5 A friend of the author gave me this book as she knew I would enjoy the writing and the genre young adult angst growing up in the 50 s of middle America I particularly enjoyed the culture and language given the location the outskirts of Pittsburgh near where my husband grew up I could hear some of his relatives in the yinz and aht s The plot of a young lad making his way through his early teens negotiating girls friends and awkward school situations is not particularly new but Mr Venable adds many small nuances to make this book special While not a barn burning plot there is a sweetness and nostalgia throughout this story that made it a pleasant reading experience 176 Don t make friends with the new kid especially if he dresses differently Eighth grader Martin Badger learned this lesson the hard way but a most unforgettable way in Alan Venable s Ratting on Russo. Ratting on russof for sale The story is an easy read flowing from one sentence to the next paragraph to a new chapter I could not stop wanting to know what Russo and Martin s next adventure would be It s somewhat like a modern day Huckleberry Fin and Tom Sawyer That s only one of the different things about the new kid Arnold Russo with hisgoofy shirt that had up and down black and yellow stripes like a rider might wear in a horse race Plus he s older than the other kids in his class and much tougher with his life s short history Still Martin s mother thinks it s a good idea to be friendly to the new kid Eventually Martin accepts Arnold and his life is forever changed for better or worse only time will tell This coming of age story took me back to a time I thought I d all but forgotten 13 14 years of age when no longer a child but not even a young adult I struggled to understand the growing need to be myself stay within the parental rules and make sense of the growing sexual emotions as does Martin The classmates surrounding him friends for many years are also changing and it s Russo that seems to bring out the good bad and ugly in them all boys and girls public or parochial schools Heck with everyone who comes in contact with this newcomer There are girls oh yeah And for boys at that age they are quite a consuming thought and fantasy as well as the teasing fights and petty crimes as these young teens break free from parent rules and social norm Marteeny as he is dub by one of his classmates much to Martin s chagrin really is a good kid wanting to please his parents and friends while growing curious about what Russo s has to offer in new adventures so different from his own Martin continues his accordion lessons against to his growing wish to stop them while he battles with his younger sister and really tries not to develop the slang of Pittsburgh to please his understanding parents. Ratting on Russo epubs All in all the story is about a normal young teen in his last year of grade school preparing for high school It reminds me of days gone by Reading the story I reminisced chuckled at the not to well thought out plans like the long bike ride out of the city to a small suburban town to find a good buy from a newspaper ad gone bad the grade school dances the crushes and first love Oh I could go on and on but you the reader will experience for yourself In all honesty I wasn t sure I d be THAT interested in a boy s coming of age tale being stuck in my mystery thrillers what a joy this story became in my stuck reading genre Carried it with me to grab the next happenings of those naughty teen kids I predict Mr Venable has stories to share and that book like this will be a most enjoyable read Kudos to you Mr V I eagerly await the next one Additionally Mr Venable please upload the cover because I like it The Skye in June 176 This coming of age Young Adult novel Ratting on Russo by Alan Venable is set in Pittsburgh PA in the 1950s Ratting on Russo is told from the point of view of 8th grader Martin and centers on his new and different friend Russo Martin s a sensitive boy a nice boy innocent and yet discerning who wants to please even his parents and to the point a girl he has a crush on but wouldn t dare approach given the prohibition of having anything to do with a 6th grader If you like me are an expatriate of the now defunct Steel City you ll appreciate the careful attention Venable gives to the place itself Don t we all miss our old hometown in some way Ratting on Russo gives me a chance to reminisce by taking me through the old neighborhoods under those huge trees driving up the steep hills or down to the rivers I must have raked those same piles of leaves I must have overheard my parents discussing me and my long abandoned and yes even deceased friends were we really good for each other Martin struggles with friends as I did though his way seems direct kind of charming He sees there s to life than the rut of junior high kids or avoiding the class bullies or answering to his mother always correcting his grammar His whole world explodes when she as naive in a different way than her son encourages him to make friends with the new outsider Russo. Ratting on russo pdf free download Russo is the can do kid a loner who introduces Martin to the complicated crazy making seductive adult world From Russo Martin learns problem solving skills that any boy of twelve would need like how to enact revenge on school bullies how to play the accordion and win smart sweet girls like Margaret and Nikki Even negotiate with adults about his first paying job raking leaves and how to enact revenge when the guy takes advantage of them. Ratting on russo book club questions In Ratting on Russo the reader can feel the excitement Russo s escapades engender in Martin the good boy Martin has his own mind though and follows Russo into temptation reluctantly Yet when they hang out talking that quirky distinctive Pittsburgh dialect I remember it s easy to recreate that moment of growing up Martin feels as he comes to terms with the fact Russo knows seeming to cope in the adult world in ways far beyond Martin s comprehension But Russo s than a fun to be with troublemaker he learns Russo s loyal to his only friend More loyal than Martin could have imagined Maybe that s Pittsburgh too 176

Ratting on Russo By Alan Venable

097770825X

9780977708253

English

176

Paperback

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Of all the fabulous beings that have emerged from Western Pennsylvania soil none may be less so than Martin Badger But whose 1950s coming of age was harder than Marty s Whose bodily parts rebellious Whose peers annoying Whose music out of touch Whose sense of beauty perplexed Whose soul at war Misdeeds regrettable Passions fumbling And then came Russo Fiction humor coming of age Ratting on Russo.

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Ratting on Russo Alan Venable 3