This is a classic that still had great appeal, but seems to have been almost forgotten. ( )

audiosync free title 2022 (13 hrs)

children's middlegrade classic humorous fiction (chubby 11 y.o. Jewish boy in the 1928 Bronx attending primarily Jewish public school and nonsecular summer camp)

Herbie reminds me very much of Ralphie Parker a la "A Christmas Story", with each episode of his life alternating between lucky breaks and unfortunate mishaps--lots of humorous encounters with bullies and fickle young girls, plus business drama with Herbie's dad's work situation. ( )

Peter Berkrot narrates this delightful timeless tale. Herbie Bookbinder is an overweight, clever, and eternally optimistic denizen of the Bronx in 1928. All he wants from life is to be a regular guy with his pals and to win the affections of Lucille, his red-haired crush. Berkrot's narration has a faintly old-fashioned style that suits both the era and the episodic nature of the audiobook. His slyly witty interpretation of Herbie will make listeners groan in sympathy when his imagination gets him into trouble and cheer him on when he triumphs over disaster.

City Boy is light reading, bearing little resemblance to Wouk’s more famous works such as The Caine Mutiny or Winds of War. Wouk’s roots as a comedy writer (The Fred Allen Show; David Freedman’s “Joke Factory”) are apparent in this extremely funny (although sometimes poignant) tale.

City Boy is Wouk’s second novel, set in 1928. We follow Herbie Bookbinder, a small-for-his-age (and very small-for–his-grade), morally ambiguous, 11-year-old Jewish boy, from his home in the Bronx to summer camp in the Berkshires, in his ever-escalating attempts to impress a pretty, fickle, red-haired 11-year-old girl.

Many people can identify with Herbie in one way or another, as the un-athletic “smart” kid, as a summer-camp attendee, or as a fellow Bronxite. ( )

charming little ride....tales of coming of age in the East Bronx....and at summer camp in the Berkshires in the 1920's...of a bright, lazy, somewhat overweight 11-year-old boy trying to find his way in a world that focuses mostly on bluff, swagger and athletic prowess....none of which he currently possesses. Very honest accurate representation of how it feels at that age to not fit in....(coming from one who still lacks athletic prowess!). Fun up and down adventure of small victories and subsequent crises that always seemed to follow. Charming without being silly...we see him begin to encounter the mysteries of the opposite sex, notice his parent's humanity, and find his moral center in an often unmoral world. It felt very real. Enjoyed very much. ( )