Madinah K. Wakil

Gamble Street Madinah K. Wakil

Ten blocks long, Gamble Street is completely integrated and diverse. Charlotte Hayes's family was one of the first white families to move into the neighborhood, and Noah Piedmont's was the first African American family to arrive on Gamble Street. Now Charlotte and Noah, both twelve years old, are the best of friends, drawing on each other's strengths to make the most out of life. Noah, confined to a wheelchair since an accident years ago, and Charlotte play an integral role in their bustling neighborhood-from the annual Gamble Street picnic to the summer block party. As with most close-knit neighborhoods, they know everyone. There's Mr. Drysdale, the literature teacher at Trenton East Middle School; Jedidia Newby, the thirteen-year-old leader of the neighborhood youth group; Aunt Penny, the Hayeses' sixtyish live-in housekeeper; Charlotte and Noah's good friend Leo Scott; and a host of others. Everyone lives somewhere they call home, and for the residents of Gamble Street, home is where the heart is, as well as the adventures and unexpected surprises that make life more interesting.