make him gay.

Most of all, though, Nick has experienced love from two women who only want him to be happy. He has a three-legged dog named Lucky 2, a ton of fish that he takes care of religiously, and there's even a feral cat named Savage thrown into the mix to keep things interesting. Nick's life is pretty normal--or as normal as it can ever be--until the year he turns fourteen, and Jo moves out.

After a marriage, a child, lost jobs, meetings at AA, college courses, and a relationship that they'd always promised would remain whole, his mothers break up. Nick is suddenly thrust into turmoil, and his whole world falls apart. He's left with mom Erin, his biological mother, even though what he wants most in the world is to be allowed to live with mom Jo. Erin won't hear of it, however, even though she's the one with Kerri, her new girlfriend. She's the real parent, and Jo let trust get in the way of legally adopting Nick, so there's no out.

As Nick descends deeper into depression, as Erin becomes fanatical about not allowing her son to even to talk to Jo on the telephone, as Kerri moves into their home, something has to give.

BETWEEN MOM AND JO is heartfelt, genuine, and painfully honest. For anyone who has ever watched the breakup of a family, or for those with gay or lesbian parents, this is the book for you. I promise it will stay with you for quite awhile. show less

Fourteen-year-old Nick has a lot to deal with in his life, but right now the worst thing that is happening is that his moms, Erin and Jo, are splitting up. Nick looks back on growing up in his different family -- getting teased, being protected, fun times and hard times, and doesn't understand how it all went wrong. Mom and Jo promised to be there for him (together) forever, and now they're breaking that promise. Erin doesn't even want him to see Jo. Nick learns to speak up for what he wants and needs amidst the pain of a parental breakup, and anyone who has ever dealt with divorce, whether it be by two moms, two dads, or a dad and a mom, will relate to Nick

Compelling story of the dissolution of a marriage from the POV of Nick, a 14-year-old boy. His moms' relationship has come apart at the seams, and he wants to live with his non-biological mom. Dwells a little too much and too long on Nick's depression for comfort, and it's hard to believe (she says self-servingly) that a mother could ever be so clueless about her kid. Overall a solid book.

Nick reflects on his life with his mother and Jo, including the struggle with Jo's alcoholism, his mother's cancer, and the stigma he faces from having two moms. The family is loving, but ultimately Mom and Jo's relationship cannot last. Nick is suddenly dealing with adolescence and his parents' break up, leaving him with ever increasing feelings of despair and anger. Through the narrative we get a strong sense of the well developed characters and are truly moved by the deftly conveyed emotions. There are some minor flaws, including the rushed conclusion and there being little change between Nick's voice in adolescence and his voice as a child in flashbacks. Still, this is an exemplary work of teen fiction and one of the few on the show more subject, which makes it a worthy inclusion in collections. show less

Melodramatic.  Sure it's nice to see a story where the mom and the mom are just as messed up as the mom and the dad... the whole 'lesbians are regular people too' thing, of course I get that.  But this seemed implausibly intense in some parts, and implausibly nice in others.  So, yeah, glad it was published, and bought by my library system, glad I read it... looking forward to a better, more nuanced, more True book about a teen struggling w/ loyalty towards his two moms....  Short read, suitable for ages 12 up.

VERY good book about a teenager who has to go through the pain and heartache of regular adolesence on top of his mother's seperation. I like this book because, while it does touch base on the prejudice that homosexuals can experience, the basic tone is that of a normal household, it doesn't overemphasize that fact that Nick's parents are both women. It feels very real and not overdramatic, and I really liked that about this book.

Nick has two Moms, his biological Mom and her wife Jo. He grows up thinking that this is normal until he comes to school. Although he gets taunted by other children he learns to handle being in a special situation. Unfortunately his two Mom's split up after a long relationship and Nick experiences how it is to loose a family member.
You see the whole story through Nick's eyes which makes it a very honest and touching story.
A very well written book which I can recommend to everyone!