Boston, 1904. She was told to stay away. She didn't.
Twelve-year-old Kitty O'Neill knows what happens when adults are afraid. Ever since her father's death, her mother has held her close -- and when she forbids Kitty to see Rosie, the girl next door, the rule feels final.
Rosie lives by different rules. She works brutal hours at a brewery, walks with a permanent limp, and understands how easily children can be used and discarded.
When the girls meet in secret, forming the Nobodies Club, Kitty is drawn into abandoned sheds, dangerous wharves, and underground tunnels. As the risks grow, so does the cost of silence. If the truth comes out, Kitty won't just lose a friend -- she may lose the freedom she's only just begun to claim.
Forbidden Friendship: A South Boston Tale is an unflinching upper-middle grade novel about class, courage, and choosing who you stand with when obedience feels safer than doing what's right.
This is a beautifully written middle-grade novel that quietly draws you in and stays with you long after the last page. At its heart is a tender friendship between two Boston girls from very different worlds in 1904, each carrying their own burdens. Kitty has recently lost her father when she meets Rosie, who works long hours in a factory. Watching their bond unfold feels both natural and deeply moving, especially as the story gently reveals the forces that try to keep them apart.
Readers should know that this isn't just a light friendship story. There are real stakes here: child labor, family grief, parental expectations, and the risks that come with speaking out. And yet, the book handles all of this with care, humor, and heart. It shows how even young people can take meaningful action and help drive change.
The author skillfully blends a coming-of-age story with larger themes of class, fairness, and courage. Set against the realities of early 20th-century labor conditions, the story shows how two young girls form a deep friendship and come to understand injustice not as an abstract concept, but as something lived and urgent. Their determination to challenge what they see, using creativity, persistence, and their own voices, gives the story both momentum and heart.
I would especially recommend this book to young readers who enjoy stories about friendship and fairness, as well as to parents, teachers, and book groups looking for something meaningful yet approachable. It reminds us that courage often begins with simply deciding to be seen and heard.
