The Talented Ribkins

by Ladee Hubbard

Winner of the Rona Jaffe Foundation Writer's Award Winner of the William Faulkner, William Wisdom Prize An INDIE NEXT pick Hurston/Wright Legacy Award Nominee A family with superpowers stumble in their efforts to succeed in life in this “original and wildly inventive” novel about race, class, and politics—based on a W.E.B. Du Bois essay (Toni Morrison)   At seventy-two, Johnny Ribkins shouldn’t have such He’s got one week to come up with the money he stole from his mobster boss or it’s curtains.   What may or may not be useful to Johnny as he flees is that he comes from an African-American family that has been gifted with superpowers that are a bit, well, odd. Okay, very odd. For example, Johnny’s father could see colors no one else could see. His brother could scale perfectly flat walls. His cousin belches fire. And Johnny himself can make precise maps of any space you name, whether he’s been there or not.   In the old days, the Ribkins family tried to apply their gifts to the civil rights effort, calling themselves The Justice Committee. But when their, eh, superpowers proved insufficient, the group fell apart. Out of frustration Johnny and his brother used their talents to stage a series of burglaries, each more daring than the last.   Fast forward a couple decades and Johnny’s on a race against the clock to dig up loot he’s stashed all over Florida. His brother is gone, but he has an unexpected his brother’s daughter, Eloise, who has a special superpower of her own.   Inspired by W. E. B. Du Bois’s famous essay “The Talented Tenth” and fueled by Ladee Hubbard’s marvelously original imagination, The Talented Ribkins is a big-hearted debut novel about race, class, politics, and the unique gifts that, while they may cause some problems from time to time, bind a family together.

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Magical Realism, Audiobook, Contemporary, Family, Race

300 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 8, 2017

About the author

Ladee Hubbard was born in Massachusetts, raised in Florida and the U.S. Virgin Islands and currently lives in New Orleans with her husband and three children. She received a B.A. from Princeton University, a Ph.D. from the University of California-Los Angeles, and an M.F.A. in creative writing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has published short fiction in the Beloit Fiction Journal and Crab Orchard Review among other publications and has received fellowships from the Hambidge Center, the Virginia Center for Creative Arts and the Hurston/Wright Foundation. She is a recipient of a 2016 Rona Jaffe Foundation Writer’s Award.

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very pleasant surprise. 10 of 10 stars!

[Suzanne Leopold (Suzy Approved Book Reviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Johnny Ribkins has one week to come up with the money that he stole from his ruthless mob boss. He has been fortunate to make it to seventy- two years old, but recent developments are putting future birthdays in peril. Johnny’s past is filled with crimes committed with his deceased half brother Franklin, and together they buried cash and jewelry all over the state of Florida. Johnny meets his thirteen year old niece Eloise while stopping at one of his burial sites. Circumstances push the two unlikely characters together and Eloise joins him on his task.

Johnny reconnects with “The Justice Committee”, a 1960’s civil rights group supported by the Ribkins family. Group members have the gift of special powers which they used to their advantage. Johnny’s father could see unique colors while Franklin could scale walls and their cousin could belch fires. Johnnys’ skill is the ability to make maps of any location without the need to visit. While completing his quest, Johnny draws on his skills while teaching Eloise about her own inherited abilities.

Interesting characters are introduced throughout the story, and Johnny obtains knowledge of his past from each of them. This is a debut novel from Ladee Hubbard.

[DJ Sakata · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Rating:

4.5

Favorite Quotes:

The Judge’s face would appear in his mind, shaking his head as he told Johnny that the shame was not in asking for help but in needing it in the first place.

People judge you on what you show the world. Stop showing your ass…

All that work we did just to get this far, so these kids could have better opportunities than we did and what do they do with it? Walk around slurring their words with their pants hanging half way down their asses? Where’s the dignity in that, Johnny?

It’s not your job to try and compensate other people’s lack of vision. You’ve got enough to do just trying to be true to your own.


