Rating: 
Summary: A TRULY ENJOYABLE TAKEDOWN!
Review: "PINS" covers a wide spectrum of those elements that comprise that thing we call life. It is a tale that is part social and religious commentary, part coming-of-age story, part crime story, and part romance. This book has it all.Joey (later to become "Joseph" as he matures emotionally and physically) is the main protagonist: a high school wrestler, jockeying between his familial role, his loyalty to his teammates, his Catholic upbringing, and his emerging romantic feelings toward one of his peers. The author skillfully handles all these converging factors to a satisfying conclusion that makes this a book that deserves an arm raised in triumph!
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Summary: Wrestling with Identity
Review: High school homophobia raises its ugly head in this story about love between Joey and Donald. In recent years much has been written about the social construction of GLBTQ identities. This book deals with the extra power given to homophobia when GLBTQ identities are denied. Caught in the milieu of high school wrestling, neither Joey nor Donald can accept what the love they feel for each other means. As a result, they are both unprepared to take a stand when their friends attack a fellow classmate and their silence results in his death. The irony is that both homophobes and GLBTQ youngsters could be PINS (Persons In Need of Supervision).
Rating: 
Summary: PINS: a gripping novel
Review:
Acclaimed sports columnist Jim Provenzano's novel PINS tells the story of homophobia in athletics, and one very short boy who stands up to it. Set in Little Falls, New Jersey in 1993, PINS weaves the classic story of a Catholic saint into a compelling modern life -and near-death- account of Joey Nicci, a fifteen-year-old wrestler. After befriending Donald "Dink" Kohrs, Joey and his new posse get involved in pranks and partying that eventually get out of control, resulting in the death of a maligned fellow teammate. The ensuing legal battle and media scrutiny alter Joey's life and his self-perception as a gay teenager while shattering his fragile love for his fellow teammate. Like his patron saint, his struggle for his beliefs forces him to endure insurmountable difficulties, on and off the mat. A compelling story of a loving yet confused family, coaches and teachers struggling with multiple issues of violence and bigotry amid the clan-like world of teenage athletes, PINS brings an intensely personal perspective to events now common in the media; bullying jocks, assaults on weaker students, faculty and students unwittingly allowing such behavior, and families and counselors finding the strength to overcome it. Called "prescient" and "heartfelt" by two of today's leading writers, PINS layers symbols from the worlds of animals and religion with compassion, insight and humor, achieving a unique perspective on pressing issues, and is destined to become a popular favorite in the genres of both gay fiction and sports writing.
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Summary: A very different take on coming of age gay
Review: A number of years ago, I gave up on these "coming of age" gay books because they really seemed to be about parts of the population that were alien to my experience and probably most people's--upper middle class families with emotionally distant fathers, sensitive lads, and an income that would make the Cleavers seem like poverty row, or variations of fundamentalist, southern Gothic hell. Sterotyped views of religion and family (always bad) seemed to predominate in this genre and there was always some form of suicide. This book came to my attention via reviews of the author's more recent book. The reviews led me to think it was worth a chance and it was. The focus of the book is on a high school wrestler coming to grips with his sexuality. He's something of a jock, but ultimately finds that identity even more uncomfortable than his sexuality. The family of this kid is actually fairly normal and loving. For once, it's the father who gets what's going on and accepts more than the mother. They are working class, white ethnics who have moved from a declining urban neighborhood to one of the small houses in an otherwise well-off suburb where the protagonist and his parents feel ill at-ease. There is a suicide subplot, but it's a bit more nuanced than usual, although, in some ways, it seems like a semi-lame attempt at capitalizing on recent headlines. It's part of an ending that ties things up a little too neatly and quickly. A more ambiguous end, without the discrimination-laden semi-suicidal stuff would have worked better and fit the rest of the narrative. Despite the weak ending, I think this is a terrific book. the writing is spare and descriptive without being showy. Most of the story evolves in a realistic way and at a realistic pace. The book's underlying themes about acceptance have some universal appeal, however, the book is sufficiently graphic in its sexuality that it would not work for some people who are only seeking the universal message. It's a great book for those of us who didn't grow up on the set of "Ordinary People" or in the cast of a bad Faulkner novel. It also has appeal for those of us who are missing a few "gay genes", although the later sections that address this (which revolve around a support group) could have developed from the realistic time frame of the earlier 2/3 of the book. The book also addresses religion, specifically Catholicism, with far more realism and subtlety than most queer lit books. The persistence of belief in the face of recognizing harsh doctrine and the ways in which clergy try to approach homosexuality (good and bad) are highlighted here. Militant atheists and people who who lack a background or other feel for cultural Catholicism will be put off by this. All I can say is that, it's one of the most real aspects of the book and there are plenty of other queer coming of age stories to validate other worldviews.
