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Tobey Heydon #4
The Real Thing
Tobey Heydon and Brose Gilman put their special friendship to the test when they chose colleges a thousand miles apart. To make it worse for Tobey, it seems that Brose can't write more than a ten-line letter! Tobey's plans for a happy summer reunion with Brose are dashed when a Texas heiress gets him a summer job on her father's ranch. Will Brose succumb to Jan Shelby, or is his love for Tobey "the real thing?"
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1951
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68 people want to read
About the author
Rosamond du Jardin
33 books63 followersRosamond du Jardin, née Neal, first wrote humorous verse and short stories for newspaper syndicates, then went on to sell approximately a hundred stories to such magazines as Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, McCall's and many other publications, abroad as well as in the United States. She also wrote five novels for adults before her first novel for teenagers, Practically Seventeen, which was published in 1949.
She was married to Victor Du Jardin on October 28, 1925. They had three children, Jacqueline Neal, Victor Junior, and Judith Carol, with whom she would later co-author Junior Year Abroad.
In addition to writing, Mrs. Du Jardin frequently spoke at schools, and students enjoyed meeting in person the creator of some of their favorite stories. Mrs. Du Jardin enjoyed her school visits, too, because she liked and respected teenagers as individuals and firmly believed that they are interesting, normal and dependable people.
Born in the small town of Fairland, Illinois, Rosamond du Jardin was two years old when her family moved to Chicago. She lived there and in the Chicago suburbs for the rest of her life.
She was married to Victor Du Jardin on October 28, 1925. They had three children, Jacqueline Neal, Victor Junior, and Judith Carol, with whom she would later co-author Junior Year Abroad.
In addition to writing, Mrs. Du Jardin frequently spoke at schools, and students enjoyed meeting in person the creator of some of their favorite stories. Mrs. Du Jardin enjoyed her school visits, too, because she liked and respected teenagers as individuals and firmly believed that they are interesting, normal and dependable people.
Born in the small town of Fairland, Illinois, Rosamond du Jardin was two years old when her family moved to Chicago. She lived there and in the Chicago suburbs for the rest of her life.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 22, 2023
I finished this last year in the midst of some pre-holiday complications, so didn't review it at the time, but wanted to note before it fades too much from my mind that despite only getting three stars, it was my favorite of the series. If you're currently reading through the series for the first time, please note this review is spoiler-ish and you might want to skip it.
Tobey and long time high-school steady (or not) Brose part ways to go to separate colleges. Tobey attends "Central" college in her home state of Illinois because it's all her parents can afford, while Brose goes off to his father's college in Colorado. They decide it's for the best, because a time apart will let them know if they have "The Real Thing." So what I liked best about it (at least the first half): no Brose! His surliness and jealousy had been extremely irritating to me throughout the series, and I really didn't perceive any redeeming qualities. Encouragingly, it turns out that he's terrible at writing letters, and mostly doesn't.
Those who know my reading habits well will guess that another reason why I liked this entry best of the series is because of the college setting, even though the focus here is mostly about getting into the right sorority, something that's typical of mid-century college books, and not my favorite aspect of the genre. That said, all the concern over sororities meant that for the first time in the whole series, we had two consecutive chapters that weren't entirely about Tobey's obsession with dating!
Tobey's two roomates are a contrasting pair: droll sensible Suz decides early on that sororities aren't her thing and drops out of the rush week activities. Shallow Marilyn is totally obsessed with getting into the most exclusive one of all, and declares she'll drop out of college after not getting a bid from them. Tobey gets a bid from her first choice, Theta, as does Marilyn, and Tobey persuades her reluctant roommate to accept it rather than drop out. Her reward for this is once again getting the peevish dissatisfied Marilyn as a roommate when they move into the sorority house. Like so many other vintage YA books from its era, The Real Thing glosses over the reality that fraternal organizations by definition exclude outsiders. Rather, what is emphasized is the idea that a girl striving to live up to the standards of her sisterhood will develop into her best self. Experienced readers won't be surprised that Marilyn's character undergoes some improvement over the course of the book. Meanwhile, despite the great social barrier between them, Tobey maintains her friendship with Suz, but we know that Tobey is nice, so that shouldn't be a surprise. She even helps Suz along with a little budding romance with a nerdy assistant professor.
