Albany Park

Sensual, vivid, and at times shocking, Albany Park is the story of Patrice Chaplin's years as a youth--from a gray wartime childhood to exhilarating and dangerous adventures in Europe and a romantic infatuation in a sun-drenched city in Catalonia.Patrice and Beryl--1950s teenagers--live in the London suburb Albany Park. Life is full of makeup, boys, trad jazz, and Soho nightclubs, and their dreams are of Hollywood. Leaving dead-end jobs behind, they hitchhike across Spain, dressed in the alternative street fashions of the day--white lipstick, dangle earrings, drainpipe trousers. Their path leads to the ancient city of Girona and the charismatic poet José Tarres. For Patrice, it is a homecoming and a rebirth that will mark the end of a friendship and the beginning of a lifelong obsession. Patrice is enchanted by José, but there are shadows on those sunlit days--a possessive mother, mysterious absences, rumors of women, and whispers of espionage. With plans to elope seemingly aborted, she finds herself alone in Paris, working as a showgirl, arrested as a vagrant, and escaping unwanted sexual advances. It is not until years later, after returning to Girona as a writer, that she finally learns the truth about the enigmatic José, the first true passion of her life.