Customer Reviews

Pool Boy

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After living the good life for almost his entire life, Brett is getting a taste of how the other half lives. His stockbroker father has just been arrested, convicted, and sentenced for three and a half years for insider trading, and Brett and his mom and sister have to move on the other side of the tracks (literally) and live with their crazy aunt.

Brett is finding it difficult to adjust to having no money while all his friends continue to attend tennis lessons and get new cars for their birthdays. But, worst of all, Brett seriously hates his father for what he has put them through, and has decided that he will not forgive.

Because it's summer and because he needs the money, Brett starts working with seventy-two year old pool cleaner Alfie, a somewhat eccentric but wise old man who seems to be the only one that Brett can talk to. Arrogant, pompous, and insensitive, Brett turns his family's ordeal into an even worst experience by constantly antagonizing his father during their bi-monthly prison visits. When tragedy strikes, Brett has the opportunity to see the real value of his relationships with his family and friends.

Brett is hardly a likeable kid, but somehow the author pulls off the magic trick of making Brett seem reasonable in his anger toward his father. The dialogue is an excellent example of narrative style, since the reader can picture Brett and only Brett speaking those lines. The teen love depiction is dead-on, especially as it comes from the voice of a spoiled teenage boy who has not learned to appreciate anything he has been given in life. This book is sure to spark some serious discussions about the "have's" and "have not's" of the world, and it can be expected that readers will want to know early on what is going to happen to give Brett the epiphany that he so obviously needs. For some reason, we want happiness for him; perhaps that is the sign of excellent writing, causing the readers to want good things for a less-than-gracious protagonist.

In this refreshing and original novel, Michael Simmons takes us into the world of a boy on the verge of his sixteenth birthday, and who had been living a very privileged existence. Brett Gerson had it all, good looks, personality, spending money, expensive stereo equipment and a luxurious home with a pool. The beautiful life ended when Brett's father was convicted of insider trading and was sent to jail.

Brett, his mother and sister all had to make a drastic change to their life styles. The house had to be sold, and the family moved in with their mother's eccentric aunt, who lived in a very modest home, but on the wrong side of town. To make matters even worse, Aunt Mary wore only floral muumuus and bedroom slippers. Her dress style, affectionate nature and "homespun wisdom" seemed strange to Brett and he was somewhat embarrassed by her.

He especially hated the visits that his mother insisted that they make to see his father in prison. Mr. Gerson who seemed penitent and somewhat broken in spirit was hopeful that his son would forgive him; however, Brett was so filled with bitterness that the only comments that he made to his dad were sarcastic and hateful.

He blamed his father for everything including the fact that he now had to work after school and on summer vacation which was something that was unheard of in the world where he used to live. After quitting his first job making burgers, he's takes a job working for Alfie Moore the elderly man who used to clean the pool at his former house. Britt thinks the job might be a lark and approaches the work in his old self-centered way, but both Alfie and the pool cleaning business are more than he ever imagined. Brett eventually learns the value and pride that comes with hard work and how it feels to be a nameless "Pool Boy."

This engaging story is told in today's jargon and in the first person. Brett, the protagonist is a spoiled rich kid and not always a very sympathetic subject. The author does a great job of getting us into Brett's mind and the reader is allowed to watch him grow as a person and become a likeable guy. I also admired the characterization of Alfie Moore who added warmth to the story through his solid and caring personality.

I loved loved loved Pool Boy's snarky main character, Brett -- he's sharp and he's snide and despite his spoiled-brattiness I found him impossible to hate. That's probably because he's got a soft side (though he'd never admit it!), like when he calls his sister "the most kind and decent person there is." And also because we've all had selfish thoughts, it's just that HE's bold enough to share them. Shameless? Maybe. Hilarious to read? YES. Brett's journey from super-rich kid to burger flipper to pool cleaner to sensitive hero is very funny, and also truly touched me in the end (THAT was a surprise). All of Simmon's characters -- from the wise, 70-year-old pool cleaner to Brett's richie-rich friends -- completely come to life in Pool Boy's pages. I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't love this book.