Lest anyone think that Tobey has forgotten that boys exist, she's actually pretty concerned during most of the first half of the book with the fact that she doesn't have dates. Spoiler: that changes! Soon enough, two candidates appear to possibly oust Brose from her affections. Tom, who's working his way through college and is a dishwasher at Theta, and sophisticated wealthy upper classman Larry. Soon enough, Christmas rolls around and Tobey and Brose will reunite! What will happen???
Does Tobey attend classes during her first year at college? I think so, but don't quite remember.
Tobey and long time high-school steady (or not) Brose part ways to go to separate colleges. Tobey attends "Central" college in her home state of Illinois because it's all her parents can afford, while Brose goes off to his father's college in Colorado. They decide it's for the best, because a time apart will let them know if they have "The Real Thing." So what I liked best about it (at least the first half): no Brose! His surliness and jealousy had been extremely irritating to me throughout the series, and I really didn't perceive any redeeming qualities. Encouragingly, it turns out that he's terrible at writing letters, and mostly doesn't.
Those who know my reading habits well will guess that another reason why I liked this entry best of the series is because of the college setting, even though the focus here is mostly about getting into the right sorority, something that's typical of mid-century college books, and not my favorite aspect of the genre. That said, all the concern over sororities meant that for the first time in the whole series, we had two consecutive chapters that weren't entirely about Tobey's obsession with dating!
Tobey's two roomates are a contrasting pair: droll sensible Suz decides early on that sororities aren't her thing and drops out of the rush week activities. Shallow Marilyn is totally obsessed with getting into the most exclusive one of all, and declares she'll drop out of college after not getting a bid from them. Tobey gets a bid from her first choice, Theta, as does Marilyn, and Tobey persuades her reluctant roommate to accept it rather than drop out. Her reward for this is once again getting the peevish dissatisfied Marilyn as a roommate when they move into the sorority house. Like so many other vintage YA books from its era, The Real Thing glosses over the reality that fraternal organizations by definition exclude outsiders. Rather, what is emphasized is the idea that a girl striving to live up to the standards of her sisterhood will develop into her best self. Experienced readers won't be surprised that Marilyn's character undergoes some improvement over the course of the book. Meanwhile, despite the great social barrier between them, Tobey maintains her friendship with Suz, but we know that Tobey is nice, so that shouldn't be a surprise. She even helps Suz along with a little budding romance with a nerdy assistant professor.
Lest anyone think that Tobey has forgotten that boys exist, she's actually pretty concerned during most of the first half of the book with the fact that she doesn't have dates. Spoiler: that changes! Soon enough, two candidates appear to possibly oust Brose from her affections. Tom, who's working his way through college and is a dishwasher at Theta, and sophisticated wealthy upper classman Larry. Soon enough, Christmas rolls around and Tobey and Brose will reunite! What will happen???
Does Tobey attend classes during her first year at college? I think so, but don't quite remember.
June 7, 2015
In this fourth book of the Tobey Heydon series, Tobey begins college in her home state of Illinois, while her boyfriend Brose leaves for college in Colorado. They agree to see other people while they're apart in order to decide if they belong together forever. They're eighteen. Cripes. I guess this is what happens when the average lifespan is only 62.
I really liked about 90% of this book, mainly because there's very little Brose in it. Despite the fact that Tobey seems to view college as mostly about dating and friends and only incidentally about getting an education, it's nice to see her growing up and starting to be her own person. The book depicts sorority life as it was in the 1950s (or at least an idealized picture of it), where the Greek houses were about friendship and service to the community rather than binge drinking. As Tobey settles into college life, she has a few dates with Dave, the boy who's working his way through college and rarely has enough money to take her anywhere other than for a walk or a soda, and Larry, who despite being named Larry is the campus player. She has a bit of a rivalry with her roommate Marilyn over Larry, but for the most part they remain friends, mainly because both Marilyn and Tobey each seem to feel slightly superior to and therefore tolerant of each other.
