P.J. Petersen

Rob&Sara.com is one of the better written "penpal" type books I've read in awhile. Authors P.J. Petersen and Ivy Ruckman wrote this book by exchanging emails in real life as RobCruise66 and Sara4348 (exact numbers may be off since I've already returned the book and cannot reference). Rob and Sara are two teens who meet through a teen poetry message board. The two develop a friendship and ultimately a romantic relationship, but the authors take their time and let things blossom naturally. I show more appreciate that this was a "clean" read-no cuss words or sexual innuendos. I know that teens these days do cuss and have sex, but Rob and Sara by no means sounded "square" or made up. Quite the contrary, and I hope Petersen and Ruckman co-author more books in the future. show less

Hopefully, you won’t consider this statement to be a spoiler. Neither Rob nor Sara is an online predator. This story falls outside the media frenzy which warns of the dangers of talking to strangers on the internet. Wouldn’t it be nice to be valued by someone without concern for looks, fashion or finances? Rob has dealt with the circumstances of his life by running away – often resulting in harm to others – and now finds himself in a boot camp for troubled teens. If he doesn’t stay show more put at “Camp Feelgood” his next stop will be prison. Sara, an army brat, has lived all over the world but has no place to call home. Just when she gets comfortable, her father is transferred and she has to move again. Worst of all, high school friends don’t travel well. Rob, Sara and others meet in an online poetry chat room to critique each other’s poems. Rob and Sara connect when they find things in common other than writing poetry. Their friendship flourishes through online letters. With Sara as his confidant Rob resists the urge to flee and in so doing discovers ‘the real Rob’. Sara finds in Rob an anchor and confidant. Together they take on the challenges and angst of teen life.

Rob&Sara.com kept me up until the wee hours. I just couldn’t put it down! With plenty of surprises along the way, this book is a satisfying and enjoyable read. show less

Pretty good read. Fast moving and simply written. The boys liked it and stayed interested throughout. Should appeal particularly to boys who are on the geeky side rather than the athletic side as it is the story of a geeky computer game loving boy who saves his older more athletic sporty brothers life on a canoe trip.

A teen customer recommended this book to me, and I couldn't have been happier to read it! It's the story of Rob and Sara, two teens who meet online and form a long-distance, online-only relationship. The authors do an excellent job of portraying both the difficulties and the advantages of this kind of relationship (which has its roots in the old-fashioned courtships of the past, when lovers knew each other only through extensive, soul-baring letters). Rob&Sara.com is a quick read and well show more worth it. Although some elements may be a bit fantastic for some readers, the book makes up for it in a dead-on portrayal of a blossoming friendship. show less