Friday, April 12, 2019

FFB; BE TRUE TO YOUR SCHOOL, Bob Greene

Books I read in 1987.

'Be True to Your School' was written from a  diary Bob Greene kept during his junior year in high school. In it's richness is found it's timeless joy. This is a great snapshot of the awkward, humble, fumbling, funny and adventurous transition from boy to young adult.

Whether you're a man or woman though, Baby Boomer or not, if you love friendships, discovery of the opposite sex, popular music as a soundtrack to life, and fun, fun, fun, you will love this book.

The single most universal reaction from readers of this book, if not spoken, then felt, has to be the frustrating wish that Mr. Greene had continued making entries in his diary past his junior year. You'll love the characters, the small town and the adventures that surely must await.

We want more!!

A wonderful and poignant prologue, of sorts, by Mr. Greene is the also true, "And You Know You Should be Glad".
 P.S This was probably the last joyful year of the sixties before the war and its associated events and traumas tore us apart.  Much of this review was taken from amazon commenters. I wish I could read it again. My only note on the page in my diary was "Fun.!"

12 comments:

Margot Kinberg said...

Oh, this does sound like a great coming-of-age memoir. And I like the Bob Green work I've read (have you read Good Morning Merry Sunshine)?

Jeff Meyerson said...

I don't think anyone who went to school at that time (as I did) could not find something to enjoy and identify with in this book.

George said...

I seem to remember Bob Greene had some issues: In September 2002 Greene was forced to resign from his newspaper column at the CHICAGO TRIBUTE after admitting to an unconsummated extramarital sexual relationship 14 years earlier with a high school student.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Ugh! I guess he wanted to relive those days a little too much.

Todd Mason said...

Well...Greene is 17 and has a thing with a 14yo in the book...which struck me as a bit odd when I read the book when I was fourteen. Which didn't stop me as a 17yo senior in crushing hard on a certain sophomore...and she turned out to be 14, as well (and I was feeling a bit awkward about that very fact)...but even I acquitted myself a bit better, as I choose to remember it without diary to demonstrate otherwise (but some memories of sad goofiness on my part as well as being occasionally actually helpful rather than sulking so hard, as she had some bumps in the road with guys she was drawn to instead of me--got a short story out of it, it won a campus award at U Hawaii)...ah. well.

Todd Mason said...

Yeah...I guess what I'm saying is that he demonstrated a certain arrested development even in the pup stages.

Todd Mason said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Todd Mason said...

"Excerpts in Esquire and Family Circle."

Todd Mason said...

Nope! Man, a diary CAN help. I read this in 1987 or '88, since it wasn't available as early as I thought. So, I was comparing our experiences retroactively!

If you remember the '80s in sequential order...your memory is better that way than mine is...at least when it comes to other people's edited diaries. (I was reading Asimov's diary-based first book-length autobiography volume when I was 14yo...perhaps that's the conflation...)

Rick Robinson said...

The year after I graduated from high school. I was in the Army before heading off to college, so my environment was different.

Steve Oerkfitz said...

I was only in 7th grade in 1961 and hated junior high. A lot of 14, 15, 16 year old dated older boys since they often had money thru part time jobs. And a drivers license which was important in the suburbs where there was nowhere close enough to walk to.

Anonymous said...

Bob Greene's columns are always a delight. Greene traveled with Alice Cooper when the band was at its height. Greene would dress up like Santa Claus and the band would "kill him" to end the show. Bob's book chronicling the experience, "Billion Dollar Babies" is very worthwhile reading.

Jim Meals