The hero of D. M. Cataneo’s coming-of-age novel is 13-year-old Nicky Martini, who lives in an apartment complex known as “Eggplant Alley” in the Bronx in 1970 and struggles to cope with a changing family, a changing neighborhood, and a changing world.

Long-haired hippies*, racial tension, and the Viet Nam war leave Nicky longing for the good old days.

Nicky’s complaints revolve around the five things that ruined his childhood: the nosebleed he received from President Kennedy; the Great Northeast Blackout (which he thought he caused); the end of neighborhood stickball* games; the departure to Vietnam of his beloved big brother Roy; and Roy’s hippie girlfriend, Margalo. With Roy overseas for a year, Nicky is left behind with two distracted, worried parents.

He decides to lead a crusade* to revive neighborhood stickball, which he is sure will spark a return to all that was innocent and beautiful about the good old days. In the course of his yearlong quest, Nicky confronts* an ancient fortuneteller Willie Mays, his father’s dark secret from World War II, neighborhood bullies and a romantic crush.

Most important is his encounter with Lester Allnuts, a new kid in the building who gives Nicky a fresh outlook on Eggplant Alley and on life in general. Lester is a country boy with a secret, and that secret makes him as eager as Nicky to revive stickball. Working together toward the same goal, the boys develop a strong friendship.

Nicky learns Lester’s secret — and realizes the destructiveness of prejudice* and fear, and the value of empathy* and forgiveness. He finally learns there is something richer than the good old days: better days ahead.(SD-Agencies)