A reader: “I always immediately think of ‘A Tree Grows in Brooklyn,’ in

which Neely comes home with spats much to the shock of his sister Francie,

the main character. I think she says something like, ‘Spats!!!????’ with her

voice rising way, way up (or, at least, that’s the way my 10-year-old mind

registered it when I first read the book 30-odd years ago). Since they were

born dirt poor and lived in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, tenements, this was a

very big deal.”