Would ten cents buy a cup of coffee?

Ten Cents a Dance
by Christine Fletcher


I think someone else already said "fascinating look at a unique time in history."  I say, "Thank you that times have changed!"  Taxi dancing still exists, I'm told, but it's probably not as innocent--not that it was all that innocent back then. A man was only renting a woman for the duration of one dance and he expected her to be flirty, peppy and flattering only for that brief time--and that's pretty much all he got except for an occasional feel-up on the keister. If he wanted more than a dance, then he bought the girls dinner, drinks, or took them out to clubs...and only then might he start to feel a right to expect more.

What hasn't changed, though, are these things:  girls in first love, blind to the thoughts behind a flattering lover's lips; mothers and daughters who hide things from each other; young women who have to choose between wearing pretty dresses and drudging in a factory; girls growing up.  And hope and fun and lost innocence. For all the messy sadness, it's still an uplifting book.

To be honest, there's a part of the plot resolution that seemed too good to be true. Plus for reasons unknown, I got just a little tired of it about three-quarters through. I'm not sure if was the story or just me.  But those things aside, it's definitely worthwhile...and if you're a teenager, it's a shocking glimpse into your grandmother's world.