Teddy looked at the white and gold four poster bed, the pale blue rug, the incredibly lovely dream of a room that was here in the house on Holly Tree Hill. A whole new way of life was beginning for her -- she felt sure of it. The old house on Colfax Street was part of the past. This new house on Holly Tree Hill was going to be part of her new life. Looking at the luxurious room, at the pool outside he window, at the winding walks and beautiful flowers that made the Hill the envy of every other residential area in town, Teddy wondered whether any part of her former self could survive such a change. She would never go back to Colfax Street. The homespun hours she had spent there would be forgotten. Her home was on the Hill now. She would no longer be Teddy Taylor whose father was a building contractor. Instead, she would be Teddi Taylor, daughter of the head of a prosperous construction company. Would this new Teddi like the same things she used to like? Would she want the same friends? Would they still want her? What was ahead for Teddi?
A good friend told me about this old Whitman book and speculated that the author was basing the location of the book on Huntsville. Of course I had to check it out ... and oh yeah, Holston is definitely Huntsville! Space program, Redstone Arsenal, the Parkway and even the Lily Flagg cow are all there. Cute book.
A family friend loaned me this for spring vacation when I was in 6th grade, I think. Obviously it's been a long time, but I remember enjoying it pretty well. It is comparable to Beverly Cleary's teen books in terms of tone and innocence.