This summer I chose to read This Boy's Life by Tobias Wolff. This book is a memoir about young Toby Wolff's boyhood adventures and struggles. Toby has to deal with separation of his parents and constant travel as his mom looks for the right place to start a new life for the two of them. Toby encounters new friends on his journeys as well the men his mother has relationships with on the way. Toby overcomes adversities he faces by clever thinking and a strong mind that allows him to have a chance and make something out of his life .
Toby was put into situations were he made actions I would never think about. He seemed to be a very spur of the moment, rebellious type of kid. An example of one of the things he did that I thought was very bold was when he decided to steal his step fathers truck in the middle of the night and go driving. This is something that I would never even think about if I was in Toby's shoes. He seemed like he wasn't scared of anything and wasn't afraid of any of the outcomes his choices brought about.
The story is ended with Toby not succeeding in prep school and shows him going back to his mother. The author obviously choices to end the book this way because this is what actually happened in his own life. This was a fitting ending and I thought it finished the book off rather well. .
2 .
The setting was a very important aspect of this book. The setting coincided with Toby's feelings. For example the book took place mostly in a town out in the middle of nowhere. Toby's had feelings that stuck inside of him and were bottled up. His feelings about his step father and his life made him want to escape from the horrid town and find a place where he could start a new life.
The author uses great detail when explaining the characters involved in the story. The great explanation of characters really adds another level to the story making it easier to understand as well as more interesting.