Ellen Wittlinger's Young Adult Novel Hard Love
Bob Franke's Lyrics Lay the Groundwork for Masterful Teen Fiction
Jan 17, 2009
Winner of the Lamda Literary Award as well as the Michael Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature, Ellen Wittlinger’s novel Hard Love opens us up to the world of two teens who are attempting to define themselves while, at the same time, they are struggling to manage their complex family dynamics.
Marisol Guzman is a self-proclaimed “Puerto Rican Cuban Yankee Cambridge, Massachusetts, rich spoiled lesbian private-school gifted-and-talented writer virgin looking for love” (9). John (Gio) Galardi is a zine writing, wanna-be exotic name-holding, socially awkward high school junior who’s hyper-aware of the fact that he’s a male in a female emotionally-dominated world.
Escape Velocity
Their connection is a match made in letters, adjectives, poems, zines, truths and lies. Marisol is honest, almost to a fault whereas John can sympathize with the purpose of a white lie here and there, ultimately causing him to take on two names. It is Marisol’s first introduction, through the words in her zine, that causes John (Gio) to seek her out. It is her self-definition he finds attractive and her desire to achieve "escape velocity" that he can relate to.
Yet, as much as this book is about escaping, it’s also about knowing when to stay put. Marisol wants to get out of Boston so that she can truly find herself and begin to understand what her individuality outside the context of her parent’s house. Gio longs to escape split living: weekends with an emotionally-absent father and school nights with a mom who can barely look at or touch him since the divorce.
Despite their urge to run, however, both characters develop an understanding of when to stay. Marisol stays the night at Gio’s after missing her train in Boston, demonstrating her developing trust in him and Gio is adamant about his refusal to move to another town with his mother after she re-marries.
Closets, Walls, and Doors
Underlying much of Marisol and Gio's desire to escape is a deep yearning for personal space. Therefore, space and its limitations in the form of closets, walls, and doors (however metaphorical they might be) are a critical component of the novel. Marisol has a lot to teach Gio about closets. “When I opened the closet door,” she says, “my mother assured me I could always count on her for support, but she cried for days with the bathroom door locked. She was mourning expectations, I think…” (42). Marisol had broken down one of the space barriers, opened the door, and said her peace. And, she won't let Gio off the hook. Coming out, she explains to Gio, means “you stop lying. You tell the truth even if it’s painful, especially if it’s painful.” When Gio tells her he’s not gay, she replies “there are other closets” (27).
Throughout the novel, there is much that stays hidden, for one reason or another. Yet, as Gio begins to open doors, he establishes a more concrete sense of self. And, as Marisol opens the doors to trust, she lets Gio see a part of herself that few others have seen.
When Gio finally opens the door with his parents and comes clean, he is ready to escape. The ultimate difficulty, however, is that he escapes toward Marisol in a way that she is not equipped to reciprocate fully. In the light of morning, they must make sense of their individual feelings and their love for one another, coming to terms with what each person needs and wants.
Although in the end, it seems that Wittlinger may be trying a little too hard to wrap it all up and put a pretty bow on it, each character does hold to their convictions. And, thankfully, Wittlinger gives no concrete definition of what love is supposed to look like. There are a variety of definitions throughout the course of the novel, but one thing is certain: all love can be flawed, disastrous, beautiful, satisfying, convoluted, poignant, excruciating, and crucial. That is to say, all love can be hard love.
 |
