Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Gone with the Wind
by Margaret Mitchell
Hardcover, 1037 pages
1 September 1936, Scribner
5 stars

This book has become a classic - but the twist that I love is that Scarlett is something of an anti-hero, and the book is set in the American South before, during and after the Civil War, so there are strikes against it being such an amazing, moving book, but it won the 1937 Pulizer Prize, inspired a movie that utterly swept the Academy Awards in the same year that The Wizard of Oz was released.  

Cheers,
- Karli

Sirius by Jonathan Crown

Sirius
by Jonathan Crown
Hardcover, 247 pages
16 August 2015, Head of Zeus
4 stars

This book is a must for dog-lovers.  I have a few people who will receive this book as a gift, as I know they will be unable to resist Levi/Sirius/Hercules/Hansi....in all his roles, he is certainly the star that his second name implied.  It is as light-hearted a romp as possible when the subject is a Jewish family in the toxic Germany of the Hitler era.  But, as any true dog lover will tell you, the joy that a dog can bring his or her people is impossible to measure.

The novel is set from the early days of Hitler through the end of WWII and the setting goes primarily between Berlin and Hollywood.  Those interested in the Hollywood of the 30's and 40's will appreciate the stars that people Sirius's life in Hollywood, and those interested in WWII Germany will likewise find the German villains who Sirius encounters fascinating and more human than the history books can portray.  This perspective of those years through the eyes of an amazing dog who was privy to glamour, riches, poverty and war is one that the reader will remember.  

Cheers,
Karli

The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin

The Swans of Fifth Avenue
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.

                                                       ********************

"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.)