Tobey is delightful until she goes home for Christmas and is reunited with Brose, who is his usual man-baby self, pouting over the fact that Dick Allen is also home for Christmas and Tobey has committed the unpardonable crime of, I don't know, saying hi to Dick or something. Returning to college after Christmas break, Tobey seems to have reverted to her previous stance of There's Nothing More Important Than Having A Man, and since she has no shortage of dates, she turns her attention to her poor, plain friend Suz who has a crush on one of her instructors (but as Tobey explains, he's not a "full professor," which I guess is supposed to make it seem less inappropriate, but see? No). Tobey can't understand why Suz has such a hard time getting dates, since "[s]he wasn't even bad-looking." Which is not to say that Tobey thinks Suz is good-looking; when Tobey meets the instructor that Suz likes, Tobey reflects that "[h]e seemed pleasant enough and not revoltingly homely. But I couldn't see that he was any more attractive in his masculine way than Suz in her feminine way." Or in other words, they're equally mediocre looking; thus, they belong together.
So at this point, I'm kind of off Tobey and can't muster up too much interest when the annual episode of Some Jezebel Is Scheming To Take Brose Away From Tobey Because That's How Women Do occurs. And as usual, Brose manages to put a stop to it while simultaneously putting some of the blame on Tobey, who is grateful to him for this, so I guess they're made for each other after all.
Five stars for all the Broseless parts of the book.
I really liked about 90% of this book, mainly because there's very little Brose in it. Despite the fact that Tobey seems to view college as mostly about dating and friends and only incidentally about getting an education, it's nice to see her growing up and starting to be her own person. The book depicts sorority life as it was in the 1950s (or at least an idealized picture of it), where the Greek houses were about friendship and service to the community rather than binge drinking. As Tobey settles into college life, she has a few dates with Dave, the boy who's working his way through college and rarely has enough money to take her anywhere other than for a walk or a soda, and Larry, who despite being named Larry is the campus player. She has a bit of a rivalry with her roommate Marilyn over Larry, but for the most part they remain friends, mainly because both Marilyn and Tobey each seem to feel slightly superior to and therefore tolerant of each other.
Tobey is delightful until she goes home for Christmas and is reunited with Brose, who is his usual man-baby self, pouting over the fact that Dick Allen is also home for Christmas and Tobey has committed the unpardonable crime of, I don't know, saying hi to Dick or something. Returning to college after Christmas break, Tobey seems to have reverted to her previous stance of There's Nothing More Important Than Having A Man, and since she has no shortage of dates, she turns her attention to her poor, plain friend Suz who has a crush on one of her instructors (but as Tobey explains, he's not a "full professor," which I guess is supposed to make it seem less inappropriate, but see? No). Tobey can't understand why Suz has such a hard time getting dates, since "[s]he wasn't even bad-looking." Which is not to say that Tobey thinks Suz is good-looking; when Tobey meets the instructor that Suz likes, Tobey reflects that "[h]e seemed pleasant enough and not revoltingly homely. But I couldn't see that he was any more attractive in his masculine way than Suz in her feminine way." Or in other words, they're equally mediocre looking; thus, they belong together.
So at this point, I'm kind of off Tobey and can't muster up too much interest when the annual episode of Some Jezebel Is Scheming To Take Brose Away From Tobey Because That's How Women Do occurs. And as usual, Brose manages to put a stop to it while simultaneously putting some of the blame on Tobey, who is grateful to him for this, so I guess they're made for each other after all.
Five stars for all the Broseless parts of the book.
November 13, 2012
4.5 STARS
In this fourth and final installment in the Tobey Heydon series (the Heydon family story does continue, however, with two books about younger sister Midge), Tobey and her long-time boyfriend Brose attend separate colleges. Though they plan that their hearts will stay loyal to one another, they both agree to date other people to find out if what they have together is "the real thing."
In some respects, I liked this the best of the four books. It's nice to see Tobey mature, and I really enjoyed a glimpse into college life in the early 1950s. I appreciated that there were not so many jealousy issues and little petty arguments like in the previous books, and I especially liked one of her new guy pals, Dave. du Jardin does a wonderful job of capturing the feelings of a young girl away from home for the first time, but still close to her family; eager for and yet anxious about all the firsts of college life; holding a soft spot in her heart for her long-distance boyfriend but wishing he would write longer and more interesting letters... and finding the actual dates with guys on campus so vivid and delightful by comparison. I did wish the ending gave us a bit more; it was satisfying in its way but after four books and all this build-up of whether Tobey and Brose have "the real thing" I guess I just wanted more than a few pages of answers at the end.
