Back to Bainbridge is a coming-of-age story by Norah Lally. Raised by her single mother, fourteen-year-old Vicki Hanlon is tired of moving house. After being evicted from their home in Middleton, it's been the sixth time in the last five years that Vicki and her siblings, Judith and Dylan, have had to move house with their mom. The small family travels to Bainbridge Avenue in Bronx, New York, to live with their grandmother. Vicki soon makes friends with the building super's daughter, Rosa, and the neighborhood skater boy, James. When she finds herself with the master key to the basement, she eventually finds clues about her absentee father, who she desperately wants to meet. Alongside Rosa and James, she takes a daring trip to Queens. However, things don't go according to plan. Will Vicki ever find what she wants?

Bittersweet and hopeful in equal measure, Back to Bainbridge is an engrossing coming-of-age drama. Author Norah Lally's absorbing tale follows a young teenager's journey of self-discovery. This is a story about growing up amid complicated family dynamics. Lally's characters are very grounded and well-fleshed-out. Everyone acts and talks like people in the real world, navigating the challenges of everyday life. Vicki's relationships with her friends, family, and neighbors are anchors to the narrative around which the plot revolves. I loved the dynamic of the three siblings, their mother, and their grandmother. I also enjoyed Vicki's friendships with Rosa and James. All in all, this is a fantastic novel with a young protagonist readers can relate to. I highly recommend it to readers of all ages.

Back to Bainbridge by Norah Lally tells the story of Vicki, a 14-year-old dealing with her family's instability after her father abandons them and the pressure of being raised by a cranky mother. Vicki is curious and longs to connect with her father, believing her mother must have done something to chase him away. When their family moves into her grandmother’s community building on Bainbridge Avenue, where her mother grew up, Vicki realizes everyone has secrets. She meets new friends Rosa and James, who help her confront her past and live a more positive life. Through her observations and reflections, Vicki begins to treat people with respect, understand her mother better, and become a responsible daughter and sibling.

We all have secrets that can change people's perspectives of us in an instant. Back to Bainbridge perfectly explores this principle. Vicki's perspective was shaped by misguided beliefs, but it was inspiring to witness her embrace a more positive outlook in the face of her family's struggles. Her journey helped her rebuild her relationship with her mother, forge friendships, and embrace her true self. The contrast between Vicki's, Rosa's, and James' lives highlights the complexities of growing up and the diverse experiences that shape individuals. Norah Lally’s engaging narrative gives the story a smooth flow and captivating depth. The book explores themes of complex family dynamics, self-discovery, and resilience, which will resonate with readers of all ages. The story also has humorous moments that bring a lighthearted note and thought-provoking lessons about empathy, understanding, and belonging. Overall, this is a great story, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a heartfelt coming-of-age tale.

Back to Bainbridge by Norah Lally is a coming-of-age children’s novel set in the Bronx, New York. It follows fourteen-year-old Vicki as she navigates the challenges of her difficult home life, a missing father, and a neighborhood full of secrets. With her new friend Rosa, Vicki explores the mysteries of her building’s basement, discovering hidden stories about her neighbors. As she ventures beyond her familiar world, Vicki learns that the imperfect family and friends she has might be the treasures she’s been seeking all along. This heartfelt portrayal of Vicki’s inner struggles is relatable to young readers facing challenges in life, and the events of this fascinating and emotive story hold up a mirror to the way we deal with our insecurities, differences, and social issues.

The vibrant setting of Bainbridge Avenue is a great foil for Vicki to discover new experiences, taking readers with her in a close narrative viewpoint that brings the neighborhood and its diverse characters to life in vivid detail. Everyone we meet gives Vicki something new that challenges her perceptions, and the hidden stories she uncovers as the clues come together make the story both engaging and emotionally rich, with new tensions and surprises at every turn. Norah Lally’s balance between the themes of family hardship and hope creates a poignant narrative that never gets too scary for the target readership although it does skillfully touch on many darker, more serious issues about family life that youngsters often have to deal with. Overall, Back to Bainbridge is an accomplished work that packs a big emotional punch, and I highly recommend it.

In Back to Bainbridge, author Norah Lally tells the story of Vicki Hanlon. Her mother Susan packs up the car with their meager belongings and takes the family back to live with her religious mother in the Bronx. They have been evicted from their previous house and neither Victoria, aged 14, her younger sister Judith, 12, nor Dylan, 10, are happy about the move. Bainbridge Avenue comprises blocks of apartments, and Grandma lives on the fourth floor of one of them. She organizes her feral grandchildren with lists of chores and begins to whip them into shape. To the children’s horror, their mother hooks up with a new boyfriend which they think is yet another catastrophe in the making. Victoria becomes friends with Rosa Rodrigues, the building superintendent’s daughter, whose family is just perfect. Since Victoria’s father ran out on them six years ago, life has been hard for the Casey family and Victoria blames her mother. She is determined to find her father to reunite her family, except she only knows he is somewhere in California. But life has some surprises in store.

The theme of Back to Bainbridge by Norah Lally is that people are not as they seem. Vicki Hanlon has unrealistic expectations about both her parents; Miss Kirby on the third floor may not be a witch; and James might be different from his worthless parents. When Victoria’s friend Rosa takes her to the storage area below the apartment block, many secrets are revealed. I loved this story. The writing is clear and concise, the words flow beautifully, and at no point does the narrative stagnate or stall. The characters are realistic and endearing, and Lally really understands how young teenagers think and speak. A charming book that I would recommend to all teens and even adults as well. It highlights a lesson many have still not learned.