I'm... still not sure what I think of this??? RTC maybe ( )

The descriptive bit: We Are Lost And Found by Helene Dunbar tells an important story that took place in the 80s. Michael is a young man who is just becoming comfortable with his sexuality, and he’s living in a time when he has to contemplate the fact that having sex might kill him. HIV/AIDS is spreading even though, at that time, there was nothing certain about transmission. To add to the uncertainty in Michael’s life, his brother Connor has been kicked out of the family home by their homophobic father. All that keeps Michael sane is his free-spirited friend, James, his bestie Becky and the mysterious boy he keeps meeting at his favorite club.

My thoughts bit: Oh this book. I absolutely loved it. Full transparency – I began volunteering at AIDS organizations in the early 90s and was running one five years later. This was my time frame. Dunbar really captured the fear and confusion that was rampant in the 80s and 90s. HIV/AIDS was such a huge thing hanging over a community of people who had once been very sexually free.

Michael is a great character. He’s complex and I really enjoyed being in his head for a while. His home life was heart-breaking with a homophobic father and a mother without the wherewithal to stand up for her sons. Michael finds his escape from uncertainty at The Echo – a dance club that has become his little island of safety.

Michael is often in the shadow of his friend James. James is artistic, mysterious and creative and he draws people to him. Becky, on the other hand, is worried about everyone. While Becky and James have a bit of friction between them, Michael seems to be the glue that holds their friendship together.

Once Michael meets Gabriel things change. Gabriel only has eyes for Michael and for the first time in his life Michael is pushed out of his comfort zone. He has to figure out how to be the person he needs to be without being thrown out of his home. How does it feel when you see your first Pride parade? How do you make the decision to have sex in a time when there’s a deadly disease that no one knows how to prevent? How do you protect yourself from something you can’t see? What risk is worth it?

This is an important story. There are so many people who have forgotten what happened during the 80s and 90s. This is a story that has needed to be retold for the YA audience and I think that Dunbar has nailed it.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the music references throughout this story. I want the soundtrack! I had to stop a couple of times while I was reading to head to Apple Music! The music was a great way to round out the feel of the time.

The warnings bit: Please be aware, I’m by no means an expert on what may or may not have the potential to disturb people. I simply list things that I think a reader might want to be aware of. In this book: Homophobic speech, homophobia, hate crime (homophobia results in physical assault), verbally abusive parent, mention of unprotected sex.

I received an ARC of We Are Lost And Found by Helene Dunbar from SOURCEBOOKS Fire via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. ( )

Michael Bartolomeo has two great friends - James and Becky - but lives largely in silence and fear. His dad kicked his older brother, Connor, out of the house when Connor came out, and Michael knows he is also gay. Also, it's 1983, and AIDS is beginning to spread in New York, but little is known about it (it's initially called GRID, gay-related immune disease). Michael wants to fall in love - but is it safe?

'80s music, graffiti'd subways, pay phones, experimental theater, and sudden anti-gay violence ground the reader thoroughly in the time and place, and Michael's dilemma is a real one. Becky and James are full characters with problems of their own, but the three friends' support for each other is beautiful.

Includes two afterwords (by Ron Goldberg, and Jeremiah Johnson and Jason Walker)

See also: All the Greys on Greene Street by Laura Tucker, Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan, Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

Quotes (from ARC obtained at SLJ Day of Dialog at the Cambridge Public Library, fall 2019)

I need to learn to say no. Becky tells me that all the time; only she never wants me to say no to her. (35)

Maybe reality can never be as good as what's in my head, anyhow. (109)

By the curtain call [of Blood Makes Noise], Becky and I are standing with only a handful of survivors. Those who, for better or worse, have kept silent. (186)

This is the future, the [Dial-a-Daze] recording says. Your future. A week ago, you might not have recognized the person you are today. A week from now you might be different still. Savor this time. Be proud of who you are at this singular moment. (196)

Is fear just another type of disease? (212)

How do I live my life without becoming a statistic? (221)

But I don't have a story, I respond.
Everyone has a story, Michael. Maybe you just don't know the plot of yours yet. (Michael and Becky, 255) ( )

Set in New York during 1983, We Are Lost and Found by Helene Dunbar is a poignant young adult novel set against the backdrop of the beginning of the AIDS crisis.

