Lucky Us (Review by AmberBug)

Lucky Us Amy Bloom 3.5/5	Published July 29, 2014 First Sentence "My father's wife died."
Publisher's Description: "My father's wife died. My mother said we should drive down to his place and see what might be in it for us." So begins this remarkable novel by Amy Bloom, whose critically acclaimed Away was called "a literary triumph" by The New York Times. Brilliantly written, deeply moving, fantastically funny, Lucky Us introduces us to Eva and Iris. Disappointed by their families, Iris, the hopeful star, and Eva, the sidekick, journey across 1940s America in search of fame and fortune. Iris's ambitions take them from small-town Ohio to an unexpected and sensuous Hollywood, across the America of Reinvention in a stolen station wagon, to the jazz clubs and golden mansions of Long Island. With their friends in high and low places, Iris and Eva stumble and shine through a landscape of big dreams, scandals, betrayals, and war. Filled with gorgeous writing, memorable characters, and surprising events, Lucky Us is a thrilling and resonant novel about success and failure, good luck and bad, the creation of a family, and the pleasures and inevitable perils of family life. From Brooklyn's beauty parlors to London's West End, a group of unforgettable people love, lie, cheat, and survive in this story of our fragile, absurd, heroic species.
Dear Reader, Before you read my review, check out the insightful one Arianna posted a few weeks back. I don't have as many great ideas brewing in my head for this review, not sure why since I really liked the book. I do want to mention that I ADORE the cover, it speaks to the characters of the book so well and it looks kinda quirky and fun while the underlying message isn't that at all. Lucky Us is a story that weaves between the lives of two half sisters. Iris comes from a wealthier mother who rears her up to have absolute self confidence and over grandiose ideas on where her life should lead. Eva was the daughter left behind with her destitute mother, she gets "returned" to her father who is now shacking up with the mother of Iris. Neither girl loves their family and the pair share a strange bond, mostly strung together by Iris who takes the girl in as her confident for her big life plans. Eva doesn't seem to mind being the drag along and willingly follows Iris into disaster after disaster. Thinking back on this book, I keep playing the "Oh, the places you will go" phrase, over and over in my mind. I think I loved the bouncing Iris so much because she brought us into these areas of the world I would never have experienced myself. I love reading from the perspective of someone SO different from the way I am. Even though she is abundantly indulgent and full of herself, she still has this warm heart that doesn't forget the little people in her life. The relationship between the two of them is unusual but also slightly comforting in a dysfunctional way. Eva gets to see Hollywood and attend fancy shindigs due to her sisters fame. I have to say, I have a sweet spot for old fashioned Hollywood, there is something romantic and tragic there that keeps me wanting more. We also get thrown out of that world and into NYC, not the glamour of the bright lights but the gritty and honest streets of Brooklyn. As the environment changes, so do the characters and events. Gone is the glitz and glam and to replace it, we have hardship and struggle which is such a stark contrast to the Hollywood chapters. I love that Amy Bloom brings us from here to there with a flick of her wrist (or what I imagine her writing process would look like). I have a feeling this book is going to be welcomed with wide arms, maybe even a little jazz hand action?! Amy Bloom has this way of captivating the reader and I think she has accomplished this yet again, I'm pretty sure all her fans will be gobbling this up without disappointment. I like Amy Bloom, I think she is a solid writer with great stories to tell but I don't see a huge difference between her and many of the other literary writers I read every year and like. I guess I'm not a "Bloom" fan girl, but will that stop me from reading her books? No way! Don't get me wrong, I respect her writing and books very much and I KNOW she is totally worth the read. Be prepared for another successful developed story that has "I want to meet them" characters. You really can't go wrong with Amy Bloom, I can pretty much promise you won't "hate" it but I'm hoping you enjoy it as much as I did. Happy Reading, AmberBug

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Left: Hardcover - Right: E-Book

