What do you think?
Rate this book
American Adventure #30
A Better Bicycle
A new style of bicycle is growing in popularity, and eleven-year-old Peter Morgan is willing to work all summer to buy the royal blue model that has captured his attention. But Peter's attention is also taken with the new family in his well-to-do Minneapolis neighborhood. Peter and his sister Carol notice right away that the Dawes family has old furniture and wears country clothes. Now Mattie Dawes is missing from school because she fell down some steps, but her mother won't let Carol and her friends visit. Then Peter discovers Harry Dawes hiding in the boys' clubhouse in the middle of the night. What is going on? Is there a problem? What can Peter and Carol do to help?
144 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1998
29 people want to read
About the author
Norma Jean Lutz
122 books22 followersNorma Jean Lutz’s writing career began when she enrolled in a writing correspondence course. Since then, she has had over 250 short stories and articles published in both secular and Christian publications. The full-time writer is also the author of over 50 published books under her own name and many ghostwritten books. Her books have been favorably reviewed in Affair de Coeur, Coffee Time Romance, Romance Reader at Heart, and The Romance Studio magazines, and her short fiction has garnered a number of first prizes in local writing contests.
Norma Jean is the founder of the Professionalism In Writing School, which was held annually in Tulsa for fourteen years. This writers' conference, which closed its doors in 1996, gave many writers their start in the publishing world.
A gifted teacher, Norma Jean has taught a variety of writing courses at local colleges and community schools, and is a frequent speaker at writers' seminars around the country. For eight years, she taught on staff for the Institute of Children's Literature. She has served as artist-in-residence at grade schools, and for two years taught a staff development workshop for language arts teachers in schools in Northeastern Oklahoma.
As co-host for the Tulsa KNYD Road Show, she shared the microphone with Kim Spence to present the Road Show Book Club, a feature presented by the station for more than a year. She has also appeared in numerous interviews on KDOR-TV.
Norma Jean has brought out past out-of-print novels to create a new series. These teen novels (which she likes to call "Clean Teen Reads") were published in the 1980s and 90s, yet the story lines are timeless. Sporting new titles and new book covers, these books will become part of the "Norma Jean Lutz Classic Collection" series.
Her newest teen offering is Brought to You By the Color Drab. A story of a young man living in the ghetto who seemingly was born in the wrong place in the wrong time. This is a story of redemption!
Norma Jean is the founder of the Professionalism In Writing School, which was held annually in Tulsa for fourteen years. This writers' conference, which closed its doors in 1996, gave many writers their start in the publishing world.
A gifted teacher, Norma Jean has taught a variety of writing courses at local colleges and community schools, and is a frequent speaker at writers' seminars around the country. For eight years, she taught on staff for the Institute of Children's Literature. She has served as artist-in-residence at grade schools, and for two years taught a staff development workshop for language arts teachers in schools in Northeastern Oklahoma.
As co-host for the Tulsa KNYD Road Show, she shared the microphone with Kim Spence to present the Road Show Book Club, a feature presented by the station for more than a year. She has also appeared in numerous interviews on KDOR-TV.
Norma Jean has brought out past out-of-print novels to create a new series. These teen novels (which she likes to call "Clean Teen Reads") were published in the 1980s and 90s, yet the story lines are timeless. Sporting new titles and new book covers, these books will become part of the "Norma Jean Lutz Classic Collection" series.
Her newest teen offering is Brought to You By the Color Drab. A story of a young man living in the ghetto who seemingly was born in the wrong place in the wrong time. This is a story of redemption!
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 30, 2023
While this book was written for younger audiences, I thoroughly enjoyed reading it .
August 3, 2016
This story was interesting. In the beginning of the book, "A Note to Readers" explains that the Morgan family is fictional, but the events are real. In 1896 schoolchildren helped move the Stevens house to Minnehaha Park. Also, the problem of alcohol abuse was a serious problem, as it is today.
The story starts in the Fair Oaks neighborhood of Minneapolis in the spring. Heber Meeks was asking Peter Morgan how long it would be until they could go to the clubhouse. Peter was beating the last rug that he had to do. When Peter's sister, Carol, arrived, asking why he should have a day to play while she had to work, Heber looked worried. Peter asked Heber to help carry the rug back into the house. Stella heard them as they took the rug into the house. Stella's maid apron was dirty from the work she had been doing. Once the boys had rolled out the rug in the parlor, they hurried to the toolshed where they grabbed paint & brushed, then headed toward the empty lot on Shady Lane. Avery Norton, their other friend, was waiting for them at their clubhouse. There wasn't much in their clubhouse since it was only a couple weeks old. They had built it themselves from scraps of lumber they picked up, with some help from Heber's older brother, Martin. They decided to name their club The Shady Vinewood Club. Then they proceeded to paint their signs & fix the roof. As Peter painted the sign he was thinking about the blue bicycle he wanted. He decided to ask his father if he could have it for his birthday in September. When he realized that there was paint on his clothes, he was afraid his mother wouldn't allow him to get the bicycle.
The story starts in the Fair Oaks neighborhood of Minneapolis in the spring. Heber Meeks was asking Peter Morgan how long it would be until they could go to the clubhouse. Peter was beating the last rug that he had to do. When Peter's sister, Carol, arrived, asking why he should have a day to play while she had to work, Heber looked worried. Peter asked Heber to help carry the rug back into the house. Stella heard them as they took the rug into the house. Stella's maid apron was dirty from the work she had been doing. Once the boys had rolled out the rug in the parlor, they hurried to the toolshed where they grabbed paint & brushed, then headed toward the empty lot on Shady Lane. Avery Norton, their other friend, was waiting for them at their clubhouse. There wasn't much in their clubhouse since it was only a couple weeks old. They had built it themselves from scraps of lumber they picked up, with some help from Heber's older brother, Martin. They decided to name their club The Shady Vinewood Club. Then they proceeded to paint their signs & fix the roof. As Peter painted the sign he was thinking about the blue bicycle he wanted. He decided to ask his father if he could have it for his birthday in September. When he realized that there was paint on his clothes, he was afraid his mother wouldn't allow him to get the bicycle.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews