Paradise Lane

by William Taylor

When fifteen-year-old Rosie Perkins, an outcast at school, saves the life of a baby opossum, she finds an unlikely friend and ally in Michael Geraghty, a classmate who is her complete opposite.

Genres: Young Adult

165 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

William Robin Taylor was a New Zealand writer.

Reviews

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book forever holds a spot in my heart, I never get sick of it and have read it over and over again since I was a teenager. Even though I know what’s coming I still cry every single time.

As I’ve gotten older reading between the lines has gotten a lot more obvious, it’s not just a simple wee romance YA book, it has a lot of hidden messages and problems that happen within, your dealing with grief, alcoholism, depression, suicide attempts, possession, abuse even slight undertones of child predatory. I love that even with all these subjects the fmc doesn’t stop fighting, she continues on and will continue to for her family, she never gives up hope and even with all of this surrounding her is able to find happiness in the little things.

I love the characters how they are created, their unique personalities and how they present themselves.

It is a short story and the ending isn’t even that happy. Questions don’t get answered but yet it still feels like enough.
Although I would love to know what does happen, do they get together? does the family make it through all this? what happened to the brother?

You can tell the book was written in the 1980s with all the quirky sayings and the technology mentioned and it fascinates me in a way to see life so simple back then.

It could be the fact that this was the first book I ever fell in love with or because it’s a book I crave from time to time I’m not sure but it’s forever a 5 star to me.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I, personally, really liked this book and know it is appealing to YA as the first time I encountered it, I must have been around 11. It's a quick-paced novel, unafraid to tackle the harder concepts of some lives such as alcoholism and parental control/obsession of a child. At the same time it offers a glimpse into first romance without being terribly sappy or stereotypical.
The characters all evolve with intelligence which would give YA readers a sense of satisfaction in the way it approaches their age group. The book is heavily bent toward girls but, looking past the romance, might also appeal to boys, demonstrating the importance of surveying one's self as well as looking past the surface of others' actions.
I can see this book as a good required read with the proper focus on relationships and seeing the world from another's view that we may not want to.

[Rose Mendoza · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can't go wrong with this story. I first read it in my early teens and it left a profound impression on me. I can still remember the last lines of the final chapter of the novel even after all these years. Sometimes I want to go back and re-read it but I'm afraid that if I do I might lose the magic of nostalgia.
If this is your first time reading it, you won't regret it and you'll be surprised how much this book speaks to you.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE this book. It is probably my favorite book or at least one of my favorites of all time. I've read it like four times now. It just has all the elements I look for in a book- well loved characters, boy/girl conflict, boy/girl love, damsel in distress but is able to pull herself together, family, etc. Love it.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book that impacted me the most as a young adult. Appropriate and beautiful story of challenges and love.

[Tia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book during my early teens and absolutely loved it. I still have the book as it's the first book I read that I enjoyed. And I have read it over a dozen times.

[Beata · Rating 3 out of 5]

I personally didn't like it I found it sad and boring. But this is just my opinion, someone else might like it. It just wasn't my piece of cake.

[Haleigh Nix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet book with an enjoyable main character. Shed some tears at the end but left me feeling hopeful.

[Madame Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rosie and Michael form a friendship after arguing about a possum. Michael begins to like Rosie because of her strength.

[krys… · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want a sweet, innocent and sparky enemies to lovers book this is it. It’s all of this but also realistic, hard-life, broken family, bully, and lonely kind of book. It touches so many important realistic for today generation but just the right amount of love and excitement to lighten some moments in the book while others dropping hard as a rock. I totally recommend though it does touch some topics that can be triggering for some readers in the way it’s ridden although nothing that is mayor. I just think it’s 13+ not that of a biggie. I loved it.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book! The journey you take with the characters is at once mundane and arresting. As I became immersed in the story of Rosie and Michael, I was able to identify with some of the traits they each showed and put myself in their places. This story is life...raw, painful, truthful, magical, meaningful, learning, making mistakes, and healing. I read it years ago when I was in 7th or 8th grade. Since then, I've read it many, many times. The book survived our years of moving around with the military and now I'm able to share it with my own children. I read it aloud for them and they enjoyed it, as well. I think because of the type of life situations this book deals with, it's probably best for 5th grade and up. I think younger children could read it, but I'm not sure they'd grasp all the little details an older child would. I had to explain some things to my youngest child.