Shirley J Adult Fiction (Let's hope!) Gentrification, Cover-Ups
Unethical Practices, Racism
Let me start off by saying, OMgosh!!!!! Let's hope this book is fiction! Set in the Gifford Place neighborhood of Brooklyn, the story starts out with a bunch of Yuppies with attitude coming in on a tour scoping out the predominantly black neighborhood with some ethnic businesses. Sydney, who lives in Gifford Pace joins the tour to see what is up. Funny, the tour guide talks about the history of the white settlers to the area way back when, but, fails to mention the indigenous people, the Native Americans who were living there that the white settlers drove out. No mention was made of Weeksville either which was a settlement of Free Blacks living there during the era being discussed on the tour. Sydney kept bringing up significant histories of Black Americans who lived in the area, who owned various homes the tourguide was pointing out the architecture of but never mentioning any of the minority inhabitants. Not long after the tour, young up and coming white couples began moving in the neighborhood. Most chose not to get to know the people living in the neighborhood. Verentech, a mysterious corporation has gone against public outcries and intend to put a methodone clinic in the neighborhood which the current residents are against but the Yuppies are for due to the new jobs that will come. Funny, the company wants to buy out the neighborhood for expansion but the local residents aren't for it, yet, all of a sudden some people seem to be selling their property to the corporation. Weird happenings are going on around the old abandoned some say haunted hospital. There are rumors of mole people! What the heck is going on? Good book. A tale of gentrification gone hallucinogenic. I would recommend this book to adults.
