My Summer with Robots

by Marsh Myers

Quinton Wyatt's summer break before high school should be nothing but wall-to-wall fun. Instead, his best friend has stopped talking to him; his fiendish older sister has filled his head with tales of a sadistic high school ritual called "The Freshman Stomp"; and his divorced father has started dating the city's most notorious barfly. Maybe a robot rabbit and a boy from his past can help salvage Quinton's vacation and launch him into the difficult — but often hilarious — world of young adulthood.

Genres: LGBT

214 pages, Paperback

First published June 30, 2018

About the author

Marsh Myers: author, artist, photographer, filmmaker, unapologetic nerd, sworn enemy of raisins.

YA book titles:
His Life Abiding (2013)
The Men in the Trees (2014)
My Summer (with Robots) (2018) My Summer (Under a Crescent Moon) (2021)
My Summer and the Song of Cicadas (2024)

Miscellaneous Titles:
The River Years: A Memoir from the Muddy Banks of Lee's Ferry (2022, as editor)

Laughing Boy Books:
An affiliate of Bookshop.org specializing in comics, graphic novels and nerd fandoms.

Reviews

[Shannara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I entered a contest to win a copy of this book, honestly, because of the cool cover. Robotic rabbit?!?! I’m so in!!!! Omg though!!!! It’s sooooo freaking good!!!!! Quinton is the perfect main character because he’s all the awkward I, and I’m sure many others, felt when entering high school. Although it takes place in 77, I swear it’s all so very relatable now.

This is also super funny, I had a smile nearly the whole time. I mean, I was appropriately sad when the writing called for it... 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️ Sorry, I think I’m channeling a little too much Quinton and it’s making me awkward lol...

I just loved him though, he was just so sweet and quirky and imaginative and I had to root for him!!! Then TJ... I’m not going to give spoilers, but I have got to see the plot continue and see where things lead. Don’t worry, it’s not super cliffhanger-y, but I want more of the story. I was so wholly entertained that there must be more!!! And thankfully there will be at some point. Hopefully sooner rather than later. Either way, I am so there!!!!

And you should be too!!! This was just so good and I’m really very tempted to read it all over again right now to see things from the perspective of knowing the ending at the beginning. I recommend this so much, because there’s so much to love!! Awkward teen angst, love, drama, hilarity, justice, fantasy, craziness, a lot of stuff that seems like it might be real, and stuff that doesn’t seem so real. Ugh!!! I’m rambling because I’m so into this book. Stop looking at the reviews and just go read it!!!!

[Katherine Babiarz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second book I've read by this author and it was a departure from the first MEN IN THETREES, more of a memoir with some fantastical elements and quite funny. The story takes place in the last 70s where the protag (Quinten) is growing up in Tucson AZ. Told over the series of a few weeks, Quinten loses his best friend and reuintes with a boy who had a crush on him in the 6th grade , causing him to realize he was crushing hard back. This is apparently the first book in a series so I'll definitely look forward to the others!

[Noa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think that this is a great coming of age story and I am IN LOVE with the main character. he's not afraid to be himself, which is something I really admire. this is an adorable story, and the only bad things I have to say about this is that there are some grammatical errors, and the due date for the sequel is far off.

[Trey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read a few of Marsh‘s books and I think I like this one best. Funny and a little nostalgic it’s a simple charming story and an easy read. Something we can all relate to, anxiety about starting high school and falling in love.

[Caden Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

When did you fall in love for the very first time? For Quint it was in 6th grade and he didn't even know it. His scheming friend Monkey (not his real name) conspired to kill the friendship between Quint and TJ by spreading gay rumors. It worked but 2 yrs later Quint is regretting it and rethinking his friendship with Money too. What follows is a pretty hilarious look at being a gay teen in the 1970s and growing up in the suburbs of Arizona. Highly recommended.

[Enno Karis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Going into this book I wasn't sure what to expect. was it sci fi (as the cover might suggest?), was it a coming of age story (as the blurb on the back suggested?), what is an amalgam of things? Turns out it was...... and delightfully so! I think if I had to categorize it first and foremost it's a comedy about a teen who's summer isn't living up to its potential and this is forcing him to engage in a little self-reflection about who he is and how he's treated other.s That sounds pretty basic but the characterizations are deep and memorable. The narrator is a gem! This is a great book and I hope more people are reading it!!!

