Book cover of All the Greys on Greene Street

Book description

"A dazzling debut novel about resilience, courage, home and family."--Rebecca Stead, Newbery Award-winning author of When You Reach Me

SoHo, 1981. Twelve-year-old Olympia is an artist--and in her neighborhood, that's normal. Her dad and his business partner Apollo bring antique paintings back to life, while her mother makes intricate sculptures…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked All the Greys on Greene Street as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

My favorite image from my research on New York’s SoHo neighborhood is a photograph of a girl riding her bicycle through her parents’ loft apartment—a former factory transformed into an airy, art-filled home that was spacious enough to serve as an indoor playground.

This book captures what it was like to grow up in one of New York’s most famous artist communities. While few (if any) SoHo children helped to break up an international art forgery ring (like the one depicted in this YA novel), it evocatively captures the sense of adventure that children might have felt living in an…

This novel captures SoHo in 1981 so vividly. Ollie is twelve years old and dealing with overwhelming turmoil at home: her father disappears in the middle of the night, and her mother is bedridden, struggling with depression.

Ollie is an easy protagonist to root for. Her struggle to navigate the complexities of the adults around her is something many children will relate to, and the mystery and importance of her quest to find her father provides a captivating, page-turning plot for readers. Add in some authentic, vintage SoHo grit and a cast of multi-dimensional, well-developed characters, and readers will easily…

From Monica's list on protagonists with grit.

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