Dream Boy vs Memorial: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Stonewall Book Awards, LGBTQ novels, Fathers and sons, Fiction
Dream Boy
“On Sunday in the new church, Preacher John Roberts tells about the disciple Jesus loved whose name was also John, how at the Last Supper John lay his head tenderly on Jesus's breast.”
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First love is never easy. But when the new boy in a small town is being secretly abused by his father, first love might be the only thing that can save him. With his mother busy in the kitchen and his drunken father…
Memorial
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Benson and Mike are two young guys who live together in Houston. Mike is a Japanese American chef at a Mexican restaurant and Benson's a Black day care teacher, and they've been together for a few years—good years—but…
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- Dream Boy is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 6 for Memorial.
- Memorial has the widest readership — 193 ratings behind its score.
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Scores by source
| Dream Boy | Memorial | |
|---|---|---|
| Hardcover | 3.9 (20) | 3.5 (69) |
| Apple Books | 5.0 (5) | 4.0 (193) |
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Reception
| Dream Boy | Memorial | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 20 | 193 |
| Editions | 4 | 12 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Wikipedia attention | 312 | 2062 |
| Pages | 195 | 336 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Dream Boy or Memorial?
Dream Boy has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Dream Boy 4.0/5, Memorial 3.9/5).
Which is shorter to read: Dream Boy or Memorial?
Dream Boy is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Dream Boy (195 pages, ≈ 3 h 37 m); Memorial (336 pages, ≈ 6 h 13 m).
Which is harder to read: Dream Boy or Memorial?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Dream Boy: Moderate; Memorial: Moderate.