Synopsis
The course of growing up in just-this-side-of-segregation 1970s Cincinnati, Ohio, seems predictable if uninspiring for Cliffy Douglas. That is, until the deadbeat father of this gifted 13 year-old black kid from the Findlater Gardens Projects appears out of nowhere. The real fun and trouble begin when Noah, a Jewish boy he falls for in junior high school, takes him on a joyride to lust and love.
Beth Greenfield
4**** Hold this heavy, beautifully designed book in your hands and you might wonder what sort of mediocre writing all the artistry is trying to obscure. Forget it, though, because it turns out that the new publishing company's debut is a winner, thanks to the spare, deeply affecting writing of Ruff, a New York City short-story writer who has penned a unique and arresting novel about two boys in love. Time Out New York