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    The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them | A Ruby Oliver Novel
    Unavailable
    The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them | A Ruby Oliver Novel
    Unavailable
    The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them | A Ruby Oliver Novel
    Audiobook5 hours

    The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them | A Ruby Oliver Novel

    Written by E. Lockhart

    Narrated by Kirsten Potter

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    From E. Lockhart, author of the highly acclaimed, New York Times bestseller We Were Liars, which John Green called "utterly unforgettable," comes The Boy Book, the second book in the uproarious and heartwarming Ruby Oliver novels.

    Here is how things stand at the beginning of newly-licensed driver Ruby Oliver's junior year at Tate Prep:

    • Kim: Not speaking. But far away in Tokyo.
    • Cricket: Not speaking.
    • Nora: Speaking--sort of. Chatted a couple times this summer when they bumped into each other outside of school--once shopping in the U District, and once in the Elliot Bay Bookstore. But she hadn't called Ruby, or anything.
    • Noel: Didn't care what anyone thinks.
    • Meghan: Didn't have any other friends.
    • Dr. Z: Speaking.
    • And Jackson. The big one. Not speaking.

    But, by Winter Break, a new job, an unlikely but satisfying friend combo, additional entries to The Boy Book and many difficult decisions help Ruby to see that there is, indeed, life outside the Tate Universe.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateJul 27, 2010
    ISBN9780739381069
    Unavailable
    The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them | A Ruby Oliver Novel
    Author

    E. Lockhart

    E. Lockhart is the author of many YA novels, including We Were Liars and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks. She was voted worst driver in her senior class in high school.

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    Reviews for The Boy Book

    4/5

    246 ratings19 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Really about girls and how they relate to boys, each other and that high school growing up phase. Engaging characters and dialogue.
    • 4/5
      Re-read.

      Again, Lockhart's dead on. I identify with Ruby, I love the premise, and the execution leaves me with no complaints. The machinations of high school girls ring true. It would have been easy for this story to get overblown or maudlin, but in Lockhart's hand it remains funny but wincingly real.
    • 3/5
      I actually liked this one better than the first one, because various characters actually TOOK ACTION OMG.
    • 4/5
      A recent goal of mine has been to try to strike a better balance between review books and backlist titles. As such, I've been making time in my schedule for some books of my choice. How wonderful it is to read a full, already completed series back to back, rather than waiting a year for each one; I'd almost forgotten what that was like. Lockhart's Ruby Oliver charmed me with the first book, The Boyfriend List, and the sequel completely lives up to its predecessor.

      Ruby Oliver remains her charming, neurotic self, and she grows on me more the better I become acquainted with her. In The Boyfriend List, I mentioned how realistic Ruby's selfishness made her as a character. In The Boy Book, the impact of Ruby's work with her therapist Doctor Z begins to become apparent. She really matures in this installment, learning to think a little bit more about her actions and their motivations. Her progress forward into a better Ruby is not too easy, though, as she does suffer the usual setbacks. Her character arc makes a natural and uplifting progression.

      Each chapter opens with a snippet of the titular "Boy Book," created by Ruby and her former friends. In this book, they compiled the sum of their knowledge about boys, from boobs to phone etiquette to their girl code. These excerpts starkly contrast Ruby's current social leprosy with the days with the strength of their former friendship. So much of the book consists of their agreements to tell one another everything and trust one another implicitly, rules made tragic by how much they failed to work.

      Romantic drama may seem to take center stage in this series, but, in fact, the most core theme is that of friendship. Lockhart tackles such notions as what friends owe to one another, and what precisely makes two people friends. She investigates both how Ruby's former friendships fell apart, and what Ruby learned from that. Left without any friends, Ruby settles for the best options open to her: Meghan, Noel, and Hutch. She never hated any of them, but they did not used to matter to her much either. Watching Ruby grow closer to them, find their hidden depths and begin to develop meaningful connections with them is a thing of beauty. I especially appreciated seeing Meghan's character, previously shown largely as a Bick-obsessed airhead, given so much more substance.

      As far as the romance goes, Jackson continues in his serial dating ways. That boy cannot stand to be alone for five seconds. Thankfully, part of Ruby's growing up is coming to terms with the fact that Jackson is not at all the boy she thought he was, and moving on from him. A new romance blossoms on the horizon, but with an impediment that has me chewing my nails in concern. Ruby Oliver does the right thing, rather than the easy thing, and this is the surest sign of her new maturity.

      The only reason I rated this installment lower than the prior is that the summation of book one was poorly handled. Rather than working the information in naturally, Lockhart infodumps crucial facts from book one here and there. Obviously, this will not be an issue for those who are not reading the books back to back as I am.

