Hero by Perry Moore

Thom Creed has two main obstacles in his life that he has to get around: 1, the fact that he is gay, and 2, the fact that he has superpowers. Thom's father passionately dislikes homosexuals and superheros, but he does not know that Thom carries both if these traits. Thom's father, Hal, thinks that gay people "will never have a normal life. They are the ultimate downfall of our society, too..." (32). The opinions of Hal remind me of a play I recently saw called "The Laramie Project." This play is about the reactions of the people of Laramie, Wyoming to the murder of a gay boy, Matthew Sheperd. In both literatures, homosexuals are discriminated against because they are not "normal." Thom Creed used to be on the basketball team but just because his coach thought he was "different," the coach booted him off the team. I think that this is extremely unfair. It is human nature for some people to dislike others because they are different. Humans have the responsibilty to overcome this, and not judge people. Thom Creed also has superpowers. Hal, Thom's father hates any superhero with powers because Hal was a retired superhero and had some bad experiences in his career. Hal lost one of his hands in an incident that changed his life. Hal Creed has to overcome the fact that some people are just born to be different. I, myself, wonder how the author if this novel, Pery Moore, will connect the two traits- homosexual and superpowered. Homosexuality is something that many people across the world have to face today. On the other hand, being superpowered is more fictional. I do not think that some people, now, are afraid to tell their father that they are superpowered human being.