Sixteen year old Michael Bartolomeo is navigating his life with best friends James Barrows and Becky Kaplan. He is gay but considering his parents kicked out his older brother Connor after he came out, Michael is struggling to remain in the closet. He escapes the pressures of his home life through music and evenings dancing at The Echo. Michael is also quite close to James, who is making his mark in the theatre world and Becky who lives on tenterhooks due to her mother's drug use. Michael's budding romance with Gabriel takes place at the start of the AIDS epidemic. With little information available about how to protect himself against this frightening disease, will Michael be willing to jump into a relationship with Gabriel?

Michael is an interesting narrator but the lack of quotation marks and the abrupt scene changes between the vignettes makes it difficult to connect to him and the unfolding story. The story does not really come together until well after the halfway point as Michael truly understands the realities of being gay during a deadly health epidemic. His brother Connor's reckless and risky decisions also serve as a cautionary tale as Michael begins to fall in love with Gabriel.

We Are Lost and Found is a thought-provoking young adult novel with an interesting storyline. The plot is well-researched, quite informative and offers a realistic portrait of coming to age at such a fraught time period. While the writing style might work not for everyone, this young adult novel by Helene Dunbar highlights a compelling and important part of LGBT history.
( )

The descriptive bit: We Are Lost And Found by Helene Dunbar tells an important story that took place in the 80s. Michael is a young man who is just becoming comfortable with his sexuality, and he’s living in a time when he has to contemplate the fact that having sex might kill him. HIV/AIDS is spreading even though, at that time, there was nothing certain about transmission. To add to the uncertainty in Michael’s life, his brother Connor has been kicked out of the family home by their homophobic father. All that keeps Michael sane is his free-spirited friend, James, his bestie Becky and the mysterious boy he keeps meeting at his favorite club.

My thoughts bit: Oh this book. I absolutely loved it. Full transparency – I began volunteering at AIDS organizations in the early 90s and was running one five years later. This was my time frame. Dunbar really captured the fear and confusion that was rampant in the 80s and 90s. HIV/AIDS was such a huge thing hanging over a community of people who had once been very sexually free.

Michael is a great character. He’s complex and I really enjoyed being in his head for a while. His home life was heart-breaking with a homophobic father and a mother without the wherewithal to stand up for her sons. Michael finds his escape from uncertainty at The Echo – a dance club that has become his little island of safety.

Michael is often in the shadow of his friend James. James is artistic, mysterious and creative and he draws people to him. Becky, on the other hand, is worried about everyone. While Becky and James have a bit of friction between them, Michael seems to be the glue that holds their friendship together.

Once Michael meets Gabriel things change. Gabriel only has eyes for Michael and for the first time in his life Michael is pushed out of his comfort zone. He has to figure out how to be the person he needs to be without being thrown out of his home. How does it feel when you see your first Pride parade? How do you make the decision to have sex in a time when there’s a deadly disease that no one knows how to prevent? How do you protect yourself from something you can’t see? What risk is worth it?

This is an important story. There are so many people who have forgotten what happened during the 80s and 90s. This is a story that has needed to be retold for the YA audience and I think that Dunbar has nailed it.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the music references throughout this story. I want the soundtrack! I had to stop a couple of times while I was reading to head to Apple Music! The music was a great way to round out the feel of the time.

The warnings bit: Please be aware, I’m by no means an expert on what may or may not have the potential to disturb people. I simply list things that I think a reader might want to be aware of. In this book: Homophobic speech, homophobia, hate crime (homophobia results in physical assault), verbally abusive parent, mention of unprotected sex.

I received an ARC of We Are Lost And Found by Helene Dunbar from SOURCEBOOKS Fire via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. ( )