I picked this book up because I saw it in a stack of books on an urban exploration youtube show and was fascinated by peoples' memories of it. For the most part, it was okay. And around page 85, when Wendy is bringing back groceries to the hippie loft it peaked my attention because that sequence was so energetic. However, the first third is a little slow where you get to follow Wendy about yearning for freedom and self-discovery before running away.
The second third is fine and this is where my favorite segment shows up. The activity around the nearby commons and getting to know the other, sometimes infuriating, characters is pretty good. The final third of the book works with the homeless burnt-out Nell attacking the protagonist, Wendy, over the unfortunate and delusional Donald. It's not so much exciting or action-packed but it worked for me for the author to throw in a little violence and sudden tragedy.
Of course, it was an easy read being the 1970 equivalent of YA. Although, it did seem to try to carry a "this could happen to you" vibe in certain instances but is definitely subtler than an afterschool special type of deal. The cops are talked about in terms you would expect i.e. as "pigs" and react as you would expect when clearing the park commons but then are shown carefully carrying an emaciated hippie girl from a basement squat while comparing her to his own daughter. Not that this book is particularly subtle either but no one is portrayed as all bad and all good including the hippies. I like that especially when it comes to books like this.
The only real complaint I have about this book is that the protagonist, Wendy, is just so very plain and boring. She never exhibits the impulsiveness that she has when she runs away nor does she really pursue any course at finding herself not even any real intentional drug experimentation. I was a little disappointed.
Overall, I enjoyed the book for what it was especially so when I made it to the second third of the book. Although when Wendy would start thinking/talking over more than a paragraph I kind of scanned over it. I guess if you're in the market for an easy read pseudo-cautionary hippie-tale this might be what you're looking for. ( )