The Alley

The Alley #1

by Eleanor Estes, Edward Ardizzone (Illustrator)

In the heart of Brooklyn, New York, there is an alley that is the most beautiful place to live in the whole wide world. Or so Connie Ives believes. The alley is the perfect location to sharpen Connie's swinging skills, hold practices for the Alley Conservatory of Music, and convict a burglar by trial.
From the bestselling author of Ginger Pye comes the story of a little girl whose eyes are always open to the beauty of the world that surrounds her.

Genres: Fiction, Childrens, Middle Grade, Historical Fiction, Classics, New York, American

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Eleanor Ruth Rosenfeld (Estes)was an American children's author. She was born in West Haven, Connecticut as Eleanor Ruth Rosenfield. Originally a librarian, Estes' writing career began following a case of tuberculosis. Bedridden while recovering, Estes began writing down some of her childhood memories, which would later turn into full-length children's books.

Estes's book Ginger Pye (1951) won the Newbery Medal, and three of her other books (The Middle Moffat, Rufus M., and The Hundred Dresses) were chosen as Newbery Honor books. She also received the Certificate of Award for Outstanding Contribution to Children’s Literature and was nominated for the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award. By the time of her death at age 82, Estes had written 19 children's books and one novel for adults.

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this 1961 juvenile set in Brooklyn, Connie and her best friend Billy both live in a little community of families of university professors in campus houses where a private enclosed alley provides a sheltered oasis for them and many other children. The alley is a delightful place for unsupervised play, and is also a hotbed of childish intrigues and politics. Like some other reviewers, I'd probably have enjoyed the book more had it just been episodic accounts of alley life; I was bored by the burglary plotline that takes up most of the book.

The Brooklyn university where Connie's father is a professor of English is based on The Pratt Institute, which Estes attended and where her husband later worked. If you look it up on google maps and zoom in, you can see the little "T" of university housing so painstakingly described in the opening pages of this book, even down to the exact number of houses along each length of the T.

Although I enjoyed the old-timey Brooklyn setting, and bits were amusing, it was a book I found easy to put down and yet somehow less easy to pick up again.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) · Rating 2 out of 5]

A star and a half for this dull little book. At first I thought it would be a cosy little episodic story, each chapter telling an aspect of the MC's comfy little life on the alley, and the first two or three chapters were like that. Then, unfortunately, came The Robbery which took over the book and went on far too long with the kiddies playing sleuth. We are asked to believe that a kid in about third grade sorted it all out? I found myself skimming, hoping that the cosiness of the first chapters would reassert itself, but it never did. The text was repetitive in the extreme, some sentences being repeated word-for-word again and again throughout the book, and many of those repetitions added precisely nothing to the narration. It was almost as if the author was thinking about something else as she wrote and didn't notice.

I see there's a companion book, but if it's as boring as this one I'll give it a miss.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars
Review and Cleanliness Report coming soon!

[PBurmeister · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought an old, used hardcover copy of this book because it is illustrated by Edward Ardizzone. The dust jacket is charming, and the layout is unassuming and friendly.
But the real treasure of this book is its writing. Estes writes with wonderful pace and seems to capture the hurry-ups and slow-downs of childhood experience. Its protagonist, Connie, is a precocious and winsome young girl. The full cast of characters, children and adults, is a good ensemble.
My opinion is that the story holds up well over time, 50 years since being published, I especially recommend it as a summer read to adults who grew up in the book's era and are now enjoying grandchildren that are the ages of its cast.

[Renata · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm typically a sucker for old kid's lit and Eleanor Estes, but this one was a little hard to get through. Equal parts charming and dull.

[Carola · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this to my 11 year old daughter. We were both about to abandon it two chapters in, because it didn't seem to have much of a plot. But when we flipped to the index and read the titles of the chapter, we realized that the action was just about to start. The rest of the book had all of the qualities that I have enjoyed in other Estes' books I have read. You can get a great glimpse of the way children were allowed to run their own worlds in this era, with caring adults all around who didn't feel the need to control their child's every minute.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book from the moment that I picked it up. Now that was a long time ago, I must have been in second or third grade, but since then I've read it countless times. I own a copy and keep it in my desk, I am preparing to read it again. Connie and Billy were amazing characters. Connie reminded me strongly of myself, and Billy of the best friend that I'd never have. Timeless. Amazing. Screwdrivers named Stanley? That's it, straight out epic.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I LOVED this book and almost couldn't put it down. The characters are rich and dialogue made me laugh out loud. A lot! Can't wait to read it again--this time, out loud to my kids. I plan to read all of the other books by this author now that this book is one of my newest favorites for kids.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Eleanor Estes deserves more recognition than she gets. This story about a group of children who live in a secluded area in Brooklyn is delightful. I love Connie's narration, her loyalty to Billy, the nicknames the children give the residents & their resourceful behavior.

