Lisa

Woman's awakening with Celebrity on the side

Revisado: 01-05-13

This was a sweet story of a woman who lived in the same Kansas town as Louise Brooks' family in the 1920s and who agrees to escort the 15 year old to New York City to pursue a dancing career/fame. The experience becomes an awakening of sorts for her as she begins to reflect on her own small town existence and a past (orphanage/adoption/marriage) which she has had little control over. While she is comfortable in her small town life, the trip to New York with the precocious and hard to control Louise opens her world and causes her to reexamine her life. While in NYC she decides to return to the Orphanage she was raised in as a young girl and begins her journey to find out who she is and where she came from. I liked this character and it was fun going on a journey of self discovery with her as she grows from a milquetoast existence to a fully developed self-assured woman.

If you're looking for a book about Louise Brooks, you might want to read Brooks' Lulu in Hollywood instead of this book. The story line is really just a vehicle for the main character to begin her journey. I really enjoyed Elizabeth McGovern's narration, her voice is very soothing and her accents believable (even if her Kansas accent slipped into Wisconsin territory occasionally).

I recommend this book for those who appreciate a slow paced but not boring slice of life in the 1920s.

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Great story + Great cast = Five Stars all the way

Revisado: 12-14-12

What an absolute delight. This book proves that a great reading and cast can make all the difference in the world. Perfect casting! My favorite was Octavia Spencer who plays her character in the movie as well, all sass and attitude.

The story is wonderful but rather hard to see the reality of life for women of color, especially in the south during that time. It's shameful and eye opening. Kathryn Stockett gives this era in history a unique voice, she is a marvel here. In the end though, it is an uplifting story that makes you go yeah!

I only wish there were more like this gem. Can't recommend it enough!

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Monotonous drone

Revisado: 12-14-12

I was hoping for a spy thriller with a female lead because they're so hard to find! I think this would have been much better as a short story because it seemed to go on and on about not much of anything, except for describing the hedgerows and cottages. The main character seems like a dreary sort who never cracks a smile and doesn't believe her own mother when she tells her she was a spy (thinks she crackers).

The reader is just, i'm sorry, awful. Monotone and dull and her male voices sound ridiculous and droll. No inflection at all and I found it hard to stay interested. Maybe in print it would "read" better. Definitely not a thriller, but more of a mother daughter journey.

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What am I missing?

Revisado: 10-21-11

After reading all the great reviews and enthusiastic recommendations, I actually feel guilty for not liking this book. Over six hours in and I'm still struggling to stay interested.

I just don't care about the characters all that much and I thought the brother and sister thing was just too gimmicky and it kind of turned me off from that point on. I'm certainly no prude and it isn't a subject matter that makes me squeamish, but I just didn't find the characters all that interesting or entertaining enough to care about them or where the story was headed.

I wondered if this story would have been more captivating as a drama instead of a comedy but the reader was amazing with his different accents and exaggerated voices and would be very funny given the right material.

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