My Review:

I had no idea what to expect from this book but I was pleasantly surprised by the complexity and quality of the story and writing. The Ribkins family weren’t superheroes but they had “peculiar” abilities, they called them talents, I saw them as abilities. Various family members were able to perform unusual feats or skills, although they didn’t always seem to harness or utilize their abilities to the best purpose or means.

The main character of Johnny could chart elaborate and unusual maps of places he had never been, his brother could climb the sides of tall buildings and walls, his father had been able to see in the dark, his cousin could spit firecrackers, his young niece could catch anything thrown at her, and a cousin could transform her appearance. Johnny had led an unsatisfying and unfulfilling life of crime and was currently seventy-two years old. However, in the turbulent ’60s, he had felt a part of something important as an activist in the Segregated South and used his mapping skills to provide protection for those working in the Civil Rights Movement.

But Johnny was now a tired and elderly man, alone, and in trouble. He had been caught skimming from his criminal boss and given one week to come up with a sizable chunk of cash. Luckily, Johnny had established an unusual lifetime habit of burying money and merchandise from his sticky finger days, and he had hidden his lucre in some rather unusual spots belonging to friends and family, although unbeknownst to the owners scattered across the State of Florida. As Johnny traveled about on his real-life treasure hunt, he reunited and reconnected with many of his long-neglected family, old friends, and a few foes from years past. To get himself out of the hole, Johnny had to dig a lot of them.

The premise of The Talented Ribkins was unique and intriguing while the writing and storyline were intricate, complex, and multi-leveled. There was a bevy of characters to keep track of, and every single one of them was fascinating, exceptionally atypical, alluringly nuanced, and fell somewhere in the range of quirky to outright bizarre. I was captivated although frequently a bit befuddled. I was enthralled yet also felt a bit out of focus, or as if I never had a full grip, or standing on shifting sand. I wasn’t actually bewildered but tantalized by the puzzling tale that had me worrying that I had possibly missed some significant details. However, the interconnecting threads finally knitted into a cunningly devised and colorful tapestry that was well worth the second-guessing, and provided an even more satisfying and emotive conclusion than I could ever have anticipated, although this crafty author certainly made me work for it.

Ladee Hubbard is a sly one; she has mad skills and my deep admiration.

[Jonathan K (Max Outlier) · Rating 5 out of 5]

A journey into family

Of the various pleasures associated with reading, uncovering new voices is a favorite. This was the author's debut though I wasn't aware of it until reading her second, The Rib King. Here we learn of Johnny Ribkin and others from the Rib King family as he sets out to right the wrong of his deceased brother Franklin. Filled with surprises and insights, Johnny's map making skills come to light though the term is a disguise for their true nature, a fact held secret until the end. After years in prison he meets his teen aged niece and takes her on a life changing journey. Hidden motives, Johnny must dig up buried 'treasure' in order to save his skin; in the process his niece meets the entire family. Brilliantly executed, the characters, plot and theme immerse the reader into a story unlike most where compassion reigns over wrong doing. Having known about the famous Rib King, learning more about him and the family was heart warming as were details about a devious political figure that met his demise. Her ability to engage readers with story using themes that raise our spirits, it's no wonder the book was heralded by critics. Highly recommended regardless of the genre of preference.

[Taryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of a loving but fractured family with a hefty dose of magical realism thrown in. Johnny Ribkins is in his 70s now, but in his younger years, he was a part of the Justice Committee, a group that used their special talents to bolster the Civil Rights movement. Johnny can draw maps of anywhere, even places he’s never been. His brother could climb sheer walls without any handholds. Now his brother has passed away and Johnny owes the wrong guy a lot of money. In his quest to scrounge up enough money to pay off his debt, he ends up on a road trip with his 13-year-old niece, who has some Ribkins powers of her own.

Funny, touching, and a little offbeat--this book was everything I wanted it to be.

More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com

[Betsy Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now the training of men is a difficult and intricate task. Its technique is a matter for educational experts, but its object is for the vision of seers.
—W. E. B. DuBois

This is the epigraph that starts this winding parable about mapmaker/map-seer Johnny Ribkins’s road-trip to pay back money he’s embezzled from a dubious employer. And this epigraph is as succinct as a theme summary could be.

