Fighting Ruben Wolfe

What a pleasure it was to finally get to read Zusak's first novel, the prequel to GETTING THE GIRL. The Wolfe family is just barely making it. Dad's trying to recover from an accident at work and needs to find work or he'll have to go on the dole (welfare). Mom's working hard and doing the best she can. Rumors are flooding the school that their sister Sarah has been "getting around." Ruben and Cameron have done nothing but lose at the dog races. When Dad starts going door to door to beg for work, the boys resolve to do something, anything to redeem their pride and hide their embarrassment. Ruben gets in a fight at school, and just like that an underground boxing league agent asks both of the boys if they want in -- $50 for a win, tips for a loss. Before long, the money isn't an issue anymore. It's about pride. Dignity. Self-worth. It's about fighting for something instead of rolling over and letting life kick you again while you're down. It's about getting up. Again. Again. Again. Because at some point you have to own up to what and who you are. And it's about brothers. Because if there's one thing they'll always be, it's that. -- Reviewed by Jonathan Stephens

The book I read was fighting was Fighting Ruben Wolfe. I really liked this book because it was about two boys, Ruben and Cameron Wolfe, whose family is running low on money so the boys try to find a way to make a little money. So then the boys get into boxing in a couple town clubs to get some extra cash. While training with each other they both rise in the ranks and make a couple hundred bucks. They are then scheduled to fight each other. I recommend this book to anyone who likes fighting and competition. It is full of action excitement. A strong point in this book is that a lot of people can relate to the problems in their family to the book. If I would rate this book I would rate it a 5/5. It was excellent.

Have you ever read one of those books that you absolutly just couldn't put down? Well, if you have or if you haven't, this is one of them. It tells the story of two brothers in a working class family in Auatralia. Cameron, quiet, sensative, but quirky and funny tells the story, although Ruben, tough, handsome, and driven, is just as much a part of the story as Cam. In the story Cam and Rube join an underground boxing league, partialy for their family and particaly for themselves. You'll be racing through the pages, especially during the fight scenes. Overall, this is an excellent book. It also has a sequal (Getting the Girl), which you should also check out. Something else that I've discovered is that this book is actually the second in a trilogy, although is precessor is only avaliable in Australia, along with Zusak's newest book, The Messenger (which is great by the way). If you really are a hard-core Zusak fan you can find these books on an Austrailan book dealer site, although you might have to search around a bit. Anyway, this really is a great read and it will be one of your favorites if you buy it!

The book "Fighting Ruben Wolfe," by Markus Zusac was probably the best book I have ever read. Th librarian at our school recomended it to me, and at first I thought that I would feel like quiting after the first chapter, but the book kept me in suspense from page one. Some reasons why I like this book was because of all of the action in it, and how it kept me interested. It also didn't have a lot of complicated vocabulary that I couldn't understand. If you liked the book "The Contender" I would highly recomend this book. The book is mainly about two 13-year-old boys named Ruben and Cameron Wolfe who are twin brothers that have a very poor family that is struggling to pay bills and eat. But then one day a guy by the name of Perry who owns a boxing arena saw them fighting in their back yard each with one glove. Then Perry pursuades them to become boxers. Cameron struggles a lot in his matches, while Ruben goes undefeated with all TKO's. Cameron eventually gets jealous of Ruben, because Ruben is not only getting more attention in the arena and at school, but a girl named Stephenie, who Cameron likes, now wants to go out with Ruben. Will the brothers eventually solve their problems at home and in life in the end? I would recomend this book to anyone who wants a book that is interesting and fun to read.

This is the best young adult novel I've read in a long time. Teens who like action/sports novels will find it a satisfying read, but there's also much more depth than you typically find in books about adolescent boys. Zusak gets right to the heart and soul of his characters, developing a complex yet ultimately loving relationship between two tough brothers -- both of whom are the type of kids most adults would look down on. Most amazingly, the story is told almost completely through ordinary dialogue with the first-person voice interjecting amusing self-effacing observations. An absolute treat from beginning to end!