This unforgettable memoir, by one of our most gifted writers, introduces us to the young Toby Wolff, by turns tough and vulnerable, crafty and bumbling, and ultimately winning. Separated by divorce from his father and brother, Toby and his mother are constantly on the move. As he fights for identity and self-respect against the unrelenting hostility of a new stepfather, his experiences are at once poignant and comical, and Wolff masterfully re-creates the frustrations, cruelties, and joys of adolescence. His various schemes—running away to Alaska, forging checks, and stealing cars—lead eventually to an act of outrageous self-invention that releases him into a new world of possibility.
Praise for This Boy's Life
"Wolff writes in language that is lyrical without embellishment, defines his characters with exact strokes and perfectly pitched voices, [and] creates suspense around ordinary events, locating the deep mystery within them." —Los Angeles Times Book Review
"[This] extraordinary memoir is so beautifully written that we not only root for the kid Wolff remembers, but we also are moved by the universality of his experience." —San Francisco Chronicle
"A work of genuine literary art . . . as grim and eerie as Great Expectations, as surreal and cruel as The Painted Bird, as comic and transcendent as Huckleberry Finn." —The Philadelphia Inquirer
"Wolff's genius is in his fine storytelling. This Boy's Life reads and entertains as easily as a novel. Wolff's writing and timing are superb, as are his depictions of those of us who endured the 50s." —The Oregonian
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
February 28, 2023 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780802198600
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780802198600
- File size: 2512 KB
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Languages
- English
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Levels
- ATOS Level: 5.6
- Interest Level: 9-12(UG)
- Text Difficulty: 4
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Reviews
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