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This Boy's Life: A Memoir
 
 
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This Boy's Life: A Memoir (Paperback)

by Tobias Wolff (Author) "Our car boiled over again just after my mother and I crossed the Continental Divide ..." (more)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
List Price: CDN$ 21.50
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Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

In PEN/Faulkner Award-winner Wolff's fourth book, he recounts his coming-of-age with customary skill and self-assurance. Seeking a better life in the Northwestern U.S. with his divorced mother, whose "strange docility, almost paralysis, with men of the tyrant breed" taught Wolff the virtue of rebellion, he considered himself "in hiding," moved to invent a private, "better" version of himself in order to rise above his troubles. Primary among these were the adultsdrolly eccentric, sometimes dementedwho were bent on humiliating him. Since Wolff the writer never pities Wolff the boy, the author characterizes the crew of grown-up losers with damning objectivity, from the neurotic stepfather who painted his entire house (piano and Christmas tree included) white, to the Native American football star whose ultimate failure was as inexplicable as his athletic brilliance. Briskly and candidly reportedWolff's boyhood best friend "bathed twice a day but always gave off an ammoniac hormonal smell, the smell of growth and anxiety"his youth yields a self-made man whose struggle to fit the pieces together is authentic and endearing. Literary Guild alternate.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


From Library Journal

Winner of the PEN/Faulkner award for The Barracks Thief , Wolff offers an engrossing and candid look into his childhood and adolescence in his first book of nonfiction. In unaffected prose he recreates scenes from his life that sparkle with the immediacy of narrative fiction. The result is an intriguingly guileless book, distinct from the usual reflective commentary of autobiography, that chronicles the random cruelty of a step father, the ambiguity of youthful friendships, and forgotten moments like watching The Mickey Mouse Club. Throughout this youthful account runs the solid thread of the author's respect and affection for his mother and a sense of wonder at the inexplicable twistings and turnings of the road to adulthood in modern America. Highly recommended. Linda Rome, Mentor, Ohio
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Inside This Book (Learn More)
First Sentence
Our car boiled over again just after my mother and I crossed the Continental Divide. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews

67 Reviews
5 star:
 (30)
4 star:
 (21)
3 star:
 (12)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
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Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (67 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most helpful customer reviews

 
5.0 out of 5 stars Tolstoy was right, Jun 8 2004
By A Customer
For those who like the Tolstoy addage about "unhappy families," you'll want to read this stellar Tobias Wolff novel. Jack Wolff is a boy who has one unusual life. He smokes, drinks, vandalizes, and steals. That is, however, until he is forced to move from Seattle to Chinook, with his new step-father, Dwight. Dwight turns out to be an abusive drunk, who will change Jack's life forever. Full of twists and turns, this is one fascinating read and should not be overlooked. Would also recommend another great book I've come across: "The Bark of the Dogwood." Equally as entertaining
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4.0 out of 5 stars Keemy's Opinon, Jun 8 2004
By Keemy Wright (Philadelphia,Pa) - See all my reviews
I really enjoyed Reading this book.The reason i enjoyed this book is because of the pace and it helps my vocabulary.I imagine the characters as people I know them or are friends of mine.When I read I start to understand the problems the characters are going though and the problems their facing in life. I recomend this book to people because it is a wonderful book to read.If you read this book and you didn't like it wasn't for you.If you decide to read this book but ,you wasn't sure my review will help you understand that this is a good book.I promise to you that you will be disappointed if you read This Boy's Life.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book, Jun 7 2004
By Nicholas Pileggi (Hinesburg, VT) - See all my reviews
This Boy's Life is a memoir of a vulnerable childhood in the mid 1950's. Toby, the main character has had a life full of trouble and grief. His mother and father are divorced, leaving him with his mother, Rosemary, while his brother and father live in Connecticut. Toby and his mother are always on the go and through this Toby and his mother become very close. They are trying to become new people and escape Troy, Toby's abusive stepfather. "It was 1955 and we were driving from Florida to Utah, to get away from a man my mother was afraid of..."(Wolff 4). The book carries you through various troubles that Toby and his mother get involved with; Toby commits a few schemes of his own along with it. The book is a very good read for teenagers and adults can also take something away from this memoir too.
The majority of the book takes place in West Seattle in a low key community. "We lived in a boarding house...At Night if my mother wasn't to tired, we took walks around the neighborhood, stopping in front of different houses to consider them as candidates...the boarding house was full of old men and men who probably seemed old" (Wolff 37). Toby finds himself with a bad crowd of friends which gets him into trouble. He breaks cafeteria windows, nails some rich people's cars with eggs, and is just a thug when he is not around his mother. He is lost between his mother and the rest of the world.
I would definitely recommend this book to teenagers especially runs that have experienced some things like Toby such as abuse and always being on the go. The book draws you into many different situations that bring you to the heart of the moment. Although this book review may not be very convincing that this is a "must read", if you ever get to pick up the book you will be drawn to it in a snap of a finger.
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 		 Most recent customer reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars not very interesting boy's life
This book does not have a lot to offer. There are so many memoirs out these days and Tobias should have stuck to fiction. Read more
Published on May 31 2004 by Beth Quigley

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting perspective on early dysfunctional families
In this memoir, author Tobias Wolff tells his story of growing up in the 1950s. He begins at age 10, five years after the breakup of his parents' marriage, when he and his mother... Read more
Published on May 24 2004 by Beth Cholette

5.0 out of 5 stars ACCURATE TRUTH
(...)
This is an accurately told book regarding the hard life that some children must go through. The lack of actually having a normal childhood. Read more
Published on May 21 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent book.
This was an excellent book. I could relate to it in many ways. I too had a childhood like Tobias and I am finally getting over it.
Published on April 6 2004

3.0 out of 5 stars Turn on the Lights
This is not your All American idyll. No, young Wolff is not the barefoot boy with cheek. It seems his life would be everything he could desire if only he weren't drawn to the... Read more
Published on Feb 14 2004 by Ted Magnuson

3.0 out of 5 stars This Boy's Life: A Memoir by Tobias Wolff
This boy's life is memoir of a professor named Tobias Wolff at the Syracuse University. The story takes place in Salf lake city, Seattle, and Concrete, Washington. Read more
Published on Dec 15 2003 by sandy ahluwalia

5.0 out of 5 stars A Journy through Life
America is said to be the land of the free. This freedom provides a wide variety in the ways that people choose to live their lives. Read more
Published on Dec 10 2003 by Adam

5.0 out of 5 stars Among the very best of memoirs
It seems presumptuous to write a review of this book. It's capable of standing alone, selling forever, and being widely and deeply admired without anyone ever writing another... Read more
Published on Aug 24 2003 by Peggy Vincent

3.0 out of 5 stars This Boy's Life: A Memior by Tobias Wolff
The novel This Boy's Life may sound dull since it is a memoir of a teenager which doesn't catch too many readers attention. Read more
Published on Feb 6 2003 by Natasha Dunn

3.0 out of 5 stars Will he ever get out?
Will he ever get out?
Jack, a young boy growing up in the 1950's, has a crazy and bizarre life. This Boy's Life, a memoir, by Tobias Wolff, is about the problems Jack... Read more
Published on Feb 6 2003 by Vann

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