The Girl from Gladden Street

About the Book

Sometimes, life plays little jokes. For Jeannette McDonald, growing up in a small town in West Virginia in the 1950s, life had three particular jokes in mind: naming her after a famous movie star, giving her a birthday just after Valentine’s Day, and letting her grow up on a street named Gladden—a place as far from glad as Jeannette was from being a movie star.

Growing up is supposed to be a time of wonder and joy. For the girl on Gladden Street, the wonder was in discovering that when life plays jokes, anything is possible if you keep a healthy attitude. Ms. McDonald relates that some of life’s harshest realities can lead to new awakenings and a better life.

Peppered with a series of brief, episodic, coming-of-age vignettes that illustrate Ms. McDonald’s life and much of the American landscape of the 1950s, The Girl from Gladden Street provides a reminder that some of our most valuable lessons come from events experienced during the most impressionable times of life.

About the Author

Jeannette McDonald, originally from Fairmont, West Virginia, has traveled all over the United States. She has two children, five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. She lives in Columbus, Ohio.