Johnny visits family, digs up saved money from holes where he’s hidden (invested) it in the past; old motivations for family and associates’ actions are revealed, and exposition can sometimes get heavy and hard to follow or keep track of.

But Johnny is a map-seer. He sees where he is, and therefore how not only he, but his whole family of Black people, can get from here to there.

This is a story about the necessity to use whatever talent you’re imbued with for the greater good—don’t hide it for fear of being strange. The only way things will ever get better is for a conveyor belt of people to keep using what they’ve got to pull each other up, over, and forward.

Even with the heavy exposition, Yum.

[Richard Derus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4* of five...but barely...when it should've been five

THIS WAS A YULE GIFT TO ME FROM MY DELIGHTFUL YOUNG GENTLEMAN CALLER. YOU ROCK, ROB!

My Review: First, read this:

“Johnny Ribkins, there was a time when you could've been anything you wanted to be, a doctor, lawyer or an Indian chief...instead all you are is a damn shame.”
–and–
"It’s not your job to try and compensate other people’s lack of vision. You’ve got enough to do just trying to be true to your own."

I'm not sure what you like in terms of first novels. I hope you're willing to run around on your usual genres with a superhero-adjacent tale of the, um, strange descendents of the yahoo who lost the rights to The Rib King™—the miracle delicious barbecue sauce of all time. Johnny Ribkins is the dishonest remaining scion of the line that's made its business to get in on that amazing concoction, rightfully theirs.

But Johnny and his line were, if not superpowered, at the least gifted in some peculiar ways other mortals aren't. He, for example, can map places. And they don't have to be real yet. His maps enable him to, when his time aiding "the Justice Committee" during the 1960s Civil Rights struggle (and sinful wicked shame on our country for allowing it to be dismantled while we watch), use his unique talent to hide in undiscoverable places the money he just knows he will need in the future. (Don't expect to go too deep into how and why that should be...it's not a huge piece of this book.)

Now that he's got the need for his funds, he and his teenaged niece (with a really, really cool "talent" that utterly eludes me, personally) travel from pillar to post together literally digging the future out of the muck and dirt of the past, while he shares with his brother's daughter all the stuff he wishes he'd said, the people he knew and their effects on him and the world, with the family's latest and last survivor.

So, that four star rating up there? That's all about the Ribkins not really getting into it, about the told-not-lived nature of a reflection and road novel. It isn't bad, it's got lovely sentences that say a lot about what it means to be Othered among others, and how very sad it is to leave so few things other people care about behind for them to enjoy.

But as a first novel being the same as a first at-bat, it swings for the fences and gets an RBI though not a home run. That's still a hell of an achievement.

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the concept of this book. Seventy-two-year-old Johnny Ribkin sets out on a quest to dig up, from various hiding spots across north Florida, the cash proceeds of past robberies he committed, in order to pay back a bad man. Johnny is accompanied by his young niece, whom he didn’t know he had until he tried to dig some cash out of her back yard. Both Johnny and his niece are Ribkins, and therefore special—all Ribkins (and some other folks) have a special talent that other people don’t have. Johnny can draw maps to places he’s never been or seen. His late brother Franklin, his niece’s father, could climb any wall. And his niece can catch anything thrown at her, no matter how hard or fast. In the old days Johnny headed up a sort of superhero group called the Justice Committee, doing work on behalf of the civil rights movement. The “freedom of movement movement,” they called it—making sure that ordinary heroes could safely protest, demonstrate, and change society.

I love this concept so much—but in practice the book didn’t grab me. It felt superficial and shallow, and following what was going on depended on following pages and pages of dialogue between old family members discussing past beefs, misunderstandings, and regrets. The present-day action was minimal and felt low-stakes, despite the fact that Johnny is running and digging against the clock...I never believed he could really come to harm. And this is odd, I can’t recall another book that I finished feeling like this—but I actually don’t think I can really tell you what this book is about. Family? Racism? Superpowers?

I skimmed, I admit. I was impatient with so many passages retreading the old days without opening the scope up to consider what’s happening right now, in modern America. Again, I loved the concept. I just wish it had taken another path.