      Lockhart's Ruby Oliver series shines with wit and personality, a humorous little gem. The stories are both quick and delightful to read. Next up is The Treasure Map of Boys, and I am glad I don't have to wait after that somewhat dramatic, though not cliffhanger dramatic, ending.
    • 4/5
      THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR THE BOYFRIEND LISTIt's the beginning of junior year and Ruby is in possession of a driver's license and possibly a friend or two. Of course, she's still obsessing about boys, including her ex-boyfriend, Jackson, who's gotten a whole lot friendlier since Ruby's former best friend and his current girlfriend, Kim, left on an exchange trip for Japan. With lots of boy drama and a healthy helping of footnotes, Ruby attempts to make it through the first half of junior year.All of the same delights from the first book with more character growth for Ruby thrown in. I love that these books include references to such a diverse range of culture on a sideline to the main narrative, including AC/DC, Plato's The Cave, and Cry-Baby, among others. Pure fun.
    • 4/5
      As entertaining as the first book in this series. Lockhart does a great job mimicking the thoughts and actions of a teen girl trying to figure out who she is. Many of Ruby's actions remind me of my own when I was a teenager - not always the smartest but well-intentioned (well, sometimes...).Highly recommended!
    • 4/5
      The novel, The Boy Book by E. Lockhart encompasses don't go after unavailable boys. In the beginning, Ruby Oliver, struggles with telling readers of tips to get boys. Throughout the middle she perseveres through explaining how she lost her bestfriend and her boyfriend. By the end she has learned that her bestfriend and her will never be friends again and she will never get her boyfriend back. (193/193)
    • 3/5
      the novel the boy book encompasses a girl that tries to get her friends back in the beginning she tries to get her boyfriend back from her bestfriend the protagonist struggles with boyfriend problems, throughout the middle she preserves through finding new friends. by the end she has learned that she didnt need her bestfriend.
    • 3/5
      Liked this book better than the first. An enjoyable read.
    • 3/5
      It is pretty much crazy how much these novels read like a handbook for being a person. In context you might think that they are really just an explanation of how one first-world girl is living, with lots of hot tubs and cell phones, though she is not herself the owner of hot tubs or cell phones. And they are that, surely. Mostly because all of the people around Ruby, affecting her, are that context.But yes. So good that one writer decided to just make it her job to unpack that life and see what files where. I am going to explain everything about what it's like to be a girl this way. Even what it's like to be a girl in one of the least tragic times and places to be a girl in -- someone who's very lucky, taking things very hard, and being a very good person.I think you can tell that's what these books are about because she does not get the happy ends of comedies. Twice now. The books are light, but still she gets the ends where she has regrets and is back in therapy.And indeed, it is hard not to kiss Noel your darn self, reading these. And not to tear the book in two when Kim shows up in this new haircut and is still so bad, so mean, am I right ladies.It's nice there's more to come.
    • 5/5
      Second book in the Ruby Oliver series and I loved just as much as the first one, if not more. I cannot wait for the next book(s) in the series. The Boy Book delves a bit deeper into Ruby's troubles, and the problems that she has (both her fault and the fault of others). I really like everything about this series. I'm not sure if it's because my high school was pretty painful (to me, apparently other people don't feel this way) or just because Lockhart's story telling is brilliant. But I found myself just devouring these books.
    • 5/5
      Very cute book (sequel to The Boyfriend List), makes me glad I'm not in high school anymore. I would recommend it to any teenage girl because it will help them put their lives into perspective. The main character is a high school junior, Ruby Oliver, who is pretty much normal- does stupid things, has humiliating things happen to her, etc. The moral of the story is that there really is more to life than boys. ;-)
    • 5/5
      From the beginning, it was quite obvious that E. Lockhart was going to create the exact same atmosphere as the last book--and thank goodness she did! Reading them back to back, the transition was seamless. The tone had stayed the very same and Ruby was still the same lovable Ruby. You knew from the title that Kim would play a part, so I did love the resolution between those two. Plenty of new ideas were introduced (Ruby working at a zoo was a perfect fit!) and the suspense was killing me. The characters seemed to evolve even more, all in good ways. The one thing that did frustrate me was the lack of resolution in Ruby's love life, which was why I was very relieved to find out that there will be a third Ruby Oliver book, and let's hope she finally gets the guy in this one (I'm rooting for Noel!)Rating: 4.5/5
    • 5/5
      The second book about Ruby Oliver stands alone as a wonderful book about a girl finding her way after her friends don't like her anymore. She broke the rules about boyfriends, and now she is out. As she goes through her junior year, she stuggles with mistakes she has made, feeling about new friends, and how to cure herself of her panic attacks. Ruby makes out with a boy, but nothing too graphic!
