Unforgettable scenes. A strong friendship that I admired for its durability. The characters are unexpected and unpredictable, as is the plot. ( )

'a beautifully observed rite of passage, as much about growing up as friendship'
By sally tarbox on 26 July 2012
Format: Paperback
Exquisitely written account of friendship, love and shyness.
Lymie is an intelligent but puny kid, ever excluded by the others. When he becomes friends with tough new boy Spud, a kid who fits in with the rest, the relationship becomes intense- on Lymie's side at least- but unspoken issues arise between the two at college...
This part was so beautifully written; a lesser author might have broken up the friendship with an argument, but Lymie continues to hang around Spud -who allows him to while barely acknowledging him, in a heartbreaking episode.
The reader totally understands the kind of guy Lymie is to the rest of the world:
'The boys in the fraternity were friendly toward Lymie and accepted him, but as an outsider, a foreigner with all the proper credentials. Their attitude was a good enough indication of what he could accept socially, the rest of his life. If he had been the kind of person who mixes easily and makes a good first impression, he wouldn't have walked past the plate glass window of LeClerc's pastry shop, years before when he was in high school.'
Beautiful, heart-rending, showing a total understanding of human interaction. ( )

For the most part this book bored me. The plot mainly revolves around "Spud" Latham and Lymie Peters and their strange relationship, which oscillates and shifts between average friendship, master-servant, and ambiguous love. A girl named Sally is introduced half way through the book, but despite the fact that she is often presented as the third point of a triangle the narrative is really centered on the two boys. Didn't find the story particularly compelling, brought to mind a soap opera set in the 1920s, but it wasn't bad either. What bogged me down was the writing. Maxwell loves to describe scenery and things happening around the characters that have little or no bearing on them, and this goes on for pages with prose I didn't find impressive. Maxwell also has a penchant for extended metaphors, whether it be hazing as the primeval ritual, life as an obstacle course, or the cruelty of existence as a desert, that aren't half as clever as he thinks they are. Cut down to a lean novella I might have found The Folded Leaf decent, though even then it would have been far from great, but as it stands I found it thoroughly meh. 2.5 stars. ( )

Lymie and Spud become inseparable best friends when they are teenagers in Chicago in the 1920s, but once they go to college together, they begin to grow apart, and it's bad. ( )

Lymie Peters is a thin, intelligent, solitary boy useless at sports; Spud Latham is a natural sportsman, lithe, perfectly proportioned and muscular, a natural fighter who loves boxing, but not so good in the classroom. That the two become such close friends makes an unlikely combination, but Lymie is devoted to Spud, and Spud sees his role as protector of the weaker boy.

They remain close throughout their school years and as they move away from home to attend the same college. They room together, and become close to two girls, but trouble lies ahead as misunderstanding and jealousy take their toll, eventually leading Lymie to desperate steps.

This is a most engaging novel. Set in the 1920s it captures much of the period with detailed descriptions of place and fashion. The friendship between Lymie and Spud is beautiful if at times uneven, and while nothing is suggested one might read much more into it. Beautifully written, it holds ones attention throughout to its ultimately positive conclusion. ( )