[Jamal · Rating 3 out of 5]

excellent debut novel.
perfect speed!
Action Filled and very cinematic . anxious to read more from ladee in the future.

[Andre(Read-A-Lot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The word that first comes to mind as I write this is offbeat. This is certainly a creative novel, with the “superpowers” of the Ribkins family, but the powers are not really all that super, just quirky. Like being able to see in the dark, or scaling flat walls, which I guess can be considered super. “Truth was his father had been blessed and burdened with the ability to see in the dark. He had a cousin who spit firecrackers, a niece who could talk to fish, a nephew whose one true joy was picking locks. And then, of course, his grandfather had had that sense of smell that had been the source of both his great wealth and eventual undoing. That’s where their name came from: the girl’s great-grandfather was the original Rib King™, said to have invented the best barbecue sauce recipe in the entire southeast, the substitution of a single consonant having come about due to the fact that, as a result of all his sniffing around after the theft of said recipe, he’d eventually felt compelled to hide........... And so they were the Ribkins: born of the rib, still of the rib and this here, your flesh and bone.“ I’m glad the author didn’t focus the novel on the family superpowers because I’m not sure that would have worked. What she did do and had it work out well, was make Johnny Ribkins the central figure in this endearing debut. Johnny Ribkins is a 72 year old man, a descendent of the famous Rib King.“

Johnny’s special talent was making maps. Not only physical maps but maps of going from one place in life to another. He was once part of a group that called themselves the Justice Committee who wanted to ensure that heroes maintained a freedom of movement,“doing whatever they could to help ensure the freedom of movement of people they considered heroes.“ He at some point begins employing his map making skills for a man involved in the gangster world and since this man is profiting wildly, Johnny begins to skim off some of the funds and stashes them in places around Florida, just in case he is ever in need of some money.

The story of how his maps aided in the gangster in making money is not fully fleshed out, but that doesn’t impede the story flow. So Johnny has a week to repay the gangster, Melvin Marks his money and he is not overly concerned, because he knows he just has to get to his spots and dig up the funds. So, Ms. Hubbard uses her creativity to have Johnny physically digging up old dirt, but that clearly becomes a metaphor For Johnny’s life. By digging up the dirt, we learn the past of Johnny and other characters along the way. Johnny meets his niece Eloise, the daughter of his younger brother, who he previously did not know existed and decides to bring her along on his digging expedition, so she can learn about family and the specialness of being a Ribkin. Eloise has a special power of her own that comes in handy at a dramatic point in the story.

The road trip with Johnny and Eloise exchanging dialogue and him teaching her the family history alongside general history is the strongest part of the novel, and the aim is to let your gifts shine and be of service. Don’t try and hide or shy away from being gifted, and one can draw strength from knowing one’s story,“that knowledge was like a fort. A shore of strength, a line of defense and, regardless of the subject matter, something no one could ever take away from you. A fort that looked out across the ocean, which for him of course represented the endless possibilities of the mind.“ ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 Thanks To Melville House and Edelweiss for an advanced ecopy. Book is available now.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

I was immediately caught up in The Talented Ribkins, liking what at first seemed to be almost like a comic book come to life with the family's unusual "super powers" or talents which included things like being able talk to fish, the ability to nimbly scale walls, catching objects at a high rate of speed, and being able to mimic voices--but this book has hidden depths and defies a single genre or even a too-detailed description without spoiling the treasures within. It's an original mix of strange road trip, coming of age story, multi-generational family drama, magical realism, and American and black history lessons. (The book was inspired by the famous W.E.B. DuBois essay "The Talented Tenth" an 1903 essay arguing for the higher education of African Americans.) The book touches on aging, class, race and discrimination, and the challenges and problems of being different. I found myself in turns smiling, turning pages worrying for Johnny and Eloise, shaking my head at some of the family antics, and nodding with appreciation at the small nuggets of wisdom that were tucked into the story.

"We're not bad men Johnny." "No, we're not. But you know as well as I do that there's a lot of room between being a bad man and being a good one. We're just men is all."