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cover art caught my eye and the thought of spending a summer with robots sounded too good to miss. This humorous and colorful depiction of young Quint as he hurdles headlong into the vagaries of adolescence left me laughing and crying, as Myers perfectly captures the angst and anticipation that is growing up. I could taste the dry heat of the Tucson desert as Quint sought refuge from relationships in which he felt betrayed, and the cool refrain of monsoon rains as his heart opened to new realizations and opportunities. Following Quint and his robot rabbit as he heads into his first year of high school is sure to open some nostalgic windows into your own childhood and remind you that our paths are rarely straight, but we get there none-the-less.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had had this book on my TBR list for a while and then the author Marsh Myers did a book giveaway and I got myself a free copy. I sometimes worry about book giveaways because it's a little like entering a lottery where you don't know what the prize is gonna be. I've only won one before and that title (which I won't mention) was pretty bad and I was thinking this is why this book was given away cuz that's the only way its getting read. But My Summer (with Robots) was so worth the read and I feel like I really scored HUGE by winning this book. It's written like a humorous memoir of a young teen boy in Tuscon AZ who's into science fiction, comic books, Star Wars and .... as it turns out.... other boys! Like most kids his age, his awakening to his feelings is just beginning and helped along by some guilt he feels because he was pretty awful to a boy who had a crush on him in elementary school. When he runs into that kids again 2 yrs later tho, it's a chance to make things right and he learns some troubling things about how their separation was engineered by soemeone else. Just the right amount of tension mixed with lots of humor and heart.

A few of the other reviews here talked about the sequel to this book. If you go to the author's website at marshmyers.com he's posting updates now on it's progress!!! Looks like it might be out next year!

READ THIS DANG BOOK! IT'S A GEM!

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly relatable story of anxiety leading up to high school which for the main character becomes even worse when his summer break falls apart. The narrator's voice is funny and distinct and it felt almost like a humorous memoir. Great fun to read!

[Tina Koz · Rating 5 out of 5]

The main character has a very full summer with all the betrayal, secret crushes, lost friends and flights of imagination. But plot, subplots, themes and a neighborhood full of interesting characters (and robots) mix beaufifully in this Ya book.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. Myers has a way of slipping in surprising and delight bits of humor while developing a deeper story of a freshman trying to figure out where he fits in the world and figuring old and new friendships.

[Charlotte Stance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witty and wonderful. The characters are so real feeling and sounding and the various themes and plots all blend wonderfully together.

[C0|)\/ c0m0 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really fantastic book. The characters were well rounded and believable and the universe in which they dwelled was both fun and intriguing.

[Sponge Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

great book, great MC with a strong voice! Looking forward to the second one.

[Booster · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read both My Summer with robots and My Summer Under a Crescent Moon together so this is a joint review. These books are in the voice of a gay teen boy named Quint. They are set in the seventies but that doesn't interfere with the reading of them because they feel very much like they could happen today. When the first book begins Quint's newly out of middle school and looking forward to a long, fun summer vacation with his bf Monkey. They had plans to dig an underground fort in the desert near their homes in Tucson Arizona but things start to go wrong when Monkey shows how 2-faced he is. Quint finds he's spending most of the summer alone, except for a weird robot rabbit he encountered at the local dog racing track and who appears to live at the strange house in the desert close to where Quint and Monkey made their fort. The robot actually helps Quint deal with his sadness over his fight with Monkey, but also his fear of going to high school and his bad feeling over how he left his friendship in 6th grade with a boy called TJ. TJ actually plays a bigger role as the first book goes along, because it turns out he and Quint have crushes on each other which was hard for them to express in elementary school od course. When the second book starts, Quint and TJ are now 16 and have actually progressed to a romantic relationship. The fears Quint had in the first book about high school and his self-confidence have mostly vanished and he's really happy to be spending his summer break (both books take place during the same months 2 years apart) with his new boyfriend. While the first book had more fantasy elements in it, the second is more down to earth. It feels appropriately more mature like the character whose telling it is more mature too. While the first book dealt with first puppy love, the second deals with first actual love and all it's ups and downs. Some of the topics in the second book are pretty heavy, but the author / MC makes it all enjoyable through humor, great dialogue and some really interesting supporting characters. There are also some side stories which really fill out Quint's world and make this time and place very really and a place you wouldn't mind spending some time in. I recommend both books!

[Joan Taggart · Rating 5 out of 5]

O to be young and just anxious about everything. Quinten is a creative imaginative and very funny protag whose looking forward to spending his summer break with his best friend "Monkey" (not his real name obviously) working on a secret fort in the Arizona desert. But young adult-hood is about to creep into their world as they start high school in just a few months and this big life transition is accompanied by a lot of anxiety and some unwelcome realizations like friends may be two-faced and a he may have some affection he didn't realize for a boy he knew in the sixth grade and who's just landed back in his life. The plot and characterizations are all handled with great skill and there's some nice subplots that real round out Quinton's suburban world and make it in a real feeling place. High recommend this one!

