Girlbomb: A Halfway Homeless Memoir

Just two hours ago, I had been heating up some lentil soup at my mom's in Brooklyn, thinking I'd eat it and maybe read some Edith Wharton before bed. Now here I was at a runaway shelter, staring at a nun's mustache and wondering where I was going to spend the rest of my adolescence.<BR>"<BR>"At fifteen, sick of her mom's spineless reactions to abusive men-and afraid of her stepfather's unpredictable behavior-Janice Erlbaum walked out of her family's apartment and never returned. What followed that fateful decision is the heart of this amazing, fascinating, and disturbing memoir.<BR>From her first frightening night at a shelter, trying to sleep in a large room filled with yelling girls, Janice knew she was in over her head. She was beaten up, shaken down, and nearly stabbed by a pregnant girl. But it was still better than living at home. Just like that, she was halfway homeless, always one step away from being sent "upstate to Lockdown."<BR>As Janice slipped further into street life, she nevertheless continued to attend high school, harbor crushes, even play the lead in the spring production of Guys and Dolls. She also roamed the streets, clubs, bars, and parks of New York City with her two best girlfriends, on the prowl for hard drugs and boys on skateboards. Together they scored coke at Danceteria, smoked angel dust in East Village squats, commiserated over their crazy mothers, and slept with one another's boyfriends on a regular basis. <BR>Janice Erlbaum paints a wry, mesmerizing portrait of being underprivileged, underage, and underdressed in the 1980s, bouncing from shelters to group homes, from tenement squats to legendary nightclubs. A moving and tremendously entertaining ridethrough the seediest parts of New York City, Girlbomb provides an unflinching look at street life, survival sex, female friendships, and first loves. <P>"From the Hardcover edition."

At fifteen, sick of her unbearable and increasingly dangerous home life, Janice Erlbaum walked out of her familys Brooklyn apartment and didnt look back. From her first frightening night at a shelter, Janice knew she was in over her head. She was beaten up, shaken down, and nearly stabbed by a pregnant girl. But it was still better than living at home. As Janice slipped further into street life, she nevertheless attended high school, harbored crushes, and even played the lead in the spring musical. She also roamed the streets, clubs, bars, and parks of New York City with her two best girlfriends, on the prowl for hard drugs and boys on skateboards. Together they scored coke at Danceteria, smoked angel dust in East Village squats, commiserated over their crazy mothers, and slept with one anothers boyfriends on a regular basis.

A wry, mesmerizing portrait of being underprivileged, underage, and underdressed in 1980s New York City, Girlbomb provides an unflinching look at street life, survival sex, female friendships, and first loves.

“A fast and engrossing read in the spirit of Girl, Interrupted.”

-Entertainment Weekly

“Gripping . . . a wry, compelling memoir of what it means to stand up for yourself, especially when no one else will.”

-Bust

“How satisfying to watch Erlbaum survive adolescence and produce a smart, engaging book.”

-The New York Times Book Review

“Erlbaums survival is hard-won, the journey rendered with page-turning intensity.”

-New York Post

“A fast and engrossing read in the spirit of Girl, Interrupted.”

-Entertainment Weekly

“Gritty . . . perversely riveting. You want her to survive.”

-The Washington Post Book World

Janice Erlbaum is a columnist for BUST magazine and a volunteer at a shelter for homeless teenagers. She lives in New York City with her boyfriend and their three cats. This is her first book.

Visit the authors website at www.girlbomb.com.

From the Hardcover edition.