Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk in Our Shared Shelf

Sep 30, 2022 Charlene rated it it was amazing

Such a fun book but also one that will stick in my mind . . . Lillian Boxfish sets out on a New Year's Eve walk through New York City, with memories popping out from her decades of work and life in the city. Lillian was a Macy's advertising copy writer, starting back in the mid-1920s, and the author of several books of light verse but now, in her mid-80s, she knows her style of clever writing and poetry are out of sync with the world of 1984. But, still, she says it is important to stay interest Such a fun book but also one that will stick in my mind . . . Lillian Boxfish sets out on a New Year's Eve walk through New York City, with memories popping out from her decades of work and life in the city. Lillian was a Macy's advertising copy writer, starting back in the mid-1920s, and the author of several books of light verse but now, in her mid-80s, she knows her style of clever writing and poetry are out of sync with the world of 1984. But, still, she says it is important to stay interested in the life around her and she is, as she sets out for a New Year' Eve dinner and then a party, that a young artist friend has invited to her.

The book is about the people and the encounters along the way but also about Lillian's reflections on her career, her marriage (after many years of happy single life), her friendships, her son, and New York itself. She watched the Empire State Building going up, the old Penn Station being torn down, and the Twin Towers are a new addition to the New York skyline when Lillian is taking this long, New Year's walk.

There are so many wonderful quotes in the book from Lillian Boxfish, here are some of my favorites:
"My mother was a woman who took difference as a slight. Anyone not living a life that fit the mold of her own was a personal affront." (p. 3)
"Like many parents in middle age, he (her son) is quick to spot changes in the world, slow to note changes in his own perspective." (p.9)
"It was not that happiness led to humor, but more that humor could lead to happiness." (p.31)
"I mourn the conversations murdered by these (television) juvenile intrusions." (p. 35)
"I spent my first Christmas in the city alone. Alone, but not lonely; in the state of being solitary, but not in the condition of wishing myself otherwise." (p. 44)
"My mind was like a puppy that wouldn't remain on the sidewalk." (p. 135)

Lillian's story is based on the life of Margaret Fishback and feels very authentic -- Kathleen Rooney is a talented writer and she has brought Lillian/Margaret to vibrant life. ...more

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Jun 10, 2018 MJ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Delightful and insightful. 4.5. I picked this up while cutting through an independent bookstore in Wayland Square, Providence, to get from a mind-and-body-nourishing meal with childhood friends to my car parked a block away. I can't resist an independent bookstore and I can seldom resist visiting the "staff picks" with their passionate shelf talkers. Loved the book. And think it's amusing that the author, who lives in Chicago, wrote her own brief 5-star review of the book here on Goodreads on Ap ...more

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May 13, 2017 Laura Spaulding rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc-received-free, audiobooks, book-lovers-never-go-to-bed-alone, reviewed, setting, first-book-group

This is the story of a life, Lillian's life, but it's also the story of New York City in the Twentieth Century.

On New Years Eve, 1984, Lillian Boxfish heads out for a walk and as we follow her through the city we learn her story and the story of the changing city. Lillian shares her story through alternating chapters between episodes in her adult life and 1984 present day. Lillian's life, like any other, has it's ups and downs. From her days as "the highest paid advertising women in America" to ...more

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Dec 16, 2018 Barbara rated it really liked it

Shelves: book-club, fiction, 2018

I really enjoyed this—definitely a love letter to the NYC of the past. Lillian was fascinating, and I loved walking around NYC with her on her New Year’s Eve journey, meeting a cast of wonderful characters along the way. Her past reminiscences are woven together nicely with the present, with the city as more than a backdrop—almost another character itself.

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