Constance C. Greene (1924–2021)

Omg, now I have an idea why #MeToo was (is!) needed. This may be a spoiler, but I don't want you to bother tracking this down unless you know what you're in for. Grace figures out who the escaped criminal, a murderer and rapist, is, and doesn't report him because they had been childhood friends one brief summer. Dang... how can she sleep at night knowing that there are going to be more victims? And that the man the police did arrest is innocent? Is this one of the reasons more monsters were show more not exposed long ago?

Two stars because some of the writing is beautiful, and once in a while there's a neat insight.

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Re-reading this book for the first time in almost two decades, I have to believe this was probably one of the first books I read with a truly feminist message. Al's word for it is "nonconformist", but it really boils down to "I refuse to look a certain way just because society says that's what's 'pretty'" and "I buy my own sweaters!" in the manner of Destiny's Child singing about buying their own diamond rings. "The shoes on my feet / I bought 'em!" In short, Al rocks pretty hard as a role show more model, but she also deals very realistic doubts and fears. She wrestles with loneliness from eating alone while her divorced mom dates around, with questions about why her dad sends cards and money but never visits, and why girls aren't allowed to take shop. (Hopefully that last part would seem pretty dated to millennials, though.) Most interestingly, though, Al is seen only through the eyes of a narrator, a classmate whose name we never learn, a point of view that underscores the importance of Al's persona: she's affecting the people around her as she declares her nonconformity. show less

At first it was difficult for me to relate to the child's bad grammar and sophisticated expressiveness, but when I met his cool mom it made more sense. This is clearly a product of the '70s, esp. NYC and divorced/ remarried families - the themes feel kinda stale. But the characters and the setting have such charm I would like another book about them, a chance to really get to know them, rather than just feeling like we've been introduced before the book is over.

An oldie from my past, but I found the original hardcover at the university library, the yellow cover with the Byron Barton illustrations that I recall from my youth. I found the mix of traditional manners (inviting the neighbors to tea on good stationery) and contemporary mores (divorced working mom raising a precocious daughter) quaint by today's standards. Al still is an interesting bird, though, with her intellectual talk and logical ways.