Genre: YA, contemporary
Rating: 4/5 stars
Synopsis: From the bestselling author of THE BOOK THIEF
Before THE BOOK THIEF, Markus Zusak
wrote a trilogy of novels about the Wolfe Brothers: THE UNDERDOG, FIGHTING
RUBEN WOLFE, and GETTING THE GIRL. Cameron and Ruben Wolfe are champions at
getting into fights, coming up with half-baked schemes, and generally
disappointing girls, their parents, and their much more motivated older
siblings. They're intensely loyal to each other, brothers at their best and at
their very worst. But when Cameron falls head over heels for Ruben's
girlfriend, the strength of their bond is tested to its breaking point.
We're proud to present these novels
together for the first time, and to be introducing American readers to THE
UNDERDOG, never before published in the United States. Fans of THE BOOK THIEF
won't want to miss reading the novels that launched Markus Zusak's stellar
career.
Review:
Thoughts on the Overall Book: I
decided to just review this addition so I can review all three books together
in order to compare them. They were, of course, brother stories, and that
always makes me enjoy things so much more and I really did love reading about
the Wolfe brothers.
Cover--Yea or Nay: Meh, it's okay.
Nothing really special, but I do like silhouettes as opposed to character
impersonators.
Characters: These are definitely
character driven stories, so having good characters is very important, and I
ended up really liking Cameron and Ruben Wolfe. Their dynamic was so true to
life between siblings and especially brothers that I couldn't help but love
them. Just the way they interacted, and lovingly abused each other and always
got into trouble together was so perfect. It's obvious that the author had lots
of personal experience between siblings, so many writers can't get it correctly
and I think it's because they either are only children or had a poor
relationship with their siblings. These books were perfect though, and even the
'chick flick' moments between them were perfect, not too mushy, but enough to
get the point across. I also liked reading about the rest of their family.
Their overachieving older brother who originally thought they were losers and
their older sister who they were protective of as they should be, which I
thought was sweet. And their parents having to deal with it all and not going
crazy, like the boys, I came to appreciate them as well. What I loved most
though, was how the dynamic on the family only grew through the hardships they
went through and became closer. None of the characters in this were static,
they were all very dynamic and enjoyable to read about. Oh yes, and how could I
forget Miffy the Pomeranian? I grew to love that dog as much as the boys did,
even though they would never really admit it ;)
The Romance: No romance until book
three Getting the Girl and that romance between Cam and Octavia was
actually very sweet and enjoyable to read about. And don't worry, despite what
it sounds like, it's really not a love triangle between her and the brothers,
otherwise I would have hated it. I didn't totally understand the problems that
ensued from Octavia's standpoint, but I liked how it was quietly reconciled.
Book Three, however, really turned more into a story about the brothers
reconciling than an actual romance which only got more points from me.
Writing Style: I think it's fair to
point out that the first book The Underdog was the author's first novel
and it tells, it really wasn't that good, and the writing style was a little
jerky, but the second one is much better and the third even better than that.
It's written in Cam's voice and Cam being a teenage boy, it is understandable
that the thought process is a little disjointed and it actually made it easier
for me to get into his head. I really liked how there was a little extra bit at
the end of each chapter though; in the first book, it was a recounting of one
of Cam's dreams, in the second, a conversation he had with Ruben, and in the
third, one of his writings that he took up. I really like it when authors do
stuff like that and it kind of helps to end the chapters and go to the next
more smoothly.
Accuracy/ Believability: Not much
you can mess up in contemporary, but I will say again that the relationship the
brothers shared was very true to life.
Problems/What bothered me: Not
really any major problems, I was afraid things would get messier than they did
in the third book, but everything turned out right. Several times I wanted to
shake my head at the boys for the choices they made, but they were very
realistic characters and I can't hate them for being human.
Conclusion: The Underdog: 3
stars Fighting Ruben Wolfe: 4 stars Getting The Girl: 4 stars. I
really enjoyed this series and I'm glad I decided to pick them up. I wanted
brother stores and I was not disappointed. The brother feels at the end of Fighting
Ruben Wolfe were lovely and I actually teared up during the 'he ain't
heavy, he's my brother moment' in Getting The Girl Just lovely :)
Recommended Audience: Good guy
read, ages 17 and up, if you love sibling stories, definitely check these out, you
won't be disappointed.
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