I happened upon this on my book shelf and Max apple and his beloved Grandmother Gootie convinced me that I needed to read this book right away. And now I love Gootie too!! Max opens up a whole new world of interesting characters. As a clueless goy I was fascinated. The fact that these characters and events are real makes them that much more compelling. As often happens, I now want to read another book. "Roommates" is actually the first book in the tale. It tells more of Max's relationship with his Grandfather who is also a prominent character in "I Love Gootie" ( )