Surrender Your Sons is a brilliant story of queer
resilience, trauma, and wrath—about believing in yourself, standing up for
who you are, and your right to exist.
Sass does a remarkable job of introducing not only a relatable
young, gay character, but one who was forced out of his privacy too soon and
must now be subjected to the consequences thrust upon him. Connor Major isn’t
yet comfortable in his own skin or with his own sexuality, but his boyfriend—who
is—convinces him to come out to his overly religious mother. What ensues, to
me, is utter tragedy. Beyond the obvious lack of acceptance, Connor now faces being
sent to a conversion therapy camp.
As a mother, this book broke my heart in a dozen ways. As a human,
this book broke my heart in a million more. What Sass accomplishes in Surrender
Your Sons, is taking the endless years’ worth of queerphobia and discrimination,
and turning it into the ultimate revenge and redemption story. This is a story
of resilience and strength, but it’s also a story about survival, in more ones
than one; it’s about surviving the hate directed at LGBTQ+ people (specifically
children), surviving intrusive thoughts and self-doubt, surviving physical and
psychological harm, and surviving the idea that you are somehow less because
of who you are.
As with any story of redemption, the climb doesn’t come
easily. There is blood, sweat, and tears involved in the characters rescuing
themselves. Connor and the other campers at Nightlight Ministries have to claw
their way out of both an oppressive location and an oppressive mindset. Campers
highlighted range in “overs and unders,” which refer to minors of varying ages
from 12-17. While some of the campers are browbeaten into accepting the
inhumane conditions and “teachings,” others are all too aware of what
Nightlight Ministries stands for.
Sass does an amazing job of portraying the fear and subsequent
anger of the queer children subjected to the book’s conversion therapy camp. It’s
rare that there is a YA book that focuses on the wrath of its queer characters,
with most opting to highlight the (still needed) supportive found family and discovery
of burgeoning new love. But while the world needs books about queer joy, it
also needs books about queer fury. There is still so much hate and
discrimination in this world, and it’s refreshing to see an appropriate
response to that. It’s by no means an easy book. There’s trauma of every sort,
but it’s not glorified or inserted for shock value. The things talked about in
the different therapies are steeped in real experience, and it’s clear that Sass
spent the time to learn about the practices and after-effects of conversion
therapy.
Within all of the heavier details is a mystery that needs to
be solved. Connor is determined to find out what happened to an ex-camper and
acquaintance, and battles that need for knowledge versus his instinct to survive.
The breadcrumbs left behind make this an intriguing mystery to follow and adds
a layer to a story already steeped in drama of every sort. Sass weaves these
elements together in a way that doesn’t detract from either thread of the
overall story, and makes the book quick-paced and suspenseful.
In the end, as can be expected, I ended up a blubbering
mess. It would be impossible not to feel a wide range of emotions with a book
like this. The ending is bittersweet, realistic, and honestly a very welcome
change in the genre. Surrender Your Sons is a book that will stick with you
and, I hope, inspire awareness and action. There are still conversion camps throughout
every corner of the globe. As of 2021, 22 states and 4 U.S. territories still have
no laws banning conversion therapy. 3 states are in current jurisdiction to
prevent enforcement of conversion therapy. There are currently 69 countries that
have laws criminalizing homosexuality, some where the punishment is death. Surrender
Your Sons is needed. There should be more books depicting the gut-reactions you
most likely felt reading those statistics. We still need books that show queer
kids and adults falling in love and being normal, accepted human beings…but we
also need books that show queer kids and adults standing up for their right to
exist, to love, and to live.
For more information on conversion therapy and what you can do to support the movement and take action, please visit BornPerfect.org. If you are in the United States, you can also find what states and territories have laws protecting (or discriminating against) LGBTQ+ citizens at LGBTQ Map. For United States specific statistics of conversion therapy laws, head here.