When You Were Me

by Robert Rodi

Book Overview

In his long-awaited new novel, master satirist Rodi, author of Fag Hag, Drag Queen, and Kept Boy, crafts a compelling and witty romp that adds new meaning to the adage, Be careful what you wish for.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0758215339
• ISBN13: 9780758215338
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation
• Length: 426 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.8" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

The Man is Back... But He Is Fortysomething Now

Rodi is back with his new novel after quite a break but he brings back all the good and bad parts of his writing. He is witty and funny, he is able to make a head start but then... it doesn't all go on that well. His characters are not always convincing, the story line depends too much on coincidence and magic (Yes, I know you can't switch bodies without magic but it can be done better! At least in books.) to be credible. Social criticism is quite shallow here and I missed strong women (and not so strong women) from the earlier novels. In short - not exactly a must-have and if you are still in love with Fag Hag and Kept Boy it may be something of a disappointment but you won't know until you've tried. If this is the first Rodi the purchase of which you are contemplating, I would suggest one of the earlier ones, which incidentally may not be that easy as they are all out of print for a while.

Freaky Friday

rodi's always good for a wry witty tale with a moral underpinning. Although the gay twist on an old plot isn't original, his take on it is, and the quips keep on coming. Worth a read at the pool with friends, where you can read a few gems aloud.

Witty, gay spin on "grass is always greener" proverb

At 53, Jack Ackerly has a life that many would envy. He sold his public relations firm for a fortune several years ago, making him independently wealthy and able to do pretty much anything he wants. But what he really wants is most of his years back to do over. Having always been busy with studies and work, Jack missed the supposedly "wild years" as a young gay man. He had been in a relationship with Harry, nine years his junior, for over twenty years, until Harry left him to find someone younger and more flexible in outlook. Every ache and pain, every gray hair, the news that his younger sister is now a grandmother, the realization that the gay dating scene is geared only to athletic 20-somethings, even his therapist's diagnosis that he just needs to stop feeling sorry for himself ... all of these things make Jack desperate to find a way to recapture his youth. Francesca, an eccentric "fusion witch" he consults thinks there may be a way. Enter 26 year old Cory Szaslo, unemployed and about to get thrown out of his apartment, who realizes that his years of drug use and constant partying in his younger days have pretty much doomed him to a lifetime of boring minimum wage jobs, failed relationships and a constant battle to survive. He wishes he had his short adult life to do over again, but realizes that isn't going to happen. If only there was some way he could trade this life in for one that wasn't so difficult. Upon running into Cory (literally, he hits him with his car while daydreaming about being young again), Jack offers him a unique "business arrangement": trading bodies. Francesca believes that a spell can put Jack's mind in Cory's body, and vice versa. To make the arrangement pay off for Cory, Jack proposes that they would trade lives as well. Cory would become Jack, with his luxury condo and all of his money, assets and contacts, while Jack would live Cory's humble life. To both of their surprises, the spell works, and they go their separate ways. Jack (now Cory) initially tries to party like the 26 year old his body tells him he is, but finds that his maturity and experience makes the experience get old very quickly. Cory (now as Jack) tries to cope with Jack's severe allergies, tries to go on a workout regime to tone up Jack's otherwise-healthy body, and tries to step into Jack's life with his acquaintances that Jack had briefed him on. Just when both are thinking this might not be as easy as they had imagined, Harry becomes a part of both of their lives, for Jack (in Cory's body) as a pickup at a restaurant, and for Cory (in Jack's body) when Harry leaves his younger lover and wants to come back to him. Can the spell be reversed, and put them back in their own bodies? After having been a huge fan of Rodi's tongue-in-cheek gay novels (from 1991's "Fag Hag" to 2002's "Bitch Goddess"), I was overjoyed at the announcement of his new book, and it was well worth waiting for. As usual, Rodi spins his story and character

Throughly Charming Book

I rarely write online review, but I have to say that I loved reading this book. Heart-felt, without being sentimental. It doesn't fall into the obvious plot devices that you would expect from the usual trading lives scenario. This one's a keeper!

Trading Lives

Rodi, Robert. "When You Were Me", Kensington, 2007. Trading Lives Amos Lassen and Literary Pride Some of you may be familiar with Robert Rodi from some of his previous books--"Fag Hag", "Closet Case" and "Kept Boy" among others. He s one of the funniest and most prolific of gay authors writing today and if you have not read him, you should. His new book "When You Were Me' is sure to reinforce his already wonderful reputation. His short fiction appears on a regular basis in our magazines and like many others, I have been anxiously waiting for a new book. I am pleased to say that he is good as always, if not better. This new book is about how hard it is to be someone else. Jack Ackerly is a very rich and very dull man. He has been a workacoholic and eve though he has made a lot of money, at age 53 he begins to regret having missed having a lot of fun. He knows it is impossible to relive the past but with the help of a "fusion witch" by the name of Francesca, he is able to change places with someone else who is willing to go along with the idea. All he needs to do is find the right person with whom to change lives. Corey Szaslo is 26 and very jaded. He has no education because he has been too busy being a party boy. He also has no career, no money and no prospects for the future. He thinks that changing lives with a millionaire may be an exit from his current miserable lifestyle even if h has to double his age and gain weight. Soon the two men change places and each lives the other's life to the nth degree. Jack, as Corey. Racks up tricks on a regular basis once he becomes a bar hopper and visitor to the gay meat market. Corey, as Jack, gets busy becoming a social butterfly and globetrotter as well as hard worker at his local gym. As good as it was for the two guys at the beginning of the arrangement, things begin to fall apart. Jack's ex lover comes onto the scene pleading for one more chance and this ruins the experiment. Jack and Corey suddenly become rivals and the competition is underway. The climax that ensues causes them to move farther and farther away than they had ever thought of being. Rodi has a knack for satire and he really knows how to pull the reader in. This is one fun book but on a more serious note, it also looks like at identity and knowledge of oneself as well as experience and envy. Think how many times you have said "If only..." After reading this book, I bet you will think twice before you ever say it again. This may be the gay blockbuster for the summer. It is an ideal beach book, mainly because all you have to do is open it and enjoy.