    • 4/5
      School has started up again, and Ruby Oliver is still a pariah. None of her former friends are speaking with her, she has no boyfriend, the whole school thinks she's a slut, and she's still seeing a shrink. When Kim (her former best friend) goes to Japan for a semester abroad, Jackson (Ruby's ex, who Kim stole) starts to get friendly again. Ruby tries to regain her friends, sort out her feelings for Jackson (and Angelo, and Noel) and get some kind of handle on her life. Ruby's not perfect, but she is funny and a delight to spend time with.
    • 4/5
      I've been reading this series backwards, but that doesn't kill the charm.
    • 4/5
      I read this quickly a few weeks ago! I really enjoyed it but I needed a break before finishing the last two.
    • 5/5
      E. Lockhart makes me want to go back to high school so that I can do it again and do it right this time. I am convinced that with the tools I learned in this book, that I will be a master. Oh and I really want to meet a boy like Angelo. Somehow I missed knowing anyone like him in high school .... The Boy Book is the second book in a four book series that focuses on Ruby Oliver. Ruby is a student at a private high school in Seattle, she has two off beat parents who mean oh so well (but are pretty funny in their attempts), and at the start of The Boy Book, Ruby believes that she doesn't have any friends. The Ruby Oliver series is a message series. It is about the true meaning of friendship and what it takes to be a true friend. It is about the conflict between the positive feeling having a boyfriend gives to a girl v. the struggle with what if he is actually a jerk. It is about the meaning and effect of labeling other people. And it is about the crazies and confusions that dating and liking love interests in high school brings to a high school teenagers life. But even though the Ruby Oliver series is a message series and The Boy Book teaches so many great things it never comes off as a after school special. These messages are delivered through experiences and character growth. But really super important, these books are hilarious, they are fun and the main character (Ruby) feels like my best friend or maybe even me. E. Lockhart is brilliant. So Ruby is like many high school girls. There are some good things about her, she is okay at some things, bad at others, she isn't drop dead gorgeous but some of her friends are and she has some positive physical attributes. This is a quote from the first book in this series and it gives you an idea how Ruby is not described, “I hate those endless descriptions of a heroine's physical attributes . . . it really bothers me how in books it seems like the only two choices are perfection or self-hatred. As if readers will only like a character who's ideal--or completely shattered.” Ruby is still discovering who she is, learning to appreciate her great legs and learning to appreciate that guys like her legsSo, it is really hard to tap into why this book is so fun, I will just summarize some of the plot lines: Hooter Rescue Squad, Penguins, Llamas, the stockpiling of fruit rollups, a discussion on reclaiming the label of "slut" (along with learning why that label gets thrown around), the realization that the kid with acne may not actually like having acne, an appreciation for guys who know how to properly grope boobs (this is carried over from the first book -- very important), public embarrassment from parents, confrontations with a former best friend turned arch enemy, and lots of fun and yummy boy crushes. Ruby is fun, makes mistakes and never ends up with the guy she thinks she wants. Kinda like real life but better (maybe because she lives on a houseboat with a greenhouse). I highly recommend this book for anyone in high school or who has ever gone to high school.
    • 4/5
      Ruby Oliver is back and more beloved than ever! At the start of junior year, Roo’s ex-best friend Kim is in Japan, and she’s still not speaking with her ex-boyfriend Jackson, whom Kim “stole” because she believed they were meant for each other. The only two people she’s sort of friends with are Noel, a guy who can be in any social group or none at all anytime he wants, and Nora, the only one out of her original group of four friends who will still speak with her. Roo continues her therapy sessions with Dr. Z and starts an internship at the zoo.Here are the boys in her life: Angelo, a hot family friend whom she’s scamming with, meaning that they make out but aren’t technically “together”; Jackson, the dreaded ex who’s been sending her notes although he’s Kim’s boyfriend; and Noel. Roo can’t figure out her feelings for Noel. Sure, there have been moments when she thought he was going to kiss her. But Roo’s not in therapy for no reason; she has to work out her feelings. With her reputation and social life only beginning to recover from her leper-like end of sophomore year, she has to do the right thing so that she won’t end up alone again. And sometimes the right thing isn’t always the thing she wants.I enjoyed THE BOY BOOK so much more than its prequel. In this book, Roo and her friends come up as more rounded and human characters. Anyone can relate to someone in the book, and I can understand each character’s actions, though they may not be the best ones. E. Lockhart is a master of teen dialogue, and there is something in this book for every reader.