The Nine Lives of Romeo Crumb: Life Eight

Front Cover
Stratford Road Press, Limited, Apr 12, 2013 - Juvenile Fiction - 205 pages
In Life Eight we find that the scarred Alley named Grim, is actually Romeo. His horrible injuries have disguised him to most, but his true identity is known to a few. After a deadly hailstorm ravages the already devastated city, Grim unbelievably finds himself at Dennis's hospital bedside. Having suffered a serious head injury, Dennis's future is unknown. Soon, Grim learns that Fidel, evil leader of the Alleys, has vowed revenge on the Sticks, who had kept him imprisoned in their new Stick School, the abandoned Hope Street Theater. As Grim/Romeo deals with his identity crisis, an interesting opportunity presents itself. He can board an airplane headed west and leave all the mayhem and indecision far behind. Will Grim/Romeo stay in the city to warn the Sticks of Fidel's threat? Or will he fly to the sunny utopia so many Sticks dream of, even if it means never seeing Dennis again?

Other editions - View all

About the author (2013)

Upon entering the shadowy and clandestine world of felines, Lauren Rifkin made a remarkable discoveryĆ¢e"cats do have nine lives. As a teacher for many years, Rifkin observed the countless books her students read, and it was their natural curiosity about the secret communication between animals that finally inspired her to write The Nine Lives of Romeo Crumb series. Setting out to test how the dark tone of Life One would be accepted, she read it out loud to a class of fifth graders under the guise of an unknown author. When they chose to miss recess time and again in order to hear more, and told others about the cool book their teacher was reading to them, Rifkin knew it was time for Romeo to make his entrance into the world. Thus, she created her remarkable nine book series, each book ending in one of Romeo's deaths. At the end of Life Nine, Romeo is gone forever. Rifkin currently teaches first grade in Los Angeles, California.

Bibliographic information