THE HAND-ME-DOWN KID

by Francine Pascal ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 14, 1980

Eleven-year-old Ari Jacobs goes to a private school in Greenwich Village; she has an older sister and brother who tease her constantly, she's always getting their cast-off clothes and skis and skates, and she cries when frustrated, which is often. Altogether--like the narrator of My First Love & Other Disasters (1979)--she's a bit much. The tears flow like tap water when Ari secretly borrows her sister's new ten-speed Peugeot, only to have it stolen by two young punks. Afraid to tell the truth, Ari fakes a basement break-in that the police try to pin on her sister's Puerto Rican boyfriend; then she ventures into the dangerous wilds of the East Village in search of the thieves and nearly gets clobbered by her parents for staying out too late. But not only does everything work out just fine, Ari even learns to stop crying--thanks to her assertive friend Jane who demonstrates that, for the victimized youngest in the family, the best defense is a good offense (Jane to sister, re brassieres: ""You're practically sixteen, and you don't even have half as much [as I do]. Ironing board!""). Trendy and overdrawn--but anyone in Ari's fix might learn a thing or two from lane's ripostes.

Pub Date: April 14, 1980

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1980

Categories: FICTION