Brett Gerson, an irresponsible rich kid from California, has just lost everything. The house, the pool, the cars, and his five thousand dollar stereo. All this happened because his rich stockbroker dad has just gotten busted by the cops. Ten cops showed up at their door one day and arrested his father after tackling him to the kitchen floor. The next thing Brett knows, he is working at a burger joint and living at his aunt's house with his mom, sister, and aunt. After Brett gets a job offer cleaning pools from his old bus driver, Alfie, Brett quits his lame job at the burger joint. Brett is in for a big surprise because his relationship with Alfie becomes more than something Brett could have imagined. I thoroughly enjoyed this book because it was compelling to see how Brett changes throughout the book. At first, Brett had a really bad attitude towards his mother and did not care how she felt. As Brett moves on with his job as a pool cleaner with Alfie, he starts to realize that his mother has not done him any wrong. After a fatal disaster occurs, Brett's attitude changes toward his mother and he transforms into a responsible young man. There are no negatives that I can give as to why I disliked this book. I give this book 9.5 on a scale of 10. The title relates to the book because although Brett starts out as just an ordinary "pool boy." By the end of the book, Brett has become something much greater than just a "pool boy."

One of the books my students read is Pool Boy. This cassette is new for our school this year, and it's a great addition. The students enjoy reading along to the tape. Chad Lowe has a good voice, almost soothing. He also reads different expressions and dialogue well. Highly recommended, especially for students who have difficulty reading.

Brett has always had exactly what he wants. He lived in a nice area with his parents and sister, a great house with expensive cars and a pool. He had a great stereo system and almost never thought about money, except when he wanted something and needed money to buy it. Then everything changes. His father, a stockbroker, is accused and convicted of doing some bad things, including not paying taxes. He is put in jail and the family has to sell everything in order to start paying off his debts. Even after they have sold everything, they still have no money. Brett and his mother and his sister go to live with his eccentric aunt on the bad side of town and they start to learn how it is not to be rich.

One of the first things that happens is Brett needs to get a job. He starts off working at a fast food place, but his bad attitude clashes with a boss he thinks is totally unfair and unreasonable. He doesn't last long in that job. Then he goes to work for Alfie, a pool cleaner. It's not the ideal job, but Brett grows to like Alfie a lot and sticks with him, even through such humiliations as having to clean the pools of his friends and even the pool at the house where he used to live.

Throughout the story, Brett insists he hates his father. But does he really hate him, or can he forgive his father for getting him into this mess?

I liked how nice Brett's family was, especially his sister, who should have been just as bitter as he was. Alfie was a great character, too. He was nice to Brett when Brett didn't deserve it, and he gave Brett lots of things to think about in his relationship with his father.

Brett's character was awful, though, right from beginning to end. He was self-centered, and the way he spoke about himself was obnoxious.

Brett Gerson, a fifteen year old kid who's disrespectful and extremely wealthy. All of this wealth ends when Brett's father is arrested for insider trading. He loses everything from his house all the way down to his five thousand dollar stereo. Now he has to live with his Aunt Mary who loves kissing him on the forehead. He gets a job at a place called Fast Burger, where the boss is what he thinks a big jerk. He then quits and begins to clean pools with Alfie, the seventy year old guy who use to clean his old pool. You will not want to put this book down, especially at the sad yet joyous ending. Read POOLBOY, it's a great book to make you laugh, be mad, and even emotional.

Pool Boy by Michael Simmons is way on top. This book really kept me going. This is about a boy who goes through alot and then realizes that what he lost wasn't important but his family and friends. His father pulled a stupid move and his 74 year-old friend,Alfie, went on.
I thought this book was going to end with Brett getting everything he had, back, but it was a whole other twist. On a scale from 1 to 10, i rated a 9 because it was one of the best books I ever read and it just had me telling everyone about it. If you like books about someone loosing soemtheing but instead on gaining it back, they gained something that was imporant in life back, then you well like Pool Boy by Michael Simmons.
WHAT A GREAT BOOK!!!

I picked up this book on a whim at the library, and ended up loving it. The style of writing Michael Simmon's uses for his book is different from the books I usally read becuase it is more of Brett telling the story of the summer he turns 16, after his dad goes to jail and their family looses all their money.

Brett has grown up in a wealthy family, so he's been used to having money and all of the nicest things all his life. That is, until his dad get arrested. The story of Pool Boy explains how Brett handles losing pretty much all he has and moving in with his aunt. He soon realizes he needed to get a job to help out his mom a little with their money problems, and he endes up taking a pool cleaning job from his former 70-year-old bus driver, Alfie.

Brett and Alfie end up becoming great friends, and Alfie helps Brett to deal with everything that was going on in his life this summer, from his secret love with Nicole to his hatred he felt towards his father for leaving his family with nothing and changing their lives forever.

Thanks to Alfie, Brett soon learns the value of close relationships with family and friends, and how they should not be taken for granted. He matures some, and he goes from being a nice so nice kid to being a pretty likeable guy.

This book is very well written. It grabbed my attention in the first page. Many people can relate to how Brett is feeling and there are many parts where I don't know what's going to happen next, or something happens that makes me feel how lucky I am. Also, there are very many emotions in the book that I can relate to.