"You can't live your life worried about people being scared of you just for being just who you are. Because what you are is beautiful.It's not your job to try and compensate other people's lack of vision. You've got enough to do just trying to be true to your own."

As Johnny and Eloise travel throughout Florida (this was fun for me to read about, having spent time there in some of the same cities for work several years ago), Johnny teaches Eloise about the Ribkins family, their talent, and their past--but he learns as much, if not more than he teaches about his family and mostly about himself. The Ribkins's gifts may be different from the norm, but there is a message in the pages that we all have gifts and it is up to us to use them. Warm, poignant, humorous, illuminating, and unique, The Talented Ribkins is a special book and one of my favorites of the year so far.

You can see my review along with a recipe inspired by my reading and a giveaway for a copy of the book (through 9/10/2017) on my blog post here: http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...

Note: A review copy of "The Talented Ribkins" was provided to me by the author and the publisher via TLC Book Tours. I was not compensated for this review and as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Arlene♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25-3.5 stars

Wasn't what I thought it was going to be, but at the same time I couldn't put it down. Seventy-two year old Johnny Ribkins is in a pickle. He stole some money from a really bad man and now has a week to get it all back or he is killed. So to get this money Johnny has taken a drive to all his old haunts to dig up money that he has had stashed away for over 30 years and on his travels he has picked up a niece that he didn't know existed and has taken her along so that they can get to know each other and so that Johnny can teach her what it means to be a Ribkins and trying to find out what the purpose of her gift is. Oh did I forget to mention that the Ribkins are a family that possess a strong range of "superhero" talents. Johnny for example for create maps of places whether he has been to the place or not. Eloise, his niece, is able to catch anything that is thrown at her. If you think you are going to get a book full of action and suspense this is more of a book about self reflection. I enjoyed it. I'm glad to have it in my library.

[Shirleynature · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bravo! Sentimental in the sweetest way; I wish I could be related to the Ribkins family!
Black American author Ladee Hubbard’s debut celebrates Black characters who offered “freedom of movement” to the Freedom movement at the height of Civil Rights. A sympathetic & nuanced perspective of criminals with a strong focus on social justice, and about valuing family relationships. Every member of the Ribkins family has a peculiar sort of superpower which fits with the urban fantasy genre. It’s a sweet story and a cinematic Florida road trip!

The Talented Ribkins deserves to be classified in the genres historical, suspense, crime caper, and mystery. And being as vividly told as The Good Lird Bird by James McBride, it also deserves to become a movie!

[Nakia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great premise, but a bit long-winded.

[Phyllis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel just got better and better as it traveled (pun intended), hopscotching all around Florida and back & forth from its origins in the 20-teens through the decades of the 20th century. It is the story of the Ribkins family, descendants of the Rib King. It is a road trip and sort of a backwards unfolding mystery. And it is oh so full of heart. I've fallen in love with the Ribkins every one.

The teller of the tale is Johnny Ribkins, a 72-year-old antique dealer who got caught skimming from the till of his second-job employer and only has one week to repay $100,000 or else. Over the decades, Johnny has hidden caches of booty in holes all over Florida, and the first he goes to dig up is in the backyard of his widowed sister-in-law. While there, he learns he has a 13-year-old niece, Eloise, whom he never knew of because he and his brother Franklin had a falling out before she was born and just before Franklin died. One thing leads to another, and soon Johnny and Eloise are on a roadtrip through Florida and through the lives of the family Ribkins.

All of the Ribkins are remarkable -- each of them has a unique talent, seeming almost like a magical superpower but grounded enough in reality so as not to defy belief. The Rib King (so named for the BBQ sauce he invented) had three sons: Frederick (father of Simone), a doctor; Mac (father of Johnny and Franklin), a painter; and Bart (father of Bertrand), a justice of the peace. For a time during the 60s and 70s, Johnny, Simone, and Bertrand, along with two friends Flash and the Hammer, were the "Justice Committee" -- volunteering their time and efforts toward the realization of civil rights for all, or "[a] group of people trying to do what they could to keep their heroes safe." After the demise of the "Justice Committee," Johnny and his brother Franklin had a career for a while on the not-quite-legal side of things, with their antique shop serving as a front and laundering operation.

