Wonderboy

One of my favorite books I've read...Fiona Gibson is hilarious and deep at the same time.

Wonderboy tells the story of Ro Skews, who is moving from the city to the country. A city girl ar heart, her aloof husband and eccentric son make the move ever harder for her. She struggles at first but gradually gains more control over her life. The reader will smile at her victories and cry when things seem to be falling apart. Bits of humor speckle the story, always keeping it interesting and light. I finished the book in a day; it is very addicting.

Marcus insists on moving wife Ro and son Tod to the countryside after years of living in London. Marcus then starts putting physical and emotional distance between them. And Tod, well Tod would have a difficult time anywhere. The uprooting of Ro and Tod is well told, and the characters are very well written. Gibson writes movinginly of both the pains and pleasures of being a mother. I picked this up in the store as I was looking for a light read, and found it to be much better than that.

The child in this story clearly has mild Asperger syndrome, as the author vividly describes many symptoms--social awkwardness and isolation, obsessive and unusual interests, clumsiness, etc. But I was very let down by the fact that the child is never diagnosed, and the term "Asperger's" never comes up. In fact, the new boyfriend tells the mom that he loves the fact that she just lets the boy "be who he is," and she snorts in response "the teacher thinks he has some sort of disorder." In the end, the new boyfriend builds a maze for the child (the boy is obsessed with mazes), and the sense is, now everything's going to be okay. If only it were that easy in real life. "Just accept him as he is" is not a great moral for a story about a little boy with Asperger's. "Love him and accept him, but get him some help" would be a much better one.

Marcus Skews decides that leaving London to live in the countryside is best for his wife Ro and almost six years old son Tod. He persuades a reluctant Ro by claiming the eccentric Tod needs a different school having been the victim of recent bullying incidents due to his eccentric behavior and the neighbor in the flat above them seems to have a loose screw. Thus they move to Gorby Cottage, a fixer-upper, in Chetsley, population 1200 and just under two hours to London causing Ro to give up her job at Anna's Film Archives, not a bad thing as she hated her boss, but an extra major change. Not long afterward, Marcus goes to work with a severe cold; that night he tells Ro he is too sick to come home. More days like that occur in which he stays in London. Soon she finds she likes Chetsley especially the friendly people kind to her son such as her neighbor Joe, who shows he wants her too. However, Ro stays true to her vows until she learns why Marcus spends increasingly more time in London. WONDERBOY is an interesting family drama that digs deep into the disintegration of a relationship by looking closely at the three prime players. Fans will know what makes Ro tick and feel for Tod, a brilliant but troubled child failing to adjust to formal and informal school behavioral demands. Though they will hiss at Marcus' indiscretions and avoiding his obligations, fans will understand his motives that led to his failures. Fiona Gibson's insightful tale is well written, though Joe is too nice and convenient. Harriet Klausner