What do You think about Regular Guy (2000)?
A Chewy, Sweet Center With A Sour CoatingGuy Strang, who is a regular, well, guy, has profoundly weird and wacky parents. Bob-o, Guy's classmate, is a deeply odd kid, who has absolutely normal parents. When Guy becomes fed up with his parents, and then finds out that he and Bob-o were born on the same day in the same hospital, Guy becomes obsessed with the idea that he and Bob-o were switched at birth, and plots to undo this tragic switch.Now, that's a fine premise and it lends itself to all sorts of hijinks, but the author's approach is particularly interesting.I almost gave up on this book a quarter of the way in. Guy whines and moans relentlessly about how weird and annoying his parents are. Some of his whinging is clever and sharply observed, but it starts to get so over the top that it becomes wearing. Along the same lines, the description of Bob-o as a completely worthless, smelly, mumbling loser runs right up to the edge of charmless and mean.Luckily, the book shifts gears once those two points have been hammered home. It lightens up, gets a lot more interesting, drifts into some slapstick, and then builds to an amusing, upbeat and actually touching conclusion.SPOILERS: Once Guy engineers a temporary swap of families, (as a supposed school project), and has to live in Bob-o's shoes he begins to understand about where, exactly, the grass really is greenest. There are a number of touching conversations between Guy and Bob-o and between Guy and his parents, and everyone emerges wiser, better, and more appealing by the end. SPOILERS OVER.There are some truly funny moments and set pieces in this book. Guy's exchanges with his acerbic best friend Buzz are particularly clever, and some stand alone scenes, (like a joint family picnic), are very nicely constructed. The development of Guy's understanding of family, and the growth of the Bob-o character are both rewarding and satisfying, although never approached in a heavy-handed way. The author seemed to back off and just let the story coast to a happy ending, which felt like just the right choice.So, it's funny, it grows on you, and it wraps up in a very satisfying manner. A very nice find.Please note that I found this book while browsing in our local library. I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.
—Pop Bop
Guy is a twelve year old boy whose parents are quite eccentric. He thinks that he can't really be their son as he does not have these eccentric tendencies. He and his friend, Buzz discover that Bob-o, the weirdest boy in their class has the same birthday as Guy and was born at the same hospital. Guy and Buzz are sure that the boys got mixed up in the hospital and go about trying to prove this. Although I liked the idea for this story, I thought that it was a bit far fetched. Guy's parents are eccentric beyond belief and Bob-o's parents are so extremely dull. It just didn't ring true for me at all.
—Ingrid
