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Unexpecting
Unexpecting: A Novel | Jen Bailey
3 posts | 3 read | 1 to read
Juno meets Heartstopper in Jen Bailey's Unexpecting, a poignant and emotional story about found family, what it means to be a parent, and falling in love. Benjamin Morrison is about to start junior year of high school and while his family is challenging, he is pretty content with his life, with his two best friends, and being a part of the robotics club. Until an experiment at science camp has completely unexpected consequences. He is going to be a father. Something his mother was not expecting after he came out as gay and she certainly wasn’t expecting that he would want to raise the baby as a single father. But together they come up with a plan to prepare Ben for fatherhood and fight for his rights. The weight of Ben’s decision presses down on him. He’s always tired, his grades fall, and tension rises between his mom and stepfather. He’s letting down his friends in the robotics club whose future hinges on his expertise. If it wasn’t for his renewed friendship (and maybe more) with a boy from his past, he wouldn’t be able to face the daily ridicule at school or the crumbling relationship with his best friends. With every new challenge, every new sacrifice he has to make, Ben questions his choice. He’s lived with a void in his heart where a father’s presence should have been, and the fear of putting his own child through that keeps him clinging to his decision. When the baby might be in danger, Ben’s faced with a heart-wrenching realization: sometimes being a parent means making the hard choices even if they are the choices you don't want to make...
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BookNightOwl
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Pickpick

It‘s a story about a boy who decided to have sex with his best friend just to see if he is really gay. At the same time the best friend is wanting to do this for a social experiment. Not knowing that decision would have consequences Maxie reveals she is pregnant and wants to give the baby up for adoption. Where Ben wants to take custody of the baby and raise the baby. I really enjoyed how this story moved and how it was from Ben‘s point of view.

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Andrea313
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Mehso-so

This was a mixed bag for me: when a one-night experiment between Ben and his bff Maxie yields a surprise result, Ben decides he wants to raise their baby. I appreciate the author flipping the script on teen pregnancy but this book absolutely stressed me TF out! My geriatric ass felt so deeply for poor Ben's mom doing the most to make her sweet but naive son understand the gravity of his choice. Glad I read it, but this one is firmly for the Youth.

LiteraryinLawrence Ha, sounds like this one would drive me nuts. Thanks for the heads up! 8mo
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TorieStorieS
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Pickpick

This YA family drama tackles a familiar topic from a fresh angle. Ben has recently come out to his mom & stepfather when his best friend confronts him with paperwork to sign away his paternal rights to the child they they conceived as a science experiment at summer science camp. This sends Ben into a tailspin as he must come to terms with what he wants his role to be & what parenthood means to him- emotional, well-written, & hard to put down!

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