Oldest sister (story is her perspective) of I think 3 siblings keeps up appearances – keeps everything running so they can stay together. Careful not to let neighbors know they are alone, they make excuses why their mom has not been seen. They stretch the money they have, sell what they can, order clothes from Sears Catalog. The Story ends when the mom comes back. And although oldest is angry, she is relieved she is back in the end.
Young adult / teen coming of age fiction book, I read in the mid 70s.
Stump the Bookseller
New format, same book stumper solving.
Could this be Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt? Sounds very similar.
No, I read the synopsis. They are at home when their mom does not return, and they keep up the appearances she is there –
Close though!
that might be Where the Lilies Bloom by Bill and Vera Cleaver
No, I did read and loved this book as well, different story though. Thanks!
Could this be “Homecoming” by Cynthia Voigt? The details aren’t exactly the same, but sound similar.
No, similar, but not the same. Thanks
It sounds a bit like “Where the Lilies Bloom” by Vera and Bill Cleaver. It was published in the late 60’s or early 70’s, it was rather popular when I was in Jr High. It was made into a movie with Harry Dean Stanton as a neighbor I remember as being rather creepy but the kids saved his life..I don’t recall if he was poisoned or what had happened, but their remedy was to put him in a bath of onions.
I don’t remember anything about the mother coming back, so this may not be your book at all. It has been many years since I read it, though.
This was a great book and Kaiser Pease the yucky creepy neighbor hard to forget….
But not the one I am looking for.
THANK YOU for your help.
Could this be Patricia Engebrecht: Under the Haystack?
Here’s the kirkus review for Under the Haystack. It was published in 1973 so the timeframe would fit with when you remember reading it.
One night Sandy’s mother and new stepfather simply fail to come home. And right from her shocking discovery that all her mother’s clothes are gone as well, you’ll be caught up in Sandy’s attempts to shield her younger sisters from knowledge of the desertion and keep the children together on their rundown, debt-ridden farm. She invents a sick Aunt to explain her mother’s absence to the neighbors, earns a few dollars picking berries and beans to supplement the milk money, and gets occasional help from her friend Joe who tracks down the strayed cattle and fights off an unhealthily curious boy who’s been snooping around the house at night. While Sandy counts pennies and faces the small emergencies of farm life, she’s also surprised by her physical transition into womanhood — coping with her first period and ordering her first bra from a Sears Roebuck catalog. Luckily Joe’s mother is aware of the girls’ plight and sensitive enough to warn Sandy to be emotionally prepared for her mother’s return. With winter coming on and the inevitable necessity of surrendering to an orphanage or foster home, their mother does come back and Sandy hovers briefly between hatred and relief before offering forgiveness. A gritty, brave and never bitter portrait of a young woman’s strength in abandonment, tempered by a gentle, humane attitude toward her negligent mother.
I cannot thank you enough!!!! Ann and Melissa solved the mystery!!
I have been looking for this title for so long, and no one,, not librarians, fellow readers, book sellers, google searches….no one knew! THANK YOU SO MUCH. I have it coming from a local library 🙂 THANK YOU THANK YOU!