My name is Arella, my mom's name is Gelly, and we LOVE Suzuki Beane. My mom's name has been Gelly Beane since she was a kid, because she loved this book so much. Recently, while I was on the 'net researching a project on the 50's and 60's for Ms. Marsh, (@ LJH) I came across a site that mentioned Bleeker Street and had some photos of it. My mom got this weird, delighted look on her face and brought out a falling-apart (of course) copy of the book. I can't find the words to describe it. READ THIS BOOK. Okay, there's my story. ^_^

My mother bought this book for me in 1961 when it was first published. I was 10. Suzuki has been my "baby beatnik" idol ever since. The resurgence of interest in the Beat movement makes this a must-read primer for all ages! If you lived through the era -- get ready for a flash back.

I loved this book when I was a kid and although its out of print its worth the search! A delightful modern classic for the young at heart!

Sandra Scoppetone, Happy Endings are All Alike (Alyson, 1978)

I'm not sure what book the New York Times reviewer who called this a "tensely-plotted thriller" was reading, but it sure wasn't this one. Happy Endings, written before Scoppetone became a mystery vamp of the highest order, is a simple, if somewhat twisted, coming of age tale about high-school romance and all the pain and suffering it entails.

Jaret and Peggy are stuck in the lazy summer before college, in the middle of a romance that's a badly-kept secret from Jaret's mother and Peggy's father (Peggy's father is a widower; Jaret's father is just plain clueless about most everything) and a well-kept secret from the rest of their somewhat conservative town. Well, for a while. Things get nasty when a local boy finds out about the romance and decides that Jaret needs some conversion to heterosexuality.

Scoppetone's a fine writer, for the most part, and the emotions at play throughout the book are clear and well-done. Most of the book's characters are complex, solid, and far from annoying. The one exception is Peggy, who constantly uses the word "gazinga" for... well, everything (think back to the Smurfs and their way of speaking). It gets annoying, and it gets there quickly. But if you can overlook that, this one's worth a look. ** 1/2

I really enjoyed this book. It was interesting to read a book about teens that doesn't conform to the usual stereotypes of boy meets girl, etc. Not only that, it was also very powerful in terms of expressing the emotions that the characters felt. This is definitely one of my favourite books and I think that teens regardless of their sexuality (I'm straight) should try and read it at some point or other.

It's about 2 young high school students who through a serious of events fall in love and start dating. They keep their relationship hidden but soon they are discovered and they try to deal with all the negative consequences of being gay in a hostile town.

Quirky, jokey, outrageous and fun. That's about how you'd describe this further account of Lauren Laurano's sleuthing exploits. While not as good as other Laurano outings, this one has a charm of its own and a story line that is a real page-turner. I'd never leave unread any Scoppettone book I might come across at the library.

I think Sandra Scoppetone is great. Lauren gives Kinsey a runfor her money any day in my book. As fast as Sandra can write, I'llbe ready to read, keep Lauren and Kip together!! END

I was interested to see whether a Scoppettone book about a male protagonist written under a male nom de plume would be any different to the Lauren Laurano series.

I was not surprised however to enjoy this book as much as the Laurano series. The usual tight plotting and interesting characterisations from Scoppettone (Early).

This book is recommended to all Scoppettone fans and those who would enjoy a good mystery.

My true blue test of a great murder mystery is that I can't figure out who the killer is until the very end. . . and this one passed with flying colors. So many suspects! I loved it. Just when I knew I had it all figured out, a new character was introduced or I became wary of an old one. Nice, fast-paced plot and totally believable characters. I'm glad I discovered this author and plan to read more of her books.

This book was wonderful. Any teen should read it to learn the dangers of drinking and also to read a great book. It realistically portrayed a teenage girl in a way that would touch any teen's heart.

This is an incredibly well-written story, believable and true-to-life.

The protagonist, Geri, struggles to be popular. Notonly does she share normal, every-day fears with most teenagers, she also has to live up to a mother who was Most Popular when she was in school, and a brother who is happily following in his mother's shining star.

Geri is content with a few quality friends, despite her mother's constant berating, until she meets Dave. Handsome, charming Dave is, by all appearances, everything that her mother would just love. He introduces Geri not only to a few of his popular friends, but also to alcohol.

As Geri's whole world spirals into alcoholic stupor, she occasionally lifts her head out of the mist to watch her family fall apart.

I bought this book for a friend who was drinking way too much. She either read it and straightened out, or she read it and hides from me better than she did before. One way or the other, it opened her eyes on some level.

I was somewhat pretty and somewhat popular in school. I drank in school. Had I had a predisposition to alcoholism, I would have wound up like Geri. It's a scary and startling book.

This is a great book. I have read it true times and have begun reading again. It is very realistic fiction. It even tell how she overcomes a big problem. And how her mom comes over a problem too. I think all teenage girls need to read it. It tells about life in an off beat way.

It's always a gamble to pick up a book by a new (to you) author. This is especially true with lesbian mysteries as I have found that there are alot of hits and misses in this genre. All in all I found this first installment of the Lauren Laurano mystery series to be enjoyable.

Lauren's life and her relationship with her partner, Kip, is disrupted when Lauren finds herself obsessed with a new case. Venturing for the first time into cyberspace (an interesting look back at the infancy of the internet) while searching for Lake's rapist and following up leads even when the individuals who employed her are the main suspects Lauren won't stop until she gets answers to the questions that are nagging her.

