Arthur and Teddy Are Coming Out: The uplifting, feel-good read of 2023

Product Information

Having grandfather and grandson sharing the spotlight instead, this book has torn up the rulebook completely. Arthur's grandson Teddy has been hiding his sexuality from his family, and Arthur's announcement makes Teddy even more unsure about coming out himself. Teddy’s narrative goes something like this: the little nepo baby is as nepo baby does and, apparently having “caved”, allows his mother to pull some strings and get him a job at the same newspaper she worked at. Any images and covers will have a text description for the visually impaired enabled through their device's text-to-speech function and similarly, this complies with digital braille readers and similar devices.

I loved the idea of this book when I read the blurb, and I was super excited to receive an ARC of it, but I have to admit, I found it really disappointing.

Arthur and Teddy Are Coming Out is a feel good novel about a man and his grandson both telling their family that they are gay. To me, Lexie doesn't do much to move the main story along, so I don't have any particularly strong feelings towards her but she's a perfectly pleasant character and clearly a good friend. His habit of putting himself down and avoiding taking risks is one so many readers will recognise and it’s his development over the course of the story that is so engaging.

Arthur is glad that his only grandson won’t be deterred from visiting, despite Lizzie’s edict, and when Teddy reveals his own preferences, their bond is strengthened. Over the months that follow life for Arthur and Teddy includes: some nasty gossips, a secret crush, a dare-devil stunt for charity, a television appearance, a long-lost love, a teen suicide, long-held secrets, loyal friends, a gay bar, an engagement, a betrayal of trust, a surprise reunion, a vivacious eighty-two-year-old friend, and a double wedding. It tells the story of a grandfather and grandson both grappling with the coming out process and the prejudices that still exist in our society.Don’t miss brilliant fiction every week in the pages of My Weekly, plus reviews of the best new fiction book releases. Despite the story being a little twee, I really enjoyed it and I would recommend it if you're looking for a comforting read that will tug at your heartstrings. I can't think of any other story I've read with a coming out story for a character of his age, but it's one that needed to be told.

I loved the relationship between Arthur and Teddy and I loved the support that Madeline showed towards Arthur throughout the book.Until then, I suppose at least younger readers will (probably) enjoy the Teddys and Bens of the fictional world. She decides to show up at their charity fundraiser and that manages to earn her forgiveness immediately.

She accuses him of making it up, of coming out to spite her personally, of attempting to take the spotlight away from his uncle’s engagement, anything but recognise that he’s being vulnerable to her and hoping, despite knowing how she reacted to her father’s coming out, that she might be kind to him.I suspect this is going to be the dividing factor on whether people like this: are you a reader who wants to see the best in everyone, or do you feel some people need a good kicking? I loved the love throughout the book - not just the romantic kind but through friendship, sibling and family love too.