Alongside the Ribkins in the story, there are dirty politicians, unscrupulous real estate developers, and "just doing what the boss says" enforcers.

Every character in this story has talents & flaws, highs & lows, and none of them hold all the pieces of the puzzle. One hidey-hole leads to another, and Johnny's travels with Eloise yields answers to mysteries that Johnny didn't even know he was seeking.

[Andy Weston · Rating 3 out of 5]

On reading the previews for The Talented Ribkins you could assume that it had an element of the supernatural; the Ribkins family all have some sort of super-power. Actually it does not. That isn’t a spoiler, though I suspect it would be difficult to spoil such a disappointing book. A talent maybe, but certainly not a super-power, and that is the assertion that holds the book together.

Set in St Augustine, Florida it is the story of how one of the remaining Ribkins brothers, Jonathan, at 72 years old meets and spends a summer with his dead brother’s daughter, while at the same time being chased for money he owes by a Florida mobster.

It never really gets going, and the ‘super-power / talent’ does not provide enough interest to rescue the novel.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wish Goodreads gave half stars because this is a solid 3.5 book. Like other reviews have stated, I don't feel that the super powers and characters were developed enough. This is fast paced and immensely readable, I enjoyed it but was left wanting just a little more.

[Stacia]

Sounded like a cool concept, but it's moving too slowly & I'm not feeling pulled in by the story.

[Patty · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book. I will admit right up front that I think I need to read it at least once more to fully understand it and I believe it deserves a second reading because there is so much going on. It’s one of those books where you focus in one are and totally miss some fine points in another. It’s written on several levels and can be read as a simple tale of an uncle finding himself while on a forced trip in the search for money to pay someone back. Or it’s allegory for the Civil Rights battle that sadly is still being fought in this country. Actually it’s both and when the two come together magic happens.

As any of you who read my reviews regularly know, I don’t go in for books that happen over my head because I am the first to admit I’m not smart enough for them. This book does that to some degree but I had serious glimpses of what was going on up there so I am sure the second (or third) reading will bring me to a full understanding. Even if I never get there this is a delightful book full of some of the quirkiest characters I have had the pleasure to meet on paper in a long, long time.

The Ribkins are all born with a unique talent – it’s always something otherworldly and it’s something that sets them apart. Johnny Ribkins can make maps without ever being there. His brother could scale buildings. Johnny has a small problem – while working for a rather shady individual he appropriated some money and now his boss wants that money back. He sets off to get it in various places he’s got it buried. One of them being his brother’s house – his dead brother. While there he learns that he has a niece that he did not know existed. A series of circumstances leads to her joining Johnny as he seeks his buried money.

What follows is a journey of discovery for Johnny, his niece Eloise, and the reader. Johnny’s travels take him to family, friend’s and enemies and as he gathers his assets he learns that the past is maybe not what he thought it was and the future can be much more than he thought it was going to be.

I had the world’s hardest time putting this book down and I truly wanted to turn around and start it right over again. That hasn’t happened in quite some time for me. All of these characters are a true delight and I wanted to continue on with them. I want to know more. Is that not the joy of reading? This book is very different. You have to let go of what is real in some cases and just accept the story. Just do it and you will be rewarded with a remarkable tale that is both quirky and very deep.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

