• About this blog

feastonbooksblog

~ Time is precious – read the best first

feastonbooksblog

Category Archives: Biographical fiction

The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

08 Friday Jul 2022

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biographical fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction, United States

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

African American women librarians, Belle da Costa Greene, historical fiction, passing (identity)

A remarkable novel about J. P. Morgan’s personal librarian, Belle da Costa Greene, the Black American woman who was forced to hide her true identity and pass as white in order to leave a lasting legacy that enriched our nation, from New York Times bestselling authors Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. (Amazon)

“Benedict, who is white, and Murray, who is African American, do a good job of depicting the tightrope Belle walked, and her internal conflict from both sides—wanting to adhere to her mother’s wishes and move through the world as white even as she longed to show her father she was proud of her race. Like Belle and her employer, Benedict and Murray had almost instant chemistry, and as a result, the book’s narrative is seamless. And despite my aversion to the passing trope, I became hooked.”—NPR

“This fictional account of Greene’s life feels authentic; the authors bring to life not only Belle but all those around her. An excellent piece of historical fiction that many readers will find hard to put down.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“Every element of this blockbuster historical novel is compelling and revelatory, beginning with the bedazzling protagonist based with awestruck care on Belle da Costa Greene… a novel of enthralling drama, humor, sensuality, and insight. … [a] resounding tale of a brilliant and resilient woman defying sexism, classism, and racism during the brutality of Jim Crow. Benedict and Murray do splendidly right by Belle in this captivating and profoundly enlightening portrayal.”—Booklist (starred review)

Find this book large print audio cd’s playaway

Leaving Coy’s Hill by Katherine A. Sherbrooke

07 Monday Feb 2022

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biographical fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction, United States

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

19th century, history, Lucy Stone 1818-1893, women abolitionists, women's rights

“What could be more timely than Sherbrooke’s gorgeously fictionalized and page-turning account of Lucy Stone, the first woman in Massachusetts to earn a college degree, to keep her maiden name, and to fight for women’s rights?  A stunning look at timeless issues—how we navigate motherhood and career, marriage or staying single, and how we create change in a world that seems to have gone crazy, all told through the lens of one extraordinary heroine.” — Caroline Leavitt, New York Times Bestselling author of Pictures of You

“A staunch activist in the fight for women’s rights who got her start among New England’s abolitionists, [Lucy Stone] has been overshadowed in the historical record by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony…Katherine A. Sherbrooke’s Leaving Coy’s Hill aims to revive interest in Stone by dramatizing her dogged attempts to support herself and her causes on the lecture circuit — and her equally dogged attempts to reconcile her professional career with motherhood and a “marriage of equals”. ― New York Times Book Review

“Leaving Coy’s Hill is an important book about an important woman, abolitionist and suffragist, Lucy Stone. Sherbrooke paints a vivid portrait of this often forgotten American figure who inspired a nation to think differently about women’s rights. Unforgettable and unputdownable, this novel will remain in memory long after the last page has been turned.” — Crystal King, author of FEAST OF SORROW

“A powerful and stirring portrait of one of the most influential women in the equal rights movement. Thanks to Sherbrooke’s skillful storytelling, Lucy Stone is no less inspiring today than she was 170 years ago. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself ready to march!” — Isla Morley, author of THE LAST BLUE

Find this book audio cd’s

Code Name Hélène: A Novel by Ariel Lawhon

19 Friday Mar 2021

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biographical fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Nancy Wake 1912-2011, spy, spy story, World War 1939-1945

This engaging work of historical fiction is based on the real life figure of Nancy Wake. Raised in Australia, she works as a freelance journalist in Europe during the 1930s and falls in love with a French man. As the country enters World War II, Nancy is drawn into the French Resistance, where she uses her intelligence, strength, and wit to go on several dangerous missions. Nancy Wake — who went by many code names besides Hélène — lived an incredible life, reflected in this page-turner.

