"Wallace's lively and entertaining first novel...includes all sorts of colorful characters and fascinating social history....At its heart, Diamond Ruby is the story of an unassuming, courageous young woman who uses the national pastime to become a pioneering heroine in a man's world."
—Howard Frank Mosher, The Washington Post
“Ruby is a keeper—a believable heroine living in a fully re-created New York world of baseball and Prohibition. There are echoes of Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but this story holds its own, allowing Diamond Ruby her place as a literary gem.”
—Library Journal (starred review)
“Using a gem of history as inspiration, Wallace invents a tale thick with the atmosphere of 1920s Prohibition-era New York City. “
—Billy Heller, New York Post ("Required Reading")
“This story drew me in, then captured me and then rocketed to an intense ‘gotta know,’ until I put everything away until I finished the story. This is the book I’m forcing into my daughter’s, sister’s, cousins’, and friends’ hands.”
—Randy Susan Meyers (author of The Murderer's Daughter), Huffington Post
“I was rooting so hard for Ruby, I started thinking of her as my own kid. With highs and lows like the rollercoaster whose shadow Ruby plays in, Wallace writes a devastating, moving, funny, and ultimately feel-great book.”
—Julie Klam (author of You Had Me at Woof), MLB.com
"Heartfelt and uplifting.... Ruby stole my heart."
—Beth Hoffman, New York Times bestselling author of Saving CeeCee Honeycutt
“It’s this big crackling-with-life read and there is something to fall in love with on every page. Superlatively wonderful.”
—Caroline Leavitt, author of Girls in Trouble
“Diamond Ruby is a very special book. Comparisons to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn are not made lightly: Joseph Wallace deserves that accolade and many more. Ruby is a wonderful, memorable character and Wallace’s prose is a perfect match for her.”
—Laura Lippman, New York Times bestselling author of Life Sentences and What the Dead Know
“Diamond Ruby is a gem! From the first page I found myself caring deeply about Wallace’s idiosyncratic characters, rooting for them as they made their way through a world so skillfully portrayed that though it was new to me I felt right at home. Moving, fascinating, and ultimately exhilarating. I loved it!”
—S.J. Rozan, award-winning author of The Shanghai Moon
“Diamond Ruby is the exciting tale of a forgotten piece of baseball’s heritage…. A real page-turner!”
—Kevin Baker, author of Strivers Row
“Babe Ruth and Jack Dempsey may loom among the many appealing, larger-than-life characters who show up in this wonderfully fun novel, but readers will be especially dazzled and charmed by Diamond Ruby herself. It is A Tree Grows in Brooklyn meets Ragtime! Joseph Wallace has walloped a homer right out of the park!”
—Katharine Weber, author of True Confections and Triangle
“Sharply sketched, convincing historical characters like [Babe] Ruth and [Jack] Dempsey add to the considerable appeal of Wallace's gritty but fun period baseball tale.”
—Publishers Weekly
“As an evocation of time and place, as a character study, and as a loving tribute to some forgotten pages of baseball history, Joseph Wallace has hit a home run.”
—KittlingBooks.com
"Wallace does an outstanding job of bringing his characters to life… I connected with Diamond Ruby on multiple levels and didn't have a choice but to love it.
—Jen Forbus, jensbookthoughts.blogspot.com
"A rollicking good story… This book would be a perfect crossover book for adults and young adults, and it could appeal to lots of different subgroups of readers: those who read sports stories, or historical fiction, or feminist lit, or crime and suspense."
—Sherry Early, semicolonblog.com
“Joseph Wallace has penned a fantastic debut novel. It is an endearing tale of an inspiring young woman who battles her way through a man’s world and wins. If there is one book you plan on buying this summer—then this must be it!”
—Mirella Sichirollo Patzer, The Historical Novel Review
“I could not put this book down.... I’m positive that it’s going to be one of my top reads for the year....”
—Julie Peterson, bookingmama.blogspot.com
“The book moves at a breakneck speed as it heads towards a conclusion that will make the reader stand up and cheer for Ruby.”
—Elizabeth Kerri Mahon, adventuresofgothamgal.blogspot.com
“If you’re a fan of Brooklyn, baseball, and fiction, I’m pretty sure that Diamond Ruby by Joe Wallace is going to be your favorite book of the year.”
—jewcy.com
“A League of Their Own meets The Golem’s Mighty Swing meets Mr. Vertigo.”
—Josh Lambert, tabletmag.com
“A charming, heartwarming novel. I loved it.”
—Kathy Ashton, The King’s English Bookshop, Salt Lake City
“A ‘jewel’ of a story about baseball and Brooklyn in the 1920’s. This delightful novel grabbed me on page one and wouldn’t let go.”
—Carol Hicks, Bookshelf at Hooligan Rocks, Truckee, CA
“From its beginning line—‘Ruby Thomas had never seen anything as beautiful as Ebbets Field—’ through this wonderful, spirited story, Joseph Wallace has created a terrific character in Diamond Ruby! From her long arms and tender heart to her blazing fastballs, Ruby is truly a jewel. Babe Ruth, Jack Dempsey and other fictional baseball players of the 1920s become enamored of Ruby, as will any reader fortunate enough to read this inspiring story.”
—Kathleen Dixon, Islandtime Books & More, Washington Island, WI
“Every reader will love visiting Ruby in 1920s Brooklyn. Wallace has created a character with such strength and spirit that you know she can overcome even the most difficult circumstances, from the freak shows of Coney Island to dark gangster-controlled back alleys to brawls on the baseball diamond.”
—Todd Dickinson, Aaron’s Books, Lititz, PA
“Joseph Wallace has hit one out of the park with his May 2010 release, Diamond Ruby! Full of wonderful insight into a pivotal time in baseball’s history, it will appeal to all readers, even if they’re not baseball fans.”
—Laura Scarcello, Annie’s Book Stop, Concord, NH
“We LOVE this book. Diamond Ruby will be a favorite handsell this spring.”
—Josette King, Books Inc., Alameda, CA
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