The One O'Clock Chop

by Ralph Fletcher

It's the summer of 1973 and fourteen year old Matt spends his days working on a boat as a clam digger to earn extra money. His nights are another story—he spends time with his free-spirited cousin Jazzy who is visiting from Hawaii (and just happens to be beautiful). Matt can't deny that his affection for Jazzy moves beyond a crush, and everyone knows you can't fall in love with your cousin. Just when Matt decides to act on his feelings, Jazzy does something that changes everything between them.

Like the one o'clock chop—the strong breeze that blows across the Long Island Sound—Matt's summer proves to be as inevitable as a force of nature. Told with pitch-perfect angst and realism, Ralph Fletcher tells a gripping story of a teenager's life-altering summer.

"Writing with his customary sensitivity and flair for language, Fletcher turns a coming-of-age story into a rich, affecting read." - Publishers Weekly

Genres: Romance, Young Adult

196 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 7, 2007

About the author

Ralph Fletcher is a friend of young writers and readers as well as writing teachers. He has written or co-authored many books for writing teachers includng Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide, Teaching the Qualities of Writing, Lessons for the Writer's Notebook, Boy Writers: Reclaiming Their Voices, and Pyrotechnics on the Page: Playful Craft That Sparks Writing. Ralph has worked with teachers around the U.S. and abroad, helping them find wiser ways of teaching writing.

Ralph's many books for students include picture books (Twilight Comes Twice, Hello Harvest Moon, and The Sandman), novels (Fig Pudding, Flying Solo, and Spider Boy), poetry (A Writing Kind of Day and Moving Day), and a memoir, Marshfield Dreams: When I Was a Kid. His novel Uncle Daddy was awarded the Christopher medal in 2002. He has also written a popular series of books for young writers including Poetry Matters, Live Writing, and A Writer's Notebook. Ralph lives with his family in New Hampshire. He is a strong environmentalist who believes we all must work together to live in a more sustainable way. His other passions include travel, good food, dark chocolate, growing orchids, and sports.

Reviews

[Audrey Waite · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book!!
I read this book one time every summer because it’s the perfect book to get you in the mood for summer! It also never gets old and I’ve owned the book since 2015 :))

[Carol Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really prefer Ralph Fletcher's books on the practice of writing. That said, I appreciated this short novel more than his other fiction. Matt's cousin, Jazzy, comes to visit for the summer. She is from Hawaii. Matt lives on the East coast, a short drive from New York City. He's taken a job clamming with Dan for the summer. It's hard work, but he sticks with it. He's saving for his own boat. It caught him by surprise when he developed a crush on his cousin. A lot of kissing ensues, then Jazzy finds other interests and Matt is destroyed. Throughout the summer, several incidents occur on Dan's boat, while clamming; from the daily visit from a bird to hauling a dead man out of the water. The story doesn't seem to be very deep. Things happen, as they do in real life, unconnected and sometimes unplanned, with no other purpose.

[Jocelyn Boucher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matt has to deal with painful and confusing family dilemmas few people encounter at all, (let alone at the same time) when his fathers leaves to go live with his girlfriend a thousand miles away and he falls for his own cousin, Jasmine. Not only is Jasmine exotic, beautiful, and smart, but she likes him so much they kiss. Imagine how twisted Matt felt was when she abandoned him for a little criminal and ended up saving her from him in the end. The story lacked depth and feelings, it was like hearing about robots at times. On a positive note I admire the author for bringing up a relationship most in the western world would consider incest yet matrimony between cousins constitute over ten percent of marriages worldwide!

[Alana Wilkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ralph Fletcher did such a nice job writing about young teens in the 1970's. A boy wants to buy a used boat and becomes a clam digger for the summer to earn money. His cousin from Hawaii comes to visit and they fall in lust. Cute story with a great ending.

[Sheriff Woody · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was bad. The reason being is that the clamming part of the story was repetitive and boring, while another story unfolded as the main character hooked up with his cousin but got dumped. I thought this book had potential, but it was just a waste of time

[Mb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Matt a fourteen year old boy, who lives with his mom, spends his summer on a clam boat. When his cousin from Hawaii shows up to stay with them Matt has to deal with feelings he didn't know he had.

[Cilla Glud · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW!!!!! This book was SO GOOD!! Even if you don't like romance, it is still really funny. I like romance, and it is one of my new favorite books, and I have a lot of favorite books!!