Lucky Us

Lucky Us Amy Bloom 4 / 5	Published July 29, 2014 First Sentence "My father's wife died."
Publisher's Description: "My father's wife died. My mother said we should drive down to his place and see what might be in it for us." So begins this remarkable novel by Amy Bloom, whose critically acclaimed Away was called "a literary triumph" by The New York Times. Brilliantly written, deeply moving, fantastically funny, Lucky Us introduces us to Eva and Iris. Disappointed by their families, Iris, the hopeful star, and Eva, the sidekick, journey across 1940s America in search of fame and fortune. Iris's ambitions take them from small-town Ohio to an unexpected and sensuous Hollywood, across the America of Reinvention in a stolen station wagon, to the jazz clubs and golden mansions of Long Island. With their friends in high and low places, Iris and Eva stumble and shine through a landscape of big dreams, scandals, betrayals, and war. Filled with gorgeous writing, memorable characters, and surprising events, Lucky Us is a thrilling and resonant novel about success and failure, good luck and bad, the creation of a family, and the pleasures and inevitable perils of family life. From Brooklyn's beauty parlors to London's West End, a group of unforgettable people love, lie, cheat, and survive in this story of our fragile, absurd, heroic species.
Dear Reader, Bravo, Amy Bloom.  Another great novel.  I really enjoyed Away several years ago, and had hoped for another great period piece; the author did not disappoint.  This time, the story focused on two half-sisters who first meet when they are in their teens, just around the time of the second World War.  Iris is flamboyant and always wants to be center stage, while Eva often plays backup to and supports her older sister in her adventures.  The girls quickly escape their boring lives in Ohio to flee to Hollywood, where Iris makes it (pretty) big, only to fairly quickly tumble from grace.  From that disappointment, the story moves back to New York City, with the girls picking up an entourage which includes Iris' gay stylist, the girls' estranged father, and a pair of spinster hairdresser sisters (among, ultimately, many others).  Despite not having much lasting contact with most of the characters, the reader is still able to care for the entire cast, which to my mind takes enormous skill on the part of the author. The book moved interestingly along; it flipped between Eva's first-person narrative, some epistolary chapters contributed by Iris and Gus (an accused German spy), and some third-person perspectives that allowed the reader to watch some of the secondary characters move through their lives, separately from their relationship with Eva.  But Eva really was the main character, despite the backup role she often played to others, in her own life.  She was the sister with the heart, the one who attracted people to her with her kindness and caring and love.  In her quiet and unassuming way, she was the one who really played the central role in many's lives.  I found especially interesting her relationship with Danny, the orphan boy whom Iris and Eva "adopted" by stealing from an asylum.  Originally, Danny was intended to be Iris' child, but she easily abandoned him when her own life fell apart, and there again was Eva to pick up the pieces, to be the true backbone of the family.  It was interesting to watch the sisters together, and examine their roles. Some parts of the book I felt digressed from the story and could have probably been cut from the final piece with no loss, but they were interesting sidebars and I suppose they did help to flesh out the characters' lives.  Bloom, being originally a short story writer, clearly still has that talent, of sharing whole slices of life in short flashes.  But it works well for this book, particularly in the way that it is constructed. As usual, I look forward to more from Amy Bloom. Yours, Arianna

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The Other Typist - review by Arianna

