I've always been fascinated with the 60's. This book seems to me to accurately use that time as a backdrop for the story, to truthfully show the sixties as a time of deep confusion about values. Vanessa, the narrator, is a great mix of both childlike simplicity and adult perspective, so that we readers can view the sixties in both ways at once. Some of my favorite parts were the House of Terror at Fright Night, Luke and Vanessa playing Peter Pan, and all the conversations between Vanessa and her "mouse-sitter". It was in dialogue that I thought the author best caught the time, working out, in all its nuances, what is right and what is true. Quirky. Fun. Recommended. ( )

#27, 2006

Finally got around to reading this (bookring! Ack!) book, after letting it lounge on my shelf way too long (Sorry, K!). Once I picked it up, though, there was no turning back. My attention was grabbed on the first page, and I read through this in less than 24 hours. I really enjoyed reading it. Wow, talk about a trip down memory lane in a lot of ways. The author really captured what it was like being a kid in the 1970s, right down to the playground rhymes we used to recite. (Although I sang about sliding down a "rainbow;" her version with the "razor blade" was rather disturbing). Of course, the book is supposed to be disturbing - it's about a time period when social mores were starting to change, but a lot of people's underlying attitudes hadn't quite caught up. There are also a lot of naked rear ends in the story. :)

I did find myself somewhat disappointed by the ending - well, maybe disappointed isn't the right word. Part of me wanted more of the story, and part of me would have liked a few things to resolve themselves in different ways. But that doesn't really take away much from my overall enjoyment. This really was a great book - thanks, Midwinter! ( )

3.5 stars ( )

3.5 stars ( )