DANCING IN THE STREETS OF BROOKLYN

Likable 13-year-old narrator Judy Strand describes life in a Norwegian community in 1944 Brooklyn in this disjointed first novel. In the first chapter, the strange behavior of Jacob Jacobsen, son of the neighborhood drunk, triggers Judy's thoughts about her own recently discovered secret: she is adopted, and she had a baby sister who died. In the process of uncovering the facts about her real father, who is also an alcoholic, and in sorting through her feelings, Judy withdraws from her mother and adoptive father and grows closer to Jacob. Unfortunately, many themes are introduced and then dropped: early on, Judy says of her best friend, Annette, for instance, "There was something different about us—deep down where you couldn't see," yet the narrative never plumbs these differences. Jacob joins Judy's family for a summer vacation during which they become romantically involved, yet, back in Brooklyn, a rift abruptly develops between them, and readers get only a glimpse of the cause. The author packs a lot into this ambitious novel, but the plot lines wind up competing with one another. The narrator's often detached voice distances readers from the events, too. At one point Judy mentions how much she likes her youth group leader, "but I never let on about what was really happening inside me." The audience may well feel the same way. Ages 8-12. (Oct.)