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Summary: Fight Club for Teens
Review: An amazingly layered and creative book, like "The Front Runner," "Garp" combined, with inventively personal narrator full of funny perspectives. I fell in love with Joey! Clueless homophobes and religious bigots won't even get some of the many layered inferences and meanings, and maybe even some teens, but on the surface, it's a simply touching novel that shows how the hateful pressures of morons like "a reader from New Jersey" can destroy a young boy, and how they fight back. "Fight Club" for teens!! Gay kids deserve a safe space to play, and this book exposes the subtle ways bigotry endangers that. I think he was too polite in his depiction of the priests, coaches and nasty teammates. Otherwise, a great story.
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Summary: love this book.
Review: Anyone who reads gay fiction has to have this book on his shelf. or in his bed. i slept with this book while i was reading it. not just cause it's so erotic, but because it's so heartbreakingly real that i wanted to feel close to the protagonist and tell him everything would be all right. Joey Nicci has found his niche on the wrestling team of his new school. it's the perfect place for him, complete with a new best friend/potential boyfriend. but it's about belonging. does he or doesn't he? and what happens if your friends might be your enemies? this book touches on all the hot points about the evolving picture of gay youth in america, including the very real threat of violence. it's so real that it seems like a true story. and that makes the desperate love story it is based upon really really HOT. Joey and Dink, his partner in wrestling and maybe in life made my heart race when they touched eachother. my body released adrenaline into my bloodstream both in desire and fear. the moment when Dink licks sweat off Joeys' neck in public at a match with all eyes upon them is a highlight, a grace note, and a climax. this book connects with real life on so many levels that it seems to have sprung fully-formed into the world. but it has an author, Jim Provenzano, a sports writer with a degree in dance who is doing important work for us all. hopefully this book and other efforts will make it okay some day to be Joey Nicci.
Rating:
Summary: A gripping and eccentric sports novel
Review: Expecting another corny teen sports book, instead this is a hip, frank depiction of the pressures a gay teen feels and thinks. The inventive words and descriptions are quite memorable. It may be upsetting to some, because it's honest in showing the darker side of sports, but it also includes some very supportive characters, including the coaches.
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Summary: Not since Garp...
Review: has a *coming of age* story so captured the cultish genre of amateur wrestling, with an honest handling of the *issues* that have *always* been there for wrestlers and coaches alike, regardless of sexual orientation. Definitely a crossover story for wrestling fanatics of all stripes, and something I could *proudly* recommend to the parents of any wrestler who need a *culture* crash course. Gene Dermody Vice President Federation of Gay Games; Former competitor and high school coach
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Summary: BEYOND A BOOK
Review: Having just graduated highschool, I am beginning to deal with issues of my own sexuality and independence. Early in June, I attended the National Book Expo in Chicago, IL. While there, the author of Pins, Jim Provenzano handed me a complimentary copy. I read the entire novel that very evening in my hotel room and absolutely devoured it. The story is more than romantic or touching. It is fascinating, real, and tangible. Thanks to Jim Provenzano. Reading this book made it easier for me to recently come out.
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Summary: From a woman's point of view
Review: i am a senior citizen. To assume that this book is revealing something new...is nonsense. It is a problem and a story of any day. It gives us an awareness of we can do to alleviate the angst and anxiety of teen gay boys..and yes girls as well. Parents should read this and pass it on to their children.
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