Customer Reviews

Robin and Ruby

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

 

 

I don't know that any of his books will ever be as good as The World of Normal Boys. That said, when I saw the title Robin and Ruby, I remembered those names and I am just so glad to see Robing McKenzie back,on any terms. Since I read the first book a decade ago, I've always wondered what happened to him and wanted more.

This novel follows Robin, from The World of Normal Boys, in that phase in life when you change from boy to man; only that Robin has already had that change, he is not a normal 20 years old guy, and so his summer spent waiting tables in an upscale Philadelphia restaurant is not careless and light as for any other normal boy.

I wondered why K.M. Soehnlein chose to set the story in the middle of the '80, and other than the obvious reason that, being a sequel of a previous story set in the same period, it had to be, I think there are also not so obvious reasons, like, for example, the fact that 20 years old boys in the '80 were maybe still "innocent", or at least more than today. There are social tensions that now are almost non-existent, or at least not openly acknowledged; AIDS was still an almost unknown threat, still the "gay cancer", if you were not gay it was not your problem; having a interracial relationship was still almost a taboo, something daring and brazen.

The story follows both Robin than Ruby, and they are at two different moments in life, but to both of them is asked to take a decision, an important one for their future. Robin is living an adult life, he has a steady boyfriend, plans for the future, and obligations; Ruby instead is on the brink of adulthood, still a teenager but with the urge, and the desire, to leave that part of her life behind. In a way Ruby wants to be an adult and Robin instead wants to re-catch his lost teen years. Robin is dumped by his grown boyfriend Peter, but I think he is not so much upset by that; he has George in his life, his long lasting best friend George, someone who was not ready to be something more when they were teenagers, but who is now all grown up, and a living temptation. Robin wants to have another chance with George, but not in a serious way, he wants the carelessly feelings of having a boyfriend, of going and making out, without the oppressive weight of "adult" sex, with the danger of the virus.

In a way, this is not a coming of age story, since Robin doesn't want to take that step into adulthood, he wants more time, he wants to enjoy the thoughtlessness of having a relationship with someone like George, someone he can trust, since George was always there, always a good friend, and for sure not someone who wants from Robin more than Robin is ready to give. Even with sex, Robin and George are behaving more like teenagers than adults, while the real teenager, Ruby, is testing the water with real sex. At some point Robin will be ready to go further on, maybe with George, maybe with someone else (I hope not, I think George is good for Robin), and maybe Ruby will regret those years when everything was still so scaring and unknown.

In this highly-anticipated sequel to his acclaimed "The World of Normal Boys," Soehnlein revisits Robin McKenzie, now age 20, and his younger sister, Ruby. Although their dysfunctional family is less of an influence as they enter adulthood, the "baggage" of their childhood (and their parents' subsequent divorce) is still apparent in their lack of confidence and self-worth in dealing with difficult situations. Being dumped by his boyfriend, a former teacher of his, Robin turns for comfort to his longtime friend (and current roommate) George, and finds himself looking at him in a way he never considered before. Meanwhile, Ruby - who was always the "good girl" in high school, likely the seemingly trouble-seeking Robin - has become a moody, Goth-garbed young lady, who agonizes over how to break up with Calvin, a rather pompous and egotistical guy for whom she feels no love and little attraction. On a trip with him to the Jersey shore, she encounters Chris, an insecure boy she had dated in high school and - very uncharacteristically for her - takes off with him, causing Calvin and her brother to search for her among the nightclubs and partying young people in the area.

Although I had not read the original novel, I did greatly enjoy this well-written and introspective novel, which did a fantastic job of capturing the 1980's mindset (including attitudes about the developing AIDS epidemic) and pop culture, as well as the coming of age of two young people who never felt completely comfortable with themselves. The vividly-drawn supporting characters will remind you a bit of younger versions of the cast of MTV's "Jersey Shore," and the book made them far more empathetic. Skillfully done, much recommended, I give this book five sea salt-crusted stars out of five!

