Genny Zak Kieley

Green Stamps and Hot Pants: Growing Up in the 50's and 60's

In 1987, Genny Zak Kieley took a writing class and found out she loved writing.  She stayed and took classes for ten years.  The class teacher, Maureen LaJoy, encouraged her writing and became a mentor and friend.  When the assignment one day was to write about A Place That Calls to You, Genny wrote about Bessie and Joe Yablonsky, who owned the neighborhood store where she grew up.  People liked it so much, they suggested she write more of her memories.  Genny Zak Kieley, author of three books about Northeast Minneapolis, has expanded her horizons with "Green Stamps to Hot Pants: Growing Up in the 50's and 60's."

A Nostalgic Journey
Books by Twin Cities Author
Genny Zak Kieley
...about the decades that followed World War II

Green Stamps to Hot Pants: Growing Up in the 50s and 60s 

A close up view of the 50s and 60s comes to life through a combination of first- hand remembrances, photos and research. We are taken on a trip for a glimpse back in time with a lively narrative that tells the story of what it was like to live back then.

The book begins with a sweet journey back to the author’s childhood. It was a time when bikes were big and bulky. Ladies from the neighborhood stuck to a strict routine of Monday was wash day, Tuesday ironing day and so on and there was seldom deviation from this rule. Drive In movies and restaurants were the hot spot on a Saturday night. Busy housewives saved up their coveted green stamps from the grocery store and dreamed of what they could buy with them. For a child in the 50s and 60s, a trip to the Dime Store was like going to dreamland. Families sat around the counsel black and white television to watch their favorite TV family like Leave it to Beaver or Father Knows Best, and emulated them in their own life. Huge changes were taking place in the 50s and 60s; but most families lived a fairly simple life in comparison to today.

Come relive the memories of the 50s and 60s

Table of Contents

 

Ch 1 School and Neighborhood

Ch 2 The Rise of TV: Entertainment for the Whole Family

Ch 3 What We Wore

Ch 4 Hair

Ch 5 What Our Parents Wore: Hats, Aprons, and Housedresses

Ch 6 Drive-Ins: The Place to Be on a Saturday Night

Ch 7 Put on Your Gloves Let’s Go Downtown

Ch 8 Dime Store Dreams

Ch 9 Music

Ch 10 Freebies and Fads

Ch 11 Attics, Pantries and Traditions

Ch 12 Classic Cars and Drag Racing

A Photographic Stroll Down Memory Lane

 

EVENTS:

Sept. 9^th Brandeis Women’s Group 12:00 lunch and presentation Oakridge Country Club Minnetonka Blvd & Hwy 7

Sept. 15^th Maple Grove Library 7:00 Presentation 8351 Elm Creek Blvd. [952] 847-5550

Oct. 7^th Minnetonka Senior Center 14600 Minnetonka Blvd. [952] 939-8369---10:30 AM

 

Oct. 20 Eastside Neighborhood Services 1700 Second Street NE, Minneapolis, Health Fair, 10-12 Contact Karen Carlson

 

Nov. 14  Author's Bookfair Maple Grove Barnes and Noble 8040 Wedgewood Lane Contact Lin Salsbury

 

Dec. 3 Osseo School District Author's Tea 6:30-8:00 pm Contact Amy Brengman