What's the Name of That Book??? discussion
This topic is about
The Nightmares of Geranium Street
SOLVED: Children's/YA
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SOLVED. YA Novel, 80s or before, possibly set in Philadelphia about a young girl who meets her new neighbor who is an older and beautiful woman possibly named Queenie, possibly deals and drugs. [s]
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Dianne
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Jul 29, 2018 07:37AM
I read this in the very early 80s possibly be very late 70s, there’s a group of young kids in the neighborhood, maybe one is a foster child? A new woman moves in and the kids spy on her, her name might be Queenie ? There’s something to do with drugs, they may call it smack, she is potentially a drug dealer. There may be a very friendly, grandfatherly type older gentleman in the story too.
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Do you remember the cover?Part of series?
Was this more of a mystery, coming of age, something else?
Hi! Not part of a series... the cover may have been of a row house? Dark bricks? I very well could be mixing it up with other books, Like a lot of people, I read a lot of books as a kid :-)
The Nightmares of Geranium StreetFound a review....
"Four neighborhood children--fresh faces all--become embroiled in the deadend activities of the local shady lady, in a disquieting story paced for city streets. The Germantown (Phila.) 'gang' includes Joey, who smokes, curses when provoked, and tends an alcoholic mother; Panda, who rebels against her mother's granola-and-liberation commune by wolfing chocolate bars and being agreeable; and James Taylor Brown, who has bad dreams, a house full of relatives, and the Mark (a special sense, according to his minister-father). Elizabeth, long-awaited daughter of old-ish parents, is the leader of this interracial crew, intrigued by vibrant, seductive Tess who always looks dressed for a coronation and presumably sings at a downtown club. Elizabeth's proper parents, stiffly resistant to modern times, forbid contact with the older woman but the prohibition is disregarded, especially once Mandy, another young girl, appears at Tess' house. Upset by the noisy nightly goings-on there and Tess' frequent business calls, Mandy accepts the gang's overtures, and they trade theories about the ""meetings"" until the sorry conclusion--a drabber Tess in jail for dealing drugs. Shreve, whose adult novels reflect divertingly on modern predicaments, skillfully captures the flavor of young conversations and suggests the contours of adults with a few deft touches--no one in the commune wants to sit next to Dale, Elizabeth's grandmother is shushed for referring to 'the colored' next door. Imaginatively conceived and artfully sustained."
Yes!!!!! That’s it! Thank you so much, I don’t know how you found it! I’m thrilled :)
You're welcome! I found it by searching Worldcat for juvenile fiction with keyword "drugs" published between '70 and '83. Popped right up on the first page of results.