- Bob Lind, Echo Magazine

This riveting story follows Robin and his younger sister Ruby through one weekend in the 80s. At the start, Robin's boyfriend dumps him and Ruby is ready to break up with her boyfriend, Calvin, who's self-absorbed, pretentious, and insecure. When Ruby abandons Calvin at a party of wildly wasted college preppies to search for an old love--and disappears from sight--Robin takes his best friend, George, and goes to find his sister.

This is an absolute page-turner, but the plot isn't what makes Robin and Ruby so wonderful. There's Soehnlein's dead-on eye for cultural detail. He gets the 80's just right, with its terror of AIDS and its blithe racism and its first cordless phones. And the characters are complicated and symphathetic. Imagine this: a half-dozen Ivy League preppies doing coke and vodka shots in a bedroom. It's a blur, right? Not at bit. In a few pages each character comes vividly to life. You see through their cool-party behavior to the individual struggles and insecurities that drive them. And there's the way George breaks out of his steady, pre-med persona and surprises Robin with his adult sexiness, experimentation, and his own insecurities.

By turns humiliated, hurt, enraged, exhilarated, and joyful, Robin and Ruby struggle to find what they value most. It's a journey well worth following.

I loved the book "World of Normal Boys" and "You Can Say You Knew Me When" was also a pretty good book and I was excited to see he published another book.

Was very disappointed in this book. His other two books were great, but this one was pretty boring and I had trouble finishing it. Hopefully his next book will be more like "World of Normal Boys"

This novel is nicely balanced between Robin and Ruby, brother and sister, who are having separate but converging adventures over the course of a weekend in the 80s. Soehnlein is not afraid to be sincere and exuberant in his writing--why would you be, when you're describing kids on the brink of adulthood and all the joy and anxiety that entails? Robin is finding an unexpected romance as he hits the road with his best friend George (a vivid character with bite) while Ruby is enjoying possibly the worst house party on the Jersey shore. All the minor characters are vivid in this book, including two "townie" girls who take Ruby under their wing--vivid, feisty, hilarious, and sympathetic.

As with The World Of Normal Boys (which focused on Robin several years earlier, a boy torn both by his sexuality and a severe injury his brother suffers) when I try to characterize this book, I make it sound less than it is: two kids trying to negotiate friends, family, and love and, at the same time, form an idea of self. But when your in these stories, they are absolutely real and compelling. (R&R even more than Normal Boys, I think.)

Read this and feel young.

I picked this one up on a whim and wasn't disappointed. I never read The World of Normal Boys so the characters were all new to me but I didn't feel lost and the book stands up well on it's own. I enjoyed reading about Robin and Ruby as they discovered their lives changing in that confusing time of young adulthood. Learning how to live and love in a world with constant reminders of how fragile life really is.

I wanted to love this book a lot, most of the other reviewers had great things to say about it. But for me it fell flat...

1)the description of the book that was used isn't really the main focus of the book
2)Robin is the main character, but he's mostly boring, self-centered and just plain ugh
and 3) though its probably only not a problem for most readers, the fact that the author used the present tense in the book made it seem more unreal to me. I couldnt get into the story as much as i wanted to because it was so distracting when every paragraph has

"______ tells _____ this..."

or

"It's 10:30 in the morning..."

I know my opinion isn't the majority on this book, but i hope i helped.
ash

At first I thought this was just going to be a tedious flaming gay sex romp. This was a free download on Kindle as a 'romance' (and I use that term loosely) based some other books also included as free downloads. Instead, as the story unrolled I found myself caught up in the two main character's searches one hot summer weekend. There wasa search for one another, for reciprocal love, for self respect, for honesty to one's self and others. A search for home and the people you can turn to in need. This book was far better than what I come to expect from the free category. I enjoyed this book very much and would be interested in reading others by this author. Thank you Kindle for an introduction to an author new to me.

I just finished Robin and Ruby. Be warned, you will not be able to put it down. It's fast moving and thought provoking.The characters seem real and well-developed.