In the spring of 2008, Frank Anthony Polito released Band Fags! to the general public, hoping to find the niche of others who had navigated the horrors of high school in the eighties. What he didn’t expect was the surge in popularity among the high school-aged youth of today. It appeared that the high school experience, with all its trauma and angst, was easily understood no matter what era, and the plight of Jack Paterno, who sought to be true to himself and to be popular, struck a chord with audiences of all ages.

Now, approximately a year later, Polito has published Drama Queers, a follow-up of sorts to his debut novel. This time, Brad Dayton is the main character, a promotion from his position as Jack’s sidekick in the first novel. With a change in character comes a change in focus, and where Band Fags! was very much a story of coming to terms with identity and coming out, Drama Queers finds itself more concerned with the general experience of being a teenager, as Brad makes very clear early on that he is gay.

The style is relatively similar to Band Fags!, though flashbacks feature prominently, mostly to catch readers up on what had happened either in the previous book, and to also help with some basic character development. These moments are ultimately very helpful, though at times they seem to come across as rather abrupt.

The humor that pervaded Band Fags! is also present in Polito’s latest novel, though it is not as decidedly cynical, but more light-hearted and occasionally sarcastic in tone. References to the eighties also pepper the text, which help to provide a source of nostalgia for some, and humor for others (such as when Brad laments the exorbitant cost of 85 cents for a pack of cigarettes).

Brad’s romantic life has its own twists and turns, from unrequited crushes to the confusing “does he or doesn’t he” surrounding a new classmate. Polito carries out these relationships, and their respective interactions in such a way that they don’t seem to be caricatures or overblown; there is something rather natural about them.

Overall, Frank Anthony Polito sought to repeat the appeal and success of Band Fags!, and it would seem quite possible that he has done it. The characters are engaging, the plot moves at a reasonable pace, and it’s difficult to put down once you’ve started.

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This article was written by Kenneth Schreiber, a Pop Wired reviews contributor.