Besides the outdated technology, Scoppettone spends too much time describing the fashions worn by each character. In addition her descriptions of how long time passes ("two months later the elevator arrived") can get annoying after two or three references. I must admit that these are small flaws I found in this book and I will still continue reading the remainder of the books in this series.

I discovered this book when it was very favorably reviewed in the Sunday New York Times. The reviewer described it as the first mainstream mystery featuring a lesbian which would appeal to everyone (regardless of sexual preference). Since it took place in Greenwich Village (where my office was temporarily located at the time), and I guess I was a little curious about the lesbian lifestyle, I bought it.

It was excellent. Despite having always considered myself very thoughtful and broadminded, I was surprised at how many problems gays face that would never have occurred to me.

I also loved the Village setting. My office was temporarily located there at the time, and the book mentioned sites which had hitherto confused me (e.g., a large unmarked building which always had people coming and going turned out to be the Gay and Lesbian Center).

In short, apart from the mystery, it provided an excellent glimpse into a very different world. I highly recommend it.

When I read the first adventure of Lauren (in the french version, because I am french) I was very enthusiastic...I love books where you feel envolved, and when you cannot stop reading (sorry for my english!). So I decide to buy the second one in Italy, where I leave. They sell me the 4th one telling me that it was the second (that what the review on the book says!). This is the worst thing that they could do! I have to say that also the translation is AWFUL! No sense sentence, grammar errors.... So I bought the 2 intermediate books (can you imagine that?) in french. The translation is better than the italian one, but still have some errors. Isn't possible to find a good translator, or a good spelling checker? I think I will buy the fifth one in english, even if it is a harder job for me to read in english...At least I hope to read what Scoppettone writes! How can I write an email to the writer?

This is easily the best Lauren Laurano story so far, and it's also the best book I've read in a long time. Once again, Scoppettone delivers a deft mix of:
1. taut, fast-paced detective drama; and
2. realistic depiction of three-dimensional lesbian characters.
It's particularly enjoyable when these two subplots overlap in interesting and unexpected ways.

All that being said, I *almost* wish I hadn't read the book, since it was positively cruel to leave things hanging at the end like that. I honestly don't know how I'm going to survive until the next chapter in the Lauren Laurano saga is available. AAAAaarrrgh! :)

I had read and reviewed 3 or 4 of Sandra. Scoppettone's novels about 20 years ago, but just "ran into" the Lauren Laurano books a few weeks ago. WOW! I've read the first four in rapid succession and now I'm praying for the author's continuing good health so that the next installment can be published soon! Each book adds greater insight and dimension to the two main characters and the little insights and comments about NYC life are both witty and accurate. Now let's get Kip and Lauren off that cliff!

I loved LET'S FACE THE MUSIC AND DIE! It's the best one in the series so far. Scoppettone deserves major congratulations on this one. My only complaint is that the next one in the series isn't available yet, so I can't run out and buy it. I NEED to know what happens in the first chapter after that CLIFFHANGER ending! C'mon Sandra! We need to know WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!
- Carol Mortimer, N

I liked it a lot. AFAIK, (I was a toddler at the time the book is set) it's a fairly accurate portrayal of what teenagers were like in the early '70s. But I have one issue with it.

Phil and Jeff are both pretty crummy towards Camilla. First there's the bit when Phil misinterprets Camilla's *joking* put-down of Jeff's performance, and calls her on it. Instead of saying, "Oh, that's how we are," Jeff *agrees* with him that Camilla is immature! WTF? You don't betray your best friend like that, no matter who you're attracted to, or how strongly. Then they ditch her at the Strawberry Festival, and to top it off, Phil asks her out for the sole purpose of getting information about Jeff. What a jerk, toying with her emotions like that!

Perhaps this was Scoppettone's way of showing that gay people have human flaws and frailties like the rest of us, but it just rubbed me the wrong way.

This is a book set in the early 70's. Though it takes place 30 years ago, the issues are still taking place today. It is about a large group of friend involved in a Drama program. Over the summer they find out two of their friends are gay. Immediately they turn on them, even their best friend, Camilla. Eventually the taunting leads to two deaths. This book really shows how a person's actions affect others. A simple books that any and every high school student should read and most would enjoy.

I was hooked from the first page. I can't believe that people are treated this way. Well, I can believe, but I don't understand why. I really think everyone should read this book early on in life.

Fabulous. I'm so much in awe of this book. It's poignant, and realistic, and intensely, intensely moving. Scoppettone has successfully achieved a realistic voice for Camilla, which is very rare in a lot of books.

I really don't know what to say about this book, except it's a must read for everyone. If you're in the slightest homophobic, it's a real eye opener. In my opinion, it should be a text in every secondary school.

READ IT!

This is just another prime example of an older author trying to write as if she was as old as a teenager or something. Sandra needs to write to her own age audience and let kids write to kids.

I read this book when I was a teenager and I've never forgoten it. This book has been my favorite book of all time, and I'm now twenty-four. I loved this book so much that I'm going to buy it and read it again and again right now. I'm a suspense type of person so if you are as well I would highly recommend this book for you.

Like all of Howard Schwartz's books that I know, this is a collection of fairy tales with a Jewish or biblical theme. The stories in this collection are fun to read, geared for kids 9-12, but appropriate for younger ones too. One of the things I liked about these stories was that when reading them to a younger child, I enjoyed them too. So many books for kids are crashing bores for an adult reader. This one definitely isn't!