Publisher's Synopsis
An enchanting book for Tweenagers to Keenagers set in the early 1940's. Connee discovers that staying in the home of wealthy cottage owners is both exciting and lonely. Sally, who becomes her best friend, lures her into mischief and adventure in the elegant summer resort - Bella Vista - managed by Connee's parents. Sally's big brother, Joe, challenges them to outsmart his tormenting antics. Connee learns that false pride can thwart her happiness and that Sally, though carefree, has a painful secret.
The action takes place in the mountains of North Arkansas during a period of history when there was no air conditioning. All over the nation, those who could afford it escaped the sweltering heat of their city homes and spent whole summers in the cool of resorts. Lazy days were spent fishing, playing cards, or just sitting on screened porches to enjoy the cool breezes. They rode horses at dawn, swam in pools or lakes, and at night foxtrotted or jitterbugged to the music of Big Bands. Author Constance May Waddell (Connee) discovered her childhood diaries, musty with age. Tears fell on the moldy pages as she re-read them. She decided that now was the time to keep the promise she'd made to Roseanne Matofsky (Sally) as Roseanne lay dying at the age of forty-one. Constance would write the stories of their delightful teen escapades so that Roseanne's children and grandchildren could hear them just as Constance had told them to her own. This is a book of real happenings, captured through the eyes and reality of a young girl in a different time and a different place. Waddell hopes those who read will experience an era when children could safely catch rides with strangers and when it was not unusual for whole families to work together in a business. "May they also identify with the universal feelings of being sad and happy at the same time, or growing beyond one's childhood confusion to the beginnings of assurance. Wendel Norton created 25 enchanting works of art to enhance Sally and Me. He captured not only the personalities of the characters, but the magical impression of a summer resort with its hotel standing like a beacon on the hill, its cool pavilion and popular underground nightclub, and a swimming pool with a unique spinning top. Whimsical lakes, creeks, trees, and horses provoke imaginative responses from the reader.