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book by Marsh Myers and it's use of magical realism throughout. It's an an interesting narrative device that keeps the reader wonder if the world of the MC (1970s Arizona) is really kind of a fantastic place or a place he retreats to in his imagination to avoid some of the pain he's experiencing. The truth is somewhere in the middle. But the more dreamy qualities of My Summer with robts doesn't interfere with the strength of the storytelling. . I completed this book feeling satisfied yet still yearning for the next in the series ---- which is a wonderful feeling to me. I won't be forgetting this book's great themes. It's a book about how chance meetings can have such an impact on a person's life, but also how the choices we make can cause people to collide and change our world forever.

[Kyle Beltz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quinton is a character who dreams big and worries deeply. From the moment he first introduces us to his little world in Tuscon AZ you know you've entered a special place filled with strange inventors, robots bunnies, a boy called Monkey and "the worst person in Tuscon." Trust me it all makes sense as you go deeper into the mind of a 13 yr old. The bulk of the story deals with Quint's refriending with T.J., some one he like only to have that friendship sabotaged by another.

Book 2 in the series came out in March: My Summer Under a Crescent Moon

[Lola Keyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

My summer with Robots begins against the backdrop of summer break, the most exciting time of a school kid's year. For sensitive Quentin Wyatt this is doubly the case, because he strikes me as one of those kids who never is bored and always has a project going. With his best friend "Monkey," Quentin has big plans for his summer and doesn't know that big disappointment and big changes are actually in store for him. His biggest challenge…… Confronting some long suppressed feelings about TJ Shapleigh, a boy he knew several years earlier and who's got under his skin like a tick. This is a very funny, very sweet, and surprisingly complex look at the World of a high school freshman coming to grips with who he is and who he wants.

[Link · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since the moment I put it on my TBR list, I could not wait to read this book and it did not disappoint!!! The biggest issue with gay books is that they often have the same story over and over again, but My Summer with Robots is very original.It was everything I was hoping for, and the sequel My Summer Under a Crescent Moon was just as good!!!!

[Bossy Pants · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grab your mood ring and your lava lamp and take a trip to the 1970s! This is the world of young Quint Wyatt, a young teen about to head into high school with a scary secret..... he's gay. Quint's been able to suppress his truth despite someone starting rumors about him and another boy in elementary school. But the problem is that he's just come face to face again with this other boy..... and it turns out that Quint likes him after all and it may be a two way street. Were the old rumors true? What will Quint do with his new feelings.... embrace them or hide from them?

[Chad Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good book about a 70s era geek who falls for the cool kid in school until this crush is broken by his scheming best friend. I wish there had been more about the crush stuff, but the characters are pretty young so it doesn't go much beyond puppy love...... however, there's a sequel so I'm really interested to see where that goes https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

[Andy Grove · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know quite what to expect from this book. Based on the title and cover art, maybe teen science fiction? In fact it's more a combination of magical realism and humor with a gay love story lying just below the surface. It's a well written and imagined book with some engaging characters and a protagonist , as other reviewers have noted, is quite endearing.

[Del Hampton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was just crazy good!!! It contains a fantastic cast of characters that all felt authentic, fully developed and so freaking real. The dialogue was catchy, memorable and very funny as was hearing what was going on inside the MC's (quinton Wyatt) head. I still don't want to leave this book or the world where Quinton Wyatt lives!!

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

The reviews on this are quite accurate. Not like any other YA book I've read. I funny memoir-esque tale with both fantasy and historical elements. Looking forward to the sequel(s) cuz I guess some are coming!

[Paul Winston · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book has been on my TBR shelf forever but I watched some of the related vids and it renewed my interest. I ordered it and the book 2 from Amazon and finished this one in two days. A really fun read with a awesome main character with a strong voice. Started on book 2 already!

[Joseph L · Rating 4 out of 5]

The makings of a winning book are ---- -

~ MC is a delight ✔️
~ Interesting supporting characters ✔️
~ Interesting place & time ✔️
-great dialog ✔️
-The MC makes mistakes but learns along the way ✔️
- Funny, funny, funny!! ✔️✔️✔️

[Jordan R · Rating 4 out of 5]

a book of both substance and senstivitiy but also super cute in so many ways. Bildungsroman books are often predictable, but this one takes some flights of fantasy that give us a nice twist at the end and a great opening to the next one.

[Tino Gamez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great--- a classic teenager read. I loved how creative and thoughtful the MC is... He inspires you to think about your own pasts and the people who matter to you. I am inspired and looking for ward to the follow up one!

[Melissa Willard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the main character in this book who is imaginative, kind hearted, funny and somewhat delustionsal. The book is written in his voice as he recalls his summer vac between middle school and high school and a boy he secretly loves.