A somewhat meandering story, mirroring the meandering drive Johnny Ribkins and his niece Eloise take together.
The Ribkins family each have an unusual talent that they used during the Civil Rights movement to protect other activists.
Main character Johnny is in trouble, owing money to a criminal named Melvin. Johnny must pay Melvin $20,000 within a week, so Johnny decides to dig up all the money he cached over many years all over the place. When he turns up at the home of the wife of his estranged half brother, he discovers he has a niece. Meredith convinces Johnny to take young Eloise with him while she goes to work out of town.
It’s an uneasy fit between 72-year old Johnny and 13-year old Eloise as Johnny tries to surreptitiously recover his money. Along the way, Johnny introduces Eloise to his sisters and brothers, and she and Johnny discuss Eloise’s own odd talent.
Though all the Ribkins has some sort of power, that’s actually not the main thrust of the story. Also, the journey to find the money ends up being the vehicle for exposing the family secrets and tensions, but also for Johnny to gradually understand why he and his half brother Franklin fell out of touch. Johnny starts the journey with one notion about Franklin and his wife, and by its end, he’s finally understood what Franklin has been doing for his wife and family, and for Johnny.
The story’s personalities are big, the conversations fascinating for what they say about the relationships and the misunderstandings built up over years. The story is about a man who finds himself, over a week, and reconnects with the rest of his family, while also beginning to build a strong relationship with his niece, a wonderfully interesting and forthright girl.
I liked the meandering storyline, even as it took its time getting to the various revelations. And Eloise and Johnny’s many conversations were great at showing us who they were and how they came to appreciate the other. I liked this book, and look forward to reading more by this author.

[T Davidovsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a pleasantly surprising gem. Johnny Ribkins is old, tired, in debt, and newly saddled with a niece he only just learned existed. A former superhero and Civil Rights activist, Johnny might have lost his focus when he gave up on righteous causes and turned to crime, but he's still a loveable character with a great sense of humor. His story is thrilling, tackling issues like greed, power, crime, race, and politics. The messaging is at times cynical, but it never slips into too defeatist a mindset, and Ladee Hubbard offers plenty of reasons to hope. At heart, the narrative offers an uplifting tale of self discovery and redemption. It's bursting with charming characters, quirky magic, and fun meditations on mapmaking that I did not expect to find so exciting. It's a joy to read.

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well-written debut novel. I love the idea of characters with semi-superpowers that isn’t overdone, and which is symbolic of a kind of power that even those on the margins possess to effect change. A very uplifting story with relatable, complex, and well-developed characters. Not too didactic, but definitely allegorical. A fine effort. I look forward to Ladee Hubbard’s next book.

[Amaka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this story. I'm curious as to whatever happened to Melvin- he disappeared without any explanation.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable, well-written story that I easily sank into and looked forward to getting back to when I had reading time. A strong debut from an imaginative writer who gracefully incorporates big issues such as race, class, gender, family and more.

The protagonist of this strong debut novel is Johnny Ribkins, a 72-year-old African American man who is in debt to a mobster that doesn’t mess around. Johnny has one week to pay back the money he owes this ruthless man or else. Over the years, Johnny had buried bags of money and jewelry around the state of Florida, so he starts to drive around digging them up. Fearing Ribkins is trying to run away, the mobster sends two henchmen to keep an eye on Johnny.

Johnny is a man who seems to have been coasting through life for years, floating in a cloud of grief over the death of his brother and the loss of days gone by — from his days as a math teacher trying to educate plantation workers to the years he was part of a group called The Justice Committee during the Civil Rights movement.

Pieces of Johnny’s life and family are revealed as he drives from place to place. Hubbard also seamlessly weaves in cultural trends and historical and contemporary discrimination against African Americans. Early on Johnny meets Eloise, a niece that he didn’t know he had who, surprisingly, ends up in his care. More of Johnny’s backstory rolls out as he slowly awakens to the reality of the girl traveling with him. It’s a bit of an odd couple/buddy road trip story.

With each family member he stops to visit, Johnny pieces together more about his brother’s life and in the process gains understanding and self-awareness. His niece meets and learns about her father’s family for the first time and she also gains some valuable lessons along the way. The members of Johnny’s family all have “special powers” that they’ve not always used lawfully or with integrity, but these powers bind them together. The special powers were a bit of a weakness or distraction for me. They didn’t seem to go far enough, be developed enough within the plot, or perhaps I just didn’t read as carefully as I could have to better understand their nuances and metaphorical purposes.

The members of Johnny’s family all have “special powers” that they’ve not always used lawfully or with integrity, but these powers bind them together. The special powers were a bit of a weakness or distraction for me. They didn’t seem to go far enough or be developed enough within the plot. Perhaps I just didn’t read as carefully as I could have to better understand their nuances and metaphorical purposes. I admit I’m not a fan of magical realism.