All in all, a really charming, heartwarming series that has some substance beneath the fluffy, 1950s-perfect exterior. While certainly many teens today would find everything too tame and old-fashioned (where are the sexy vampires, after all?) those who appreciate coming-of-age stories from a bygone era that still speak some universal truths would do well to spend some time with Tobey Heydon.
In this fourth and final installment in the Tobey Heydon series (the Heydon family story does continue, however, with two books about younger sister Midge), Tobey and her long-time boyfriend Brose attend separate colleges. Though they plan that their hearts will stay loyal to one another, they both agree to date other people to find out if what they have together is "the real thing."
In some respects, I liked this the best of the four books. It's nice to see Tobey mature, and I really enjoyed a glimpse into college life in the early 1950s. I appreciated that there were not so many jealousy issues and little petty arguments like in the previous books, and I especially liked one of her new guy pals, Dave. du Jardin does a wonderful job of capturing the feelings of a young girl away from home for the first time, but still close to her family; eager for and yet anxious about all the firsts of college life; holding a soft spot in her heart for her long-distance boyfriend but wishing he would write longer and more interesting letters... and finding the actual dates with guys on campus so vivid and delightful by comparison. I did wish the ending gave us a bit more; it was satisfying in its way but after four books and all this build-up of whether Tobey and Brose have "the real thing" I guess I just wanted more than a few pages of answers at the end.
All in all, a really charming, heartwarming series that has some substance beneath the fluffy, 1950s-perfect exterior. While certainly many teens today would find everything too tame and old-fashioned (where are the sexy vampires, after all?) those who appreciate coming-of-age stories from a bygone era that still speak some universal truths would do well to spend some time with Tobey Heydon.
December 8, 2012
Tobey and Brose decide to attend different colleges - to date other people, mature on their own, and figure out if what they have is the Real Thing. I love how Tobey makes good friends and develops her own interests, without pining away for Brose, always maintaining the sense of humor that made her a great teen heroine as she matures into a confident young woman. It is also a pretty good depiction of college life although four years go by awfully fast!
This was one of the first books I ever bought so I am particularly fond of the Berkley paperback edition, although am grateful to Image Cascade for bringing the series back into print.
This was one of the first books I ever bought so I am particularly fond of the Berkley paperback edition, although am grateful to Image Cascade for bringing the series back into print.
April 1, 2015
I am giving this 4 stars because my 12 year old self loved these stories and it has long been a goal to collect the entire series of Tobey books from the same years that I read them - no easy feat!
I doubt that girls today would find any interest in these books but on occasion, not very often, mind you, I take one down from my bookshelf & spend a quiet few hours in a much simpler time.
I doubt that girls today would find any interest in these books but on occasion, not very often, mind you, I take one down from my bookshelf & spend a quiet few hours in a much simpler time.
September 1, 2024
These books are so interesting to me because of the way they completely lack any daring or testing of boundaries by the teenage characters. I am wondering how much that reflects teenagers at the time, and how much the author saw her role to reinforce chaste and proper social mores. Probably more the latter than the former -- but then again, this was not an era of realistic teen and young adult fiction. We had to wait until Judy Blume and the 70s came along for that to happen.
Aside from that rumination, I do like these books. The characters are well-developed, even the minor ones. And Tobey is very appealing in her way. I should give it an extra star as a "comfort" read given its wholesome and aspirational take on life.
Aside from that rumination, I do like these books. The characters are well-developed, even the minor ones. And Tobey is very appealing in her way. I should give it an extra star as a "comfort" read given its wholesome and aspirational take on life.
Read
August 30, 2009I liked the light, airy feel of the story. However, I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had read the other books in the series that came before it. This felt like one of those filler books that authors write just to let the readers touch base with their favorite characters.
November 1, 2021
Just a delightful book. I was worried for a while that that gold-digger Shelby would win Brose away, but he got on to her really quickly and came back for a happy ending. I've rarely read such a grammatically perfect book.
March 27, 2020
I love this for the whole 50's kitsch of the thing.
April 12, 2016
Tobey goes to college! I love all the new characters and experiences she has. I wish I had read these books years ago!
May 20, 2023
Definitely my favorite book out of the series
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews