Letters in the Attic by Bonnie Shimko

Lizzy McCann is a feisty 12 year old who lives with her mother and father in a fleabag hotel. A divorce leads to mother and daughter moving to upstate New York where living with her grandmother is a mixed blessing . This young girl's coming of age in the 1960s is notable for its sharp and quick-witted tone. It is brisk and good-natured and demonstrates how to survive loss, puberty and first love, all with a powerful and lively story.