by Melanie Benjamin
Hardcover, 368 pages
Delacorte Press, January 26, 2016
4 stars
Benjamin's latest novel, The Swans of Fifth Avenue, gives readers a peek into the glamorous life of the high society Manhattan "Swans" - socialites like Gloria Guinness, Slim Keith, C.Z. Guest, and Pamela Churchill - as well as detailing the relationship between rising author Truman Capote and darling of the social scene Babe Paley. Best known as the wife of CBS founder Bill Paley and for her spot in the International Best Dressed Hall of Fame, Paley was introduced to Capote and they became inseparable for years. Then, seemingly out of the blue, Capote published a gossip-rag short story in Esquire that was a thinly-veiled description of Paley's private life, detailing several embarrassing secrets, and changed their relationship forever.
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"If he told the best stories, dished the most delicious gossip, dropped the grandest of names. Then, perhaps. Then. Would he truly belong?"
I was struck by how simultaneously over-confident and approval-seeking Capote was. Here he was - a talented writer, adored by the best of Manhattan society, and yet he was almost crippled with a fear that he didn't really fit in with the people with whom he socialized. Though, to be fair, with the exception of Babe, the Swans did often seem to treat him almost as a pet - something to be trotted out as party entertainment or to prove their literary and intellectual weight. Why, though, would he betray Babe the way he did? Theirs seemed like a genuine relationship - as much in love with each other (maybe more?) as they were with their partners. They led emotionally isolated lives and found solace in each other's company. Did he think people wouldn't know to whom he referred in his writing? Did he expect she'd forgive him as she'd forgiven his other missteps in their relationship? Was the whole relationship a way for him to gain entry into their lives just for writing fodder? I wonder if Capote even knew the answers to these questions, since he was so far under the influence of alcohol and drugs at that point in his life. Capote's emotional crash at the end of the book is almost physically painful to read.
As usual, regardless of whether I loved or hated the characters, Benjamin absolutely brought these women (and their men) to life in a big way. Their habits, their personality tics, the things you loved and hated about these women were entirely believable. Notable was how these wealthy women, removed from the reader by more than 50 years, are worried about the same things women today worry about - their marriages, their careers (or lack of), how good of a parent they have been, and how to age gracefully. Benjamin writes:
"Yet at night, they took off their diamonds and went to empty beds resigned to the fact that they were just women, after all. Women with a shelf life."
Unsurprisingly, Benjamin has crafted another amazing book, bringing another vibrant woman from history to life as a fully fleshed-out, complex character. I'd recommend it to anyone who loves historical fiction or Truman Capote's writing.
My drink pairing for this book is a glass of champagne. It seemed as though the Swans were almost always celebrating something, and even when they weren't, who can't use a bit of something sweet and bubbly at the end of the day?
Cheers,
Tanya
(Thank you to Delacorte Press and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
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