
By Belle K. Maniates
Chapter I - About Silvia and Myself
Chapter II - Introducing Our Next-door Neighbors
Chapter III - In Which We Are Pestered by Polydores
Chapter IV - In Which We Take Boarders
Chapter V - In Which We Take a Vacation
Chapter VI - A Flirt and a Woman-Hater
CHAPTER VII - In Which Nothing Much Happens
CHAPTER VIII - Ptolemy Disappears and I Visit a Haunted House
Chapter IX - In Which We See Ghosts
A quiet suburban lane suddenly bubbles with mischief when the narrator, a thoughtful young man, meets Silvia—a girl raised under a strict governess yet yearning for the freedom of the alley’s rag‑tag children. He helps her slip over the garden wall, and their secret playdates spark a series of humorous misunderstandings that ripple through the close‑knit neighborhood. Their budding friendship hints at something deeper while the bustling world of the neighboring kids adds both chaos and charm. The opening scenes set a tone of gentle comedy mixed with the wistful longing of youth.
Soon the house fills with odd visitors—a boisterous boarder, a curious reporter, and a mischievous kitten that lands squarely on an elder’s head—each episode spiraling into slapstick predicaments. A brief holiday, a midnight stroll, and a whispered rumor of a haunted house keep the neighborhood buzzing, while the narrator’s calm observations tie the chaos into a warm, relatable portrait of community life.
Language
en
Duration
~3 hours (190K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2009-09-24
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

A once-popular early 20th-century novelist and short story writer, she brought romance, ambition, and class tension to life in stories that reached a wide audience. Several of her works were later adapted into silent films, including Amarilly of Clothes-Line Alley.
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