On the other hand, one of my favorite aspects of this novel is its realism about aging. I appreciate how Hubbard shows the recalibration that’s sometimes necessary in life as we age. When Johnny first tries to find the location of one of his stashes, he’s unsuccessful. He paces off, digs a hole, finds nothing. Tries again from another angle with no luck. He feels tired and old. Then it hits him:

“He stood up, positioned himself on the bottom step and started walking again, this time channeling the cocky stride of his much younger self. He narrowed his eyes, pursed his lips and tilted his shoulders so that his left side rolled back below his right. He dropped his hips and let his legs slide out in front of him and then sidled across the yard in this manner for a full twenty paces. When he stopped he realized he was almost twice the distance his careful plodding steps took him now. He cocked his head to the left and took ten more winding steps toward the oak tree. He hoisted his shovel and started digging. Yes, sir, he thought. How do you think you got this old? Been around for years and trust, this ain’t nothing. If there’s one thing you do know it’s how to survive this world. Johnny Ribkins always lands on his feet. He lowered his shovel and felt the sudden crack of metal against metal.”

Later he realizes that he’s no longer seen as a threat with his young niece at his side. He’s a gray-haired grampa figure. In his new understanding of himself as a senior and as a caretaker he feels, “old age, the illusion of frailty, a warm sense of anonymity flooding his entire body.”

This story is told with such warmth and tenderness that it was sometimes jarring to remember Johnny is on a life or death mission.

Overall, a highly original story from a gifted storyteller. If you’re looking for a socially conscious yet easy going novel with characters that you want to care about, The Talented Ribkins is for you.

This review originally posted on my blog: https://wildmoobooks.com/2017/08/09/b...

[Denise · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book just didn't have it. Not enough story to hold my interest. Stopped reading half way through, when it became apparent it was just going to be more of the same mediocre meanderings.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has been a great year for audiobooks, and I’m so glad this popped up on my radar. I don’t remember how or why it did, but hooray! Kevin Kenerly is the kind of reader I listen to and then look for what other recordings he’s done. Great performance!
I loved the road trip team of 72-year-old Johnny Ribkins and his 13-year-old niece Eloise. Their present day journey and Johnny’s reflections back to his Justice Committee days complemented each other nicely and drifted back and forth at a reasonable pace. I loved the different Ribkins talents and the themes of family, regret, and second chances. The surprises at the end were fantastic.
Highly recommended, especially on audio.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book feels, in both the way the ending leaves things and in all the untold stories that are alluded to and hinted at, like it could be the start of a Ribkins series. I'd certainly enjoy spending more time with all these characters because Hubbard gives us scoundrels, quiet decency, an imperfect hero who is trying, evil, and broken humans who are remarkable for their special not-so "super" powers and how that just makes them even more human. Imagine some underpowered superheroes involved in the civil rights movement, then breaking apart like so many other things in that fractious era, and then a slow moving mobile reunion of sorts, all against a deadline. It's a fun and assured story. Too many debut novels feel like it or have a kind of weirdness meant to shock that just feels too posturey by half, but Hubbard writes like a seasoned pro. If you'd given me the book and not told me it was her first, I'd never have guessed in a million years. She writes lovely fully fleshed characters you only catch in glimpses and it feels like she's been doing it for ages.

[Holli Keel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This book is magical, and while it seemed to be about one thing at first, the author managed to pull together threads from all over the place and make a story I didn’t see coming. It’s about a family with magical talents, about racial inequality and the quest for justice, but it’s mostly about family and the love, loyalty, and identity that a family gives you. Highly recommend. Strong language if that bothers you.

[Mira · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the premise of this book but found the plot kinda boring and repetitive. I liked the relationship between the brothers though, and there were a couple of really beautiful moments. Still, I don't think this book is worth reading - not because it was bad, but just because there are so many better books out there.

[Gabrielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short review: 3.5 stars. Very intrigued by the plot of this novel, but it missed the mark a bit for me. Sometimes I was wondering where the story was going and wishing that one of the main characters (Eloise) was better developed. Overall good, but wish the pages had been used more wisely.