The Other Typist Suzanne Rindell 4 / 5	Published 2013 First Sentence "They said the typewriter would unsex us."
Publisher's Description: New York City, 1924: the height of Prohibition and the whole city swims in bathtub gin. Rose Baker is an orphaned young woman working for her bread as a typist in a police precinct on the lower East Side. Every day Rose transcribes the confessions of the gangsters and murderers that pass through the precinct. While she may disapprove of the details, she prides herself on typing up the goriest of crimes without batting an eyelid. But when the captivating Odalie begins work at the precinct Rose finds herself falling under the new typist's spell. As do her bosses, the buttoned up Lieutenant Detective and the fatherly Sergeant. As the two girls' friendship blossoms and they flit between the sparkling underworld of speakeasies by night, and their work at the precinct by day, it is not long before Rose's fascination for her new colleague turns to obsession. But just who is the real Odalie, and how far will Rose go to find out?
Dear Reader, Wow.  What a fun book!  It took me a little while to get into, but once I started really catching the pace of the story, it was really great reading.  The story revolves around Rose, a fairly reserved and conservative woman who works in a police precinct as a typist in 1929.  While she has no trouble stomaching some of the awful things she hears at work, she is still very proper and believes in the moral right.  So her world is shaken when her new coworker Odalie joins the ranks at the precinct.  Odalie is everything that Rose is not: adventurous, easygoing, unbridled in her passion.  Something in her draws Rose in, and the story unfolds as the friendship between the two develops. The great thing about the book is all the twists and turns that it takes.  While I really enjoyed the period writing (clothing, speakeasies, and attitudes discussed, among many other things), what was the most intriguing was seeing the story between the two girls develop.  As they grew closer, back-stories revealed themselves, and really drew the reader in.  Rose writes the book as a memoir of sorts, reflecting on the time in her past life when she was so charmed by Odalie that she would do anything for her - even things which would otherwise be against her own, much more reserved nature. While it's been years since the sort of thing has happened to me, I also really identified with the idea of having a friend you idolize, who makes you want to be more adventurous, more like her.  I recall having friends like that in high school, who I wanted to be just like.  But I was never bold or pretty enough, in my own eyes.  I could really understand why Rose latched onto Odalie to such an extent, although of course I am glad to say that, ultimately, my obsession or devotion would not have gone quite as far as Rose's (I hope). This book reminded me quite a bit of the musical Chicago, actually - a brassy, brazen woman who epitomizes the flapper ideal of the era, taking a mouse under her wing and transforming her into a much bolder woman, herself.  I'm sure it helps that the time periods of both pieces pretty much coincided. I would definitely recommend this book.  Really just a fun read for all the mind games it plays, if nothing else! Yours, Arianna P.S. Check out what Amber had to say about this book!

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The Other Typist

The Other Typist Suzanne Rindell 4/5	First Sentence "They said the typewriter would unsex us."
Publisher's Description: New York City, 1924: the height of Prohibition and the whole city swims in bathtub gin. Rose Baker is an orphaned young woman working for her bread as a typist in a police precinct on the lower East Side. Every day Rose transcribes the confessions of the gangsters and murderers that pass through the precinct. While she may disapprove of the details, she prides herself on typing up the goriest of crimes without batting an eyelid. But when the captivating Odalie begins work at the precinct Rose finds herself falling under the new typist's spell. As do her bosses, the buttoned up Lieutenant Detective and the fatherly Sergeant. As the two girls' friendship blossoms and they flit between the sparkling underworld of speakeasies by night, and their work at the precinct by day, it is not long before Rose's fascination for her new colleague turns to obsession. But just who is the real Odalie, and how far will Rose go to find out?
Dear Reader, "The Other Typist" is one of those novels that holds your interest mostly from all the small details the author has included. Rindell does a lovely job of describing things that almost feels like you're watching this as a movie instead of reading it. She brings you to New York during prohibition and does this with a variety of settings. The main character, Rose (a typist for a NYC precinct) befriends a rebellious girl, Odalie (the new typist at the precinct) who enchants Rose so much she finds herself experiencing things she would have never before had she not met Odalie. The story revolves around the prohibition era, right when the Volstead Act was enacted to ban the sale and use of alcohol. This alone brings the level to an exciting and dangerous time, history that is hard to imagine. The main character is a goodie two-shoes that wouldn't even think of picking up a drink or visiting a speakeasy... that is... until she meets Odalie. For whatever reason she becomes enamored with Odalie and can't seem to steer clear of her crazy ways. I still haven't figured out why this is and this might be my biggest gripe with the book and maybe the author wanted you to come to your own conclusion. Without giving away too much of their escapades, we follow these two in the rich underworld of the speakeasies and get to feel what it would be like to disobey the law with a simple cocktail. Prohibition and speakeasies are only the icing on top of this novel though. You may think reading about a precinct typist might sound boring but you'd be very wrong. It made me look at this profession in a totally different way and I now realize how much power they actually held. This was not a profession for men but the typist of a precinct made society think you had to be a woman with a very strong stomach. I never really understood why, back in the day, everyone thought or depicted females as such delicate creatures? What makes a female from that decade so fragile? I believe society had a hand in this with a little push to force girls to act this way, even if they didn't fit that mold. Rindell shows us two very strong female characters that have extremely different personalities but don't seem fragile at all. I love this about the book! Overall I give this a four out of five for the informative imaginings and the extremely descriptive and vivid colors the author gives everything in this book. I would think anyone who likes a little history with a fun plot line would enjoy this. Happy Reading, AmberBug P.S. Check out what Arianna thought of this book!

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