Rating: 
Summary: Absolutely brilliant.
Review: Last Days of Summer is told in unique format, in the form of newspaper clippings, notes, ticket stubs, and other miscellania. It's set in the late 1930s and early 1940s, up until World War II, and told from the point of view of young Joey Margolis, growing up with his mother in Brooklyn. Joey needs a hero. His parents are divorced and his father doesn't seem to know he's alive. He gets beaten up every time he leaves his house because he's Jewish. And he just got sent up to Juvy for peeing in the resevoir. So he fixates himself on a young baseball player named Charlie Banks, and basically begins stalking him through the mail, bombarding him with letters. At first Charlie is like, "Beep off, kid. I don't want you around." But Joey's persistence wins him over and it's the start of a beautiful friendship. Last Days of Summer was a great book. Charlie was my favorite character. The pre-war world is captured with perfection, and I really liked the format. Boring old prose is passé, I guess. I would recommend this book to anybody who likes nostalgic stories, and anyone who likes baseball. The only thing I disliked, was it contained a lot of baseball stuff I didn't understand.
Rating:
Summary: Truly a classic, original book
Review: Last Days of Summer is one you could finish soon because you don't put it down (sorry about that cliche). The author Steve Kluger's writing can take you back to the 1930's New York.
The story involves a young Jewish kid named Joey who lives in New York during the 1930's and on. He's a streetsmart kid who's precocious and smart-talking. The first part is hilarious as he warns the president about Hitler's plan to invade various countries, but of course he's disbelieved. Joey is a very likable kid, he's got a dirty mind sometimes, especially how he treats his school crush, though eventually he's sweet to her. His best friends a Japanese-American boy whom he plays games with. Joey is a baseball nut, loves to play,watch,talk about it. His favorite player's a young star named Charles Banks, also a smart-talking New Yorker. Though they first flame each other in the mail, they eventually become good friends. The second half of the book is much more emotional. Charles is drafted into the war, Joey's Japanese friend is interned, and Joey is generally forced to grow up. Though the end is predicable, it is nonetheless sad, and touching. The book is written in a series of letters and other written materials, making the format an intriguing read. The book is generally a humorous one, until the end, though it still maintains that charm. Recommended to Jews/non-Jews alike.
Rating:
Summary: Incredibly touching
Review: I loved this book, it is my new favorite, and this is a genre I would normally not go near with a ten foot pole. This is the first book to have me laughing and crying both at the same time. It is a delightful emotional journey that I would heartily recommend to everyone.
Rating:
Summary: I laughed out loud, even through the tears.
Review: I loved this book! I can't stop telling people about it. I want all my "reader" friends to hurry up and read it, just so we can laugh together. I've even picked it for my selection in the reading group I belong to. It's a story of a young, Jewish boy (Joey Margolis)growing up in the early forties, trying to fill the emptyness left by his absent father. He does this by writing to a rookie, baseball sensation named Charlie Banks, begging for a radio dedication homerun, under the guise of being a terminally ill child. The entire story told in letters, news clippings, report cards and notes, captivated me from the first page until the last.The strength, resillence, ingenuity and humor of young Joey, through all of his disappointments absolutely broke this mother's heart, while I'm cheering him on every step of the way. I laughed out loud so often, my family made me read in another room! And Charlie Banks, recovering from his own hidden sorrows, was drawn into a correspondence, then a relationship, kicking and screaming all the way. His gruff, wise-crackin',but good hearted advice,was just what Joey needed. I keep reading little bits to my friends, and now by the time I get my copy back, I'll be ready to read it again!
Rating:
Summary: I FRICKIN LOVE THIS BOOK
Review: IF YOU KNOW OF OTHERS LIKE THEM E-MAIL ME. I LOVE SARCASTIC CHARACTERS, THE '40s, BASEBALL ETC... GREAT BOOK!
Rating: 
Summary: fine summer reading
Review: _Last Days of Summer_ is a fun and easy read, though not without substance. Author Steve Kluger balances intelligence and humor well - the banter between baseball player Charlie Banks and 13-year-old Joey Margolis is priceless, the telling of the story via correspondance and news clippings is very clever, and there is just enough period detail to paint a vivid picture without being overbearing. The ending will be apparent to most readers well before they reach it, but thankfully Mr. Kluger doesn't dwell overly long on the story's weightier aspects - ultimately, this book is really more about the journey than the destination.
Rating:
Summary: Great story, told in a unique way
Review: I recently discovered (upon reading Syrup by Maxx Barry) that a unique writing style can do wonders for a book. This book was defintely unique, with the story being told through letters, notes, interviews, programs, and various correspondence between the characters of the story. I really enjoyed that aspect of it, but I also quickly realized that this book was more than just a novelty. About a third of the way through the book, I formed a pretty strong impression of what I thought was going to happen at the end, but instead of that making me less interested, it made me more interested. I kept reading until I was finished to see if my impression was right. I didn't know if I wanted to be or not. Along with the unique perspective, this book provides a compelling story about growing up when it must have been a very difficult time to grow up. It really made me appreciate my relatively easy childhood of the 70's and 80's. It also shows, however, that even in such a difficult time with so many bad things going on in the world, there are good things too. And if you work hard enough to achieve your goals, then anything is possible. I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable Read
Review: I picked up this book at the library and was intrigued by the book's format of postcards, newspaper articles and letters. It looked like an easy read so i dug in. After reading the letters from the little Joey Margolis, i couldnt put the book down. The letters to his baseball hero claiming he had illness cracked me up and i laughed even harder when i read what the president had to say back to Joey on his opinions of world affairs. The entire book is easy to read and understand and hilariously funny. I would highly recommend it to adults and teens alike.
Rating:
Summary: READ THIS BOOK
Review: this book is one of the best I've ever read. I have read it probably 10 times and I cry my heart out every time. You will laugh and cry and go nuts over this book, everyone should read it!! go press that "buy" button- it is worth every cent.
Rating:
Summary: great book
Review: a couple of years ago my sister gave me this book as a gift and since i had nothing else to do i read it. boy did it knock me out. i laughed and i cried, i am a major baseball fan and this is a story for everyone. i wanted to believe this story was real i even looked in a ny giants baseball records book for a charlie banks knowing it wasnt there.
in todays world atheletes dont talk to kids unless you pay them.
i gave this book to people who dont like sports and they loved it.
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