Product Description
Cameron Wolfe is the quiet one in his family, not a soccer star like his brother Steve or a charming fighter with a new girl every week like his brother Rube. Cam would give anything to be near one of those girls, to love her and treat her right. He especially likes Rube's latest, Octavia, with her brilliant ideas and bright green eyes. But what woman like that would want a loser like him? Maybe Octavia would, Cam discovers. Maybe he'd even have something to say. And those maybes change everything: winning, loving, losing, the Wolfe brothers, and Cameron himself.
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 Getting the Girl
It was refreshing to, once again, read a great book with a male protagonist who writes, and not only that, writes really really well. As in, with the exact style that I would love someday to write in, flowy but not overly descriptive, just about the world and life and how everything fits together. You go into the book a little confused by/about all the characters, and come out wishing you knew them all, especially protagonist Cameron. I thought it would just be a typical "guy" book, expecting, you know, murder, car chases, whatever. Who knew you could write a YA romance with a side of bromance, feauturing a main male character? (Well, other than John Green). Cam is the guy every girl wishes she had, I just don't think he knows it! Quiet, sensitive, writer with the sweetest and deepest thoughts, sounds perfect to me! I thought the entire story was well-paced (not to mention, well-spaced, thank you, double spacing authors, we love you!). The ending was a little all over the place, and I wish there was more resolution with Octavia, but it was very sweet, tying up both the brotherly stories and the romantic ones. Amazing read.
Rating: 4.5/5
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One of the Best Books I've Ever Read
I am not surprised that thus far, this book has only received 5 star reviews. I read all kinds of genres of books and this is one of my favorite books of ANY genre.
Before I review it, I want to say this is my first Markus Zusak book and I did not realize that this book follows another: Fighting Ruben Wolfe. Unfortunately, that book appears to be out-of-print here in the U.S. and is for sale Used at like $30 a pop. Understandably, people don't want to get rid of Zusak's book, because I'm sure they want to reread them! My point is that if you can't get the first book, or you do not want to pay that much $, I felt like Getting the Girl can be read without needing to read the first. I did not feel like I was missing backstory, though I would like to go back and read the first.
Now, as for my review, I won't recap the plot, because I hate recapping the plots when I write reviews, but also because this book is more about a character's journey to find self-worth than about any specific events. That isn't to say that there weren't some suspenseful moments where I couldn't tear my eyes from the page. Especially towards the end of the book, I was covering the words with my hand so my eyes wouldn't jump ahead.
This story really snuck up on me. In the first half of the book, I was pulled through my the author's amazing writing, which is both poetic yet straight to-the-point. Not overwritten at all. At first, I was reading it in like 30-40 page increments at a time. I found myself rereading sentences and letting them settle in my mind. At some point in the middle, the story turned a corner where I could not put it down and stayed up late to finish it. In no way is this book sappy or melodramatic - it involves guys fist-fighting, playing sports, going after girls, etc. but it is very raw and real and it reached in and grabbed my emotions by the throat and didn't let go. I cried at least half a dozen times in the second half of this book.
I just hope this review did this book justice. It was that good. This may be classified as Young Adult, but I think this is a great book for not only adolescent and teen boys & girls, but also for adult men and woman. So I guess I pretty much think everyone would love this book.
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Courtesy of Mother Daughter Book Club.com
In Getting the Girl, Markus Zusak takes us into the world of Cameron Wolfe, a high school boy living in the shadow of his older siblings: Steve who's smart and driven and successful at everything he does, Sarah who works hard, and Ruben, a fighter who earns the respect of all the guys in the neighborhood and who easily gets any woman he wants.
But Cameron is a loner, with no friends outside his family, no girls to go out with, and nothing to do at night but wander the streets around his home. Things start to change for Cam when Octavia comes into his life. Octavia is the latest in a long line of girls dumped by Ruben. Cam sees her as different from the rest, and when she makes it known she's interested in him, Cam doesn't hesitate. But how does he open up to someone when he's so used to being alone? And how does he tell Ruben that's he's dating one of his ex-girlfriends?
Cameron is an unlikely hero. Quiet and unassuming, he's caught between wanting to find someone who appreciates him for what he is and wanting to be more than what he lets others see of him. Getting the Girl delves into complex issues of family and the roles played by different members, and finding a way to be true to yourself while not being overshadowed by more forceful personalities.
Markus Zusak has a way of writing that makes you forget you're reading about a fictional character and instead think you could run into Cam Wolfe on the street one day. Excellent!
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M.Z.'s second greatest work
His first being Fighting Reuben Wolfe. Both are tight, crisp and strong. Both should be on your bookself if you love great, engaging stories with characters who jump off the page and plots that grip your heart, make you smile and leave you satisfied when you turn the last page.
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remarkable
I loved this book. It was a quick, easy read. A lovely story about a teenage boy becoming a man,discovering love and finding a comfortable place within his family and the world around him. I have enjoyed all Zusak's books and I am amazed that someone so young can write with such feeling and understanding.
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