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book several times over as a child, and decided to pick it up again. Love the way it tells a tale of a group of children of a university community and their understanding of the world, including encounters with a surprising bunch of burglars. A tale of friendship - told with great wit.

[Carolien · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite part is the screw driver named Stanley.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I probably checked out and read this book 10 times when I was in elementary school. I can still remember where it was in the library and the color of the cover.

[Christopher Newton · Rating 4 out of 5]

It takes place in another world - there's no internet, no Facebook, just kids hanging out outdoors and making up games without a sponsor. A sweet book and I liked it.

[Anastasia Tuckness · Rating 3 out of 5]

Connie lives in an alley on a college campus in Brooklyn in the 1960s. This book tells the tale of her and her friends in the adjoining houses, about their piano lessons (which she decides she can give, not just receive!), swinging (ask first!), and other "rules" of the alley. It also devotes a fair bit of time to a burglary--what happens, the leadup, and then the kids who are determined to solve it through retellings, reenactments, and even a mock trial. As a result, this book was less interesting to me than Estes' Moffats books, so I'd start with those.

[Tracy Lynch · Rating 5 out of 5]

In today’s crazy world, I was feeling nostalgic and decided to re-read my favourite book of my childhood, one I haven’t touched in probably 40 years. It was such a delight to read. I remember checking it out of my library over and over again as a third, fourth, and fifth grader. Now, as a 50-year-old, it was such a lovely palate cleanser to read of simpler times and revel in a fun and compelling childhood mystery. Esters was a beautiful writer.

[Ruthe Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Connie lives of a special street, actually a cul-de-sac in Brooklyn. The author is very descriptive of the various people, especially the children, who live on the street. The calm and pleasant atmosphere of this lovely neighborhood is shattered when Connie's house is burglarized. The adults can't seem to find the burglar, so the children put their heads together and gather clues.

[Alison Jacques · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this to my 6.5-year-old at bedtimes and we both enjoyed it. Book was written in 1964, so I did some minor language editing as I read (e.g., "police officers" instead of "policemen").

[Diane Madlon-Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful!!! What a wonderful neighborhood with diverse characters yet great comeraderie! So fun!!

[PottWab Regional Library]

SM

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute little book. The writing style was a bit repetitive, but Estes has a way of writing kids' dialogue and inner thoughts that feels very genuine.

[Shauna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I planned to read this book with Aerie (she really likes Eleanor Estes books), but she beat me to it and read it on her own. Now Coco and I are reading it. Coco keeps reading ahead. (A really good thing!) It has some good discussion points . . . and Coco is seeing what people feel about bossy people, even if their ideas are good. A great non-preachy lesson for my own bossy girl!

We finished this book on February 26, 2010. It had some dry parts, but it was fun to talk about together. (I would say 3.5 stars) Even when I thought that Coco might find be finding it boring, she would say, "Hey, Mom, could we read some of The Alley?"

Coco said she "liked the part when they got the pencil back the best." She also was pleased that Katie was nice at the end and that it seemed she and Connie would become friends.

I've been marking favorite "bits of wisdom" in the books, especially children's books, I've been reading. Here is a passage from the book I enjoyed:

"[She:] did not mind the long days that began empty and ended full. Oh! The wonderful and long days of summer! Just to hold a whole day in your hand and have it and think that it was empty to begin with but that each moment, could, would, contain so much."

[Nicholas Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charming story of a intrepid pair of children investigating a burglary in their neighborhood. Features a couple of potentially crooked cops and some really strong female role models both young and old. Evocative rendering of childhood adventures and friendships forged in the heat of summer. These days pass too quickly and this novel does a lovely job of reminding us how it feels to be young again.

[Julianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the book because there was always a lot going on and I always wanted to read more.

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is about a girl named Connie Ives, she has a really big heart for adventure and being kind to her neighbors and every one she meets!

[Rose Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A much-loved book from my childhood.

[Stacey · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a good, solid kid's book. A bit old fashioned but not so much that kids today couldn't follow it.

[Xiana709 · Rating 4 out of 5]

it is a little boring because the beginning is just describing everything

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

New story to me, super cute, love the kid dialogue throughout!

[Liaken · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the same vein as the other Estes books, but not as well developed.