Turtle in Paradise

Set in Key West in 1935, Turtle in Paradise is an interesting look at life during the Depression. Turtle, the main character in the story, lives in New Jersey with her single mother, and is sent to live with relatives in Key West when her mother finds work as a housekeeper for a woman that "can't abide by children." Filled with colorful characters and interesting adventures, I highly recommend this book for those interested in historical fiction. Even Earnest Hemingway makes a short appearance in the story!

From Booklist:

Eleven-year-old Turtle is not one to suffer fools gladly. And she runs into a lot of fools, especially the no-goods her starry-eyed mother meets. So it's a tough little Turtle who arrives in Key West in June of 1935. She's been sent to Florida to stay with relatives because her mother's latest housekeeping job doesn't allow children. Unfortunately, Mama has neglected to tell Aunt Minnie she's coming, and Turtle gets the stink eye from cousins with monikers like Buddy and Beans. As Turtle soon learns, everything is different in Key West, from the fruit hanging on trees to the scorpions in nightgowns to the ways kids earn money. She can't be part of her cousins' Diaper Gang (no girls allowed), which takes care of fussy babies, but when she finds a treasure map, she hopes she'll be on Easy Street like Little Orphan Annie. Holm uses family stories as the basis for this tale, part romp, part steely-eyed look at the Depression era.