I finally found it. I am stuffed full of wine and turkey goodness and might just explode in a minute, too. therefore – this is quite abridged.
okay, backstory: this book, and the Gordy books take place in College Hill, Maryland, which is basically College Park in the 1940s. each of the books are set about a year apart, and Stepping on the Cracks is the first one.
we start on one of those fabulous Maryland days where it is hot and humid as fuck and most normal people are inside. but, it’s 1940-something and Margaret and her bff Elizabeth are outside playing an endless game of Monopoly. they get bored and do the “stepping on a crack” thing, except they WANT to step on a crack to break Hitler’s back. Margaret waxes nostalgic about having her brother and Elizabeth’s brother off fighting, and explains the difference between a blue star (alive!) and a gold one (dead!)
the girls hate Gordy; Gordy hates the girls. he terrorizes them and calls them Lizard and Magpie, respectively, with his douchey friends Toad and Doug. Elizabeth is a spitfire, and Margaret is a pussy. that’s pretty much the basis of everything. to recap: Elizabeth is Jessica Wakefield. Margaret is Elizabeth Wakefield without the sainthood.
Margaret’s parents have paid no attention to her whatsoever since her brother, Jimmy, was deployed. Her dad sits in front of the TV/drinks all the time and her mom is in la la land. Margaret thinks that Jimmy will come home, and everything will be back to normal. I pity her.
Gordy terrorizes the girls again, and destroys their treehouse – Margaret is screaming bloody murder from A TREE IN HER OWN YARD and her mother doesn’t hear her. Elizabeth vows revenge, and follows the boys into the ~forbidden woods~ across the train tracks, where the crazy man lives.
Gordy and his butt buddies have built some ridiculous hut in there, and “play war.” They also do the guy thing and brag about how awesome their family members are, by comparing how many Nazis they have destroyed. oh, and gratuitous pinup girl references abound here, as well. the girls are found, the boys chase them, and Margaret sees the crazy man. but wait.. is he a crazy man?
we find out more about College Hill people: Donny and Stu, Gordy’s brothers who are off at war. Barbara, Stu’s good friend, who lost her husband in the war. Gordy does not like to discuss Stu. oh, for fuck’s sake. Stu is the crazy man. he deserted, and Gordy is hiding him in the woods to keep him safe from ABUSIVE BASTARD FATHER. Margaret and Elizabeth are the only people who know this outside of Gordy’s dopey buddies, so of course – they blackmail him with this scandalous information to get a new treehouse. priorities, ladies. priorities.
Stu gets sick, and Gordy freaks. the kids all take turns skipping school to help him, but there’s nothing they can do and he obviously needs medical attention. cue Barbara. let’s ask the lady whose husband was killed in the war to assist a deserter, shall we? but, she helps. she takes him to a doctor and lets him crash at her parents’ house while he recovers. meanwhile, Gordy is getting the shit knocked out of him at home, and Stu is catching on (since Gordy hasn’t been to see him in a while.) Margaret kind of lets it slip – and idiot Stu decides to face his father, Skywalker-style.
in other news, Margaret’s brother is killed in action. she comes home from HELPING A DESERTER to her parents reading a telegram. I will admit, I cry like a baby every time I read this. she cries, the parents are numb, and it doesn’t really hit her that it’s real until Elizabeth and Gordy give her condolences. what’s that? a budding friendship with Gordy? hmm.
Stu goes home to face Darth Vader. I mean, his father. predictably, he gets the shit kicked out of him, to the point where he loses most of his hearing and the army finds out he deserted. Barbara rushes off to the hospital to see him, and Gordy thanks the girls for helping him. Margaret goes home, and her mother knows Stu deserted. uh… oh. she asks Margaret if she knew, and – like any dumb twelve-year-old girl would have done – she is indignant and proud of helping him. she goes so far as to say she wished her brother had deserted. incoming slap from Mom. so what if Stu is a special snowflake? every soldier is. and I hate war, especially the current one, but still.
Margaret and Elizabeth are both grounded for life. Gordy and his family move to North Carolina. Stu and Barbara get engaged. and Margaret has reached the special age where there is no black and white, it’s mostly gray and all confusing. (Following My Own Footsteps is the second one, by the way.)
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