From the Bookshelf of Our Shared Shelf…
Find A Copy At
Group Discussions About This Book
No group discussions for this book yet.
What Members Thought
A quick glance at Laura Moriarty's bibliography and you know she did quite a bit of research for this novel and it shows. The setting, the feeling of the entire novel rings true. Featured here is of course the infamous Louise Brooks, the silent movie actress, notorious for her promiscuity, drinking, essentially for her scandalous behavior, and for her bob cut, the iconic hair of the 1920s. But this book isn't solely about her. Rather it's about her fictional chaperone during one summer in New Yo
...more
Though I was uncertain about this book at times, The Chaperone finally wrapped up into something that I appreciated and thought worth reading. My initial frustration came from the span the book covers. From the title and my memories of the summary, I thought the book would deal only with the summer in which an older mid-Western lady chaperoned a wild teenage dancer on a trip to New York City. Much happens that summer and then....decades follow. What, it's not over yet?!
The book begins during th ...more
The book begins during th ...more
I'm truly interested in the post WWI/pre WW2 era of silent film history, and the women's movement, and I was really excited to read this title. Louise Brooks is also a fascinating character from that era of film, and it was really interesting to see a fictionalized, but supremely well researched, story about her last summer in the shadow of normalcy.
I also really clung to main character Cora, the chaperone whose filter we see all of Louise's actions through. She is a strong, stubborn but tender ...more
I also really clung to main character Cora, the chaperone whose filter we see all of Louise's actions through. She is a strong, stubborn but tender ...more
Hmmm. This is a hard one to review. I adored the first two acts. They were poignant, well written, and quietly gripping. This is what I would call a quiet novel- nothing particularly dramatic occurs and yet the story itself pulls you in and steadily develops into an astoundingly moving account of one woman's 1920s life.
The problem comes in the final act of the novel. I feel like the author wanted to do too much, cover too much time, and too many historical events. The final third felt like a jum ...more
The problem comes in the final act of the novel. I feel like the author wanted to do too much, cover too much time, and too many historical events. The final third felt like a jum ...more
what a wonderful book. I adored it and I hope it stays with me for a long time.
Read by Elizabeth McGovern who does a wonderful job. Louise Brooks is tangentially a character in the book but has a big impact on the direction of the life of the title character, Cora Carlyle. Historical fiction that shines on the light on the changes in mores that so rapidly occurred in the last 100 years.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Really liked this one.
Loved this book!
Mar 07, 2012
Heidi
added it
Mar 28, 2012
Amy
marked it as to-read
May 18, 2012
Liza
marked it as to-read
Jun 03, 2012
Marnie
added it
Aug 16, 2012
Jennifer
marked it as to-read
Aug 21, 2012
Tiff
marked it as to-read
Jun 26, 2015
Lena Juncaj
marked it as to-read
Aug 29, 2015
Shaundrika
marked it as to-read
Sep 20, 2016
Shafina Khabani
marked it as to-read
Jun 07, 2017
Sara
marked it as to-read
Apr 16, 2020
Laura
marked it as to-read
