Stuart Ballantyne is used to moving. His mother is a colonel in the Air Force, and as the story begins, she's about to take command of the Minot, North Dakota base. Stuart might be used to moving to follow his mother's career, but this time it's just him and his mom after his brother departs for college and his father has to travel to deal with Stuart's grandmother's health issues.

What attracted me to Out of the Blue is what it delivered, a different perspective. I'd never read a story set on a military base, and I was interested to read more about the military families' different way of life. Stuart, who's practically a pro at being a military migrant of sorts, is a good window onto the scene. Rottman does an excellent job of portraying the ceremony and pride of country that go along with the setting, and also, the reluctance to meddle in the business of other military families despite their close quarters.

Stuart is a good, if confused and lonely, kid knocked off balance by facing this move alone and dealing with situations beyond his years without the safety net of his father and brother while his mother is off dealing with base business. He's a sympathetic but occasionally bland narrator. Rottman's story offers an interesting perspective that doesn't seem to crop up in a lot of YA novels and a believable coming-of-age story to boot, but it's plagued by an unfortunate lack of memorability. Worth a read, but not extraordinary. ( )

Stu moves with his mother to Minot, ND. His mother and father recently separated and so they are moving on their own. Stu must adjust to the move, the separation, starting in a new school and his brother's move to Oklahoma for college. If this isn't enough, his mom is Commander of the base. Stu struggles with the idea of making new friends once again, only to move again, but he finally decides he has to do that to survive the move. As he navigates these new friendships, it becomes painfully obvious that something bad is happening at the home of a neighbor across the street. Ten year-old Billy, the younger of the two children seems okay, but his older step-brother Curtis seems to be nothing but trouble. Try as he might to avoid Curtis, the boy just keeps crossing paths and their interactions are not positive ones. As time goes on, Stu finds himself in a situation where he thinks he is doing the right thing, but the consequences are devastating. Some drug and alcohol use in the story. Overall, I found it to be a chilling tale. ( )

I initially didn’t think the story of a boy named Stuart who lived with his mother on an army base would be very compelling. First off, the boy’s name was Stuart. Second… the army? Snooze-fest. The cover has a lot of gray and looks kind of dreary. I couldn’t even give you a reason to pick this book up. Then… I read it.

I was pleasantly proven wrong.

The funny thing is, not much actually happens in this book. If anything, it’s more of a case study on how boring life for a teenager on an army base can be. Stuart is left with very little to do on a daily basis. Life on the base is revealed through his eyes. The book educates the reader on what living on an army base is actually like while still weaving an entertaining story. He befriends the only other kids his age on the base. He gets interested in one of the only girls who is available for him to even think about dating.

The story manages to fit into the “young adult” angst category by giving Stuart some family drama; his older brother leaves for college before the story starts, and his father is essentially absent for almost the entire tale. His mother is the breadwinner in the family and his father, who spent most of his wife’s career as a stay at home dad, is it seems fed up dealing with his marriage. So his dad is off in Nevada caring for Stuart’s grandmother. Stuart feels abandoned for much of the story, which is only exacerbated by the demands of his mother’s job, since her promotion means she is now commanding the entire base.

A story begins to develop in the background. Stuart has an eight-year old neighbor who, especially towards the beginning of the story, doesn’t leave him alone. He’s there when he moves in. He’s there several times over the next few weeks. This child, Billy, needs a friend. It seems he’s decided Stuart is it. While Stuart isn’t initially interested in being this kid’s friend, it kind of happens against his better judgment. There’s nothing to do; befriending his young neighbor makes Stuart a little less bored, a little less lonely. It’s obvious however, that things are not okay in Billy’s household. Like many teenagers would realistically choose to do, Stuart really doesn’t do anything. After all, it’s none of his business. It all comes to a head in the final chapter when someone gets hurt.

I can’t admit to being a fan of realistic fiction, but I am a fan of this book. I was with Stuart every step of the way. His relationship with his parents is not contrived (as you often find with other young adult novels based in “reality”). He loves his family, but he’s kind of mad at them, too. In a way, they’re sort of all he’s got. His loneliness is perhaps the biggest resonator for teen readers; odds are, they’ve felt the way Stuart has but hopefully to a lesser extent. One of the best young adults to come out in 2009. Recommended. ( )