I am a sucker for queer coming of age books and this one was no exception. It was really beautifully written and overall really enjoyable

3*, DNF

This book is beautifully written, but not for me. The start of it is too slow and the storyline was too vague for me. Perhaps that also has to do with my knowledge of American history, but because things are told from the perspective of a child, it was hard for me to follow what was actually happening. However, I did find it refreshing to read a book placed in a historical time from the perspective of an innocent child who just doesn't know what's really going on. So for that, I have a lot of respect. The book als reminded me of Where the Crawdads Sing, which I absolutely adored. That's why, even though not finishing it, I did give it 3 stars. It's not for me, but if these books are your thing, I'm sure you'll very much enjoy this one!

While reading this, I realised this story is actually based off the author's life which makes reading this all the more emotional. I cannot believe this is the author's debut novel. What a well written and engaging story.

This story follows Philbet, a gay and physically misshapen boy living in rural Georgia as he battles with bullying and ignorance for being different as he navigates life in his own way before finding acceptance in a place where he least expected.

I absolutely love the setting and atmosphere description of rural Georgia that I can vividly imagine this in my head even though I've never been there. I also love how each character helped shape Philbet to who he is and how each character develop as time goes by. Which is really my kind of story, a story fuelled by character growth. I really enjoyed reading this one.

Highly recommend this to everyone. Thank you Netgalley and Post Hill Press for the arc.

Once I read rhe author's note at the begin I knew I was going to enjoy it. Loved the granddaddy so much! It's hard to review a memoir so I'll just say I enjoyed it. Maybe at moments it wasn't for me, but I mostly liked it

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

A welcome and refreshing read. This is Philbet's story. There is bullying so be warned. When hope seems lost, he meets someone to change his view and to help him deal with the cruel realities of the world.

I struggled to engage with he narrative of this book but really liked the characters so kept going. It was worth it in the end just sad that at times I struggled. Maybe the book just isn't for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Post Hill Press for the advanced reader copy.

This week’s headline? Weird looking potatoes are the best

Why this book? The cover looked pretty
Which book format? ARC

Primary reading environment? During reading sprints on boyfriend’s couch

Any preconceived notions? Not particularly

Identify most with? Grandaddy

Three little words? “inelegant proportions shapeshifted”

Goes well with? Cars, antique shops

Recommend this to? People who like coming-of-age stories

Other cultural accompaniments: https://medium.com/authority-magazine/jeffrey-dale-lofton-on-the-five-things-you-need-to-know-to-become-a-great-author-5b370e4d8ddc

Grade: 3/5

I leave you with this: “Don’t be too sad. When you cry, you can’t see so well. You just might miss seeing somebody standing right there who does love you back.”

📚📚📚

The writing of Red Clay Suzie is perfectly fine, but I couldn’t really engage with the characters too much for about the first half of the book. I wish I liked this more because there is potential here. Not sure if this is the author’s first book but it definitely reads like one. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though. What I did love was Philbet and Knox. They’re so sweet. I still think that there are readers who will enjoy this, which is why I’ll still recommend it.

Red Clay Suzie will be available on January 10, 2023.

It took me quite a while to really engage with this book. I'd originally requested it because I love to read new authors and the storyline really appealed to me being based on the life of the author but also written as YA fiction.

The book tells the story of Philbet who is born disfigured although it is never really learned why. He is born into a poor Southern family, most of whose expectations of life are very small. Philbet, however, dreams big.

His first love is cars and he longs to drive them, fix them, be part of them. His second love is a boy, which is a secret he keeps to himself because he knows it will be seen as wrong.

The story gently leads us through the first 18 years of Philbet's life up until the point he is ready to move on.

It was a little slow at first but around the halfway mark I fell in love with this book. It is about a young boy's dreams and fears. It is about family and relationships. It is about love, rejection and loss. I'm not ashamed to say that for a good part of the last half I cried an awful lot.

This may be Mr Lofton's first novel but I hope not his last. The writing became much more fluid towards the end as though it wasn't just Philbet who was becoming his true self but also the author was learning how to express his emotions as he wrote.

It's an interesting book which deals with some serious subjects and handles them carefully. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who appreciates YA literature. Fans of Benjamin Saenz should like this. I only knocked off one star because I struggled with the beginning. If you do too then persevere, it's worth it.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Highly recommend this one! This was my first book to read by this author but definitely won't be my last. The characters will stay with you long after you finish the book and you will find yourself wishing the story would never end.

I didn't dislike this but I also didn't like it, yknow? It had a deep, heartfelt beauty that I appreciated but it also felt very removed at times. Like, I never felt drawn in. Also the formating is weird as hell but that's not the authors fault.

Thank you, Post Hill Press, for allowing me to read Red Clay Suzie early!

Jeffrey Dale Lofton wrote an interesting little debut which I fervently savored.

This was definitely a ‘window’ book for me. I knew very little about the south or growing up as a gay boy. At times the writing was a bit too lyrical for my tastes. The story arc and the ending redeemed it for me.

“Red Clay Suzie” is a beautiful coming of age story, centred around Philbet, a queer young man living in rural Georgia. From the beginning of the book you see the world as he does, at first through the innocent eyes of a 4 year old, and then through less innocent eyes as the protagonist grows up.

Jeffrey Dale Lofton has painted a beautifully clear picture of the issues suffered by a child growing up in an area where conservatism was rife and there were the now unthinkable behaviours of racial segregation as well as the self-suffocation of having to hide your true self for fear of prejudice, even from those you love and are closest to.

Not being from the South, I could still get a real taste of the setting, and the characters come through as having real heart, and there’s plenty of evidence of “Southern Hospitality”.

My key issue was that while it was nice to always see the world through the same character’s eyes, it always felt like we were held at a distance; it felt that we were being told things, rather than truly getting to experience them alongside Philbet. I also found that some chapters ended quite abruptly rather than feeling like they ended naturally.

Overall, this book was still an enjoyable read. If I had to recommend it, I’d say it would be good for people who don’t necessarily enjoy memoirs like myself but who still enjoy reading about a person’s life over an extended period.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this eARC.

Red Clay Suzie is a coming-of-age story following Philbet, a gay, physically-misshapen boy in rural Georgia, who battles bullying, ignorance, and disdain as he makes his way in life as an outsider—before finding acceptance in unlikely places.

I thought Red Clay Suzie captured the atmosphere of a conservative household in rural Georgia so well, and I really liked the attention to detail that was given to the members of Philbet's extended family, bringing them to vivid life. I could feel the heat of the sun and the baking red clay, the freedom to play in the woods and the suffocating pressure of racial segregation and hiding one's sexuality. I thought the author did an impressive job of communicating the wide-eyed innocence of Philbet, especially when it came to not understanding why he and his best friend are treated differently, but knowing those of the older generations would see their friendship as a problem. Equally with his sexuality, knowing he does not want to kiss or marry a girl but knowing this is a secret he can never tell. The novel is told with a strong Southern voice, but for my personal preferences I would have wished for more emotional immediacy, as I felt the narrative voice holds the reader at a psychological distance as the story is told. In some ways the novel reminded me of To Kill A Mockingbird, and I can see Red Clay Suzie appealing very much to readers who enjoy memoir-esque fiction.

I am grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC of Red Clay Suzie. These opinions are my own.