PETER

When he finds himself attracted to his older brother's gay friend David, Peter is plunged into the kind of sexual uncertainty many young men feel. Dismayed at himself, appalled at the thought of being found out, Peter agonizes over his schoolmates' casual taunts and treats his family with tight-lipped hostility; meanwhile, he probes his feelings, ``tests'' himself with a gay magazine, calls a teen hotline, and, at last, has a frank conversation with David—who advises him not to jump to conclusions but to wait and see. Though the story, salted with Aussie slang and rough language, has a heavy air, while minor characters behave stereotypically (an Italian mother greets Peter, ``You come in! You eat!''), the author creates, in David, a wiser head, comfortable with his preference, one who can offer physical affection without sexual overtones; and, in Peter, a realistically distressed teenager who is finally able to muster enough perspective to weather his crisis. (Fiction. YA)