“Fascinating”
—NEW YORK POST “REQUIRED READING”

“A spellbinding work of historical fiction. . . [and] one of the most sensual romance novels you’ve ever read. . . She is real, this really did happen is the mantra you may find yourself repeating, in awe of every page.”—BOOKPAGE, *STARRED*

“Magnificent. . . Lawhon carries us into the heart of the French resistance [and] into the mind of a badass heroine with uncanny instincts who takes on the Nazis and men’s arrogant sexism with uncommon bravado. . . Even long after the last page is turned, this astonishing story of Wake’s accomplishments will hold readers in its grip.”—BOOKLIST, *STARRED*

“Readers will be transfixed by the story of a woman who should be a household name.”–LIBRARY JOURNAL *STARRED*

Find this book large print

Hamnet: A Novel of the Plague by Maggie O’Farrell

19 Friday Feb 2021

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biographical fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Anne Hathaway 1556?-1623, Hamnet Shakespeare 1585-1596, William Shakespeare 1564-1616

The title of Hamnet refers to William Shakespeare’s son, who died as a child and may have served as the inspiration for Hamlet. However, Shakespeare himself is not the main character of this novel, and is never even referred to by name. Instead, Shakespeare’s wife Agnes (commonly known as Anne) is the main character of this story. She is a fascinating character, and the book follows her as a young woman into adulthood, as she fights against society’s expectations, marries, and becomes a mother. I have loved all of Maggie O’Farrell’s books, and this was no exception. 

Hamnet was recently awarded the UK’s Women’s Prize for Fiction.

“Magnificent and searing… A family saga so bursting with life, touched by magic, and anchored in affection that I only wish it were true. Of all the stories that argue and speculate about Shakespeare’s life, about whether he even wrote his own plays, here is a novel that matches him with a woman overwhelmingly more than worthy… I nearly drowned at the end of this book, and at some other spots besides. It would be wise to keep some tissues handy… So gorgeously written that it transports you from our own plague time right into another and makes you glad to be there.”
—The Boston Globe

“This striking, painfully lovely novel captures the very nature of grief.”—Booklist [starred review]

“A tour de force…Although more than 400 years have unspooled since Hamnet Shakespeare’s death, the story O’Farrell weaves in this moving novel is timeless and ever-relevant… O’Farrell brilliantly turns to historical fiction to confront a parent’s worst nightmare: the death of a child…Hamnet vividly captures the life-changing intensity of maternity in its myriad stages — from the pain of childbirth to the unassuagable grief of loss. Fierce emotions and lyrical prose are what we’ve come to expect of O’Farrell. But with this historical novel she has expanded her repertoire, enriching her narrative with atmospheric details of the sights, smells, and relentless daily toil involved in running a household in Elizabethan England — a domestic arena in which a few missing menstrual rags on washday is enough to alarm a mother of girls.”–NPR

Find this book

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

25 Monday Jan 2021

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in 20th century, Biographical fiction, Fiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

boys and mothers, Glasgow, Scotland, women alcoholics, working class families

WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD

I only caught a part of the author’s interview on NPR describing his own Glasgow upbringing in the 90’s with a mother much like Alice.  I rushed to pick up this memoir only to realize it is a novel.  It will be clear to any reader that only someone who actually walked in Hugh “Shuggie” Bain’s shoes, could have written this debut book. Masterful writing.  Eye-opening. After reading this, some might even make better decisions about alcohol…..

“Every now and then a novel comes along that feels necessary and inevitable. I’ll never forget Shuggie and Agnes or the incredibly detailed Glasgow they inhabit. This is the rare contemporary novel that reads like an instant classic. I’ll be thinking and talking about Shuggie Bain―and teaching it―for quite some time.”―Garrard Conley, New York Times-bestselling author of Boy Erased

“There’s no way to fake the life experience that forms the bedrock of Douglas Stuart’s wonderful Shuggie Bain. No way to fake the talent either. Shuggie will knock you sideways.”―Richard Russo, author of Chances Are

“Compulsively readable . . . In exquisite detail, the book describes the devastating dysfunction in Shuggie’s family, centering on his mother’s alcoholism and his father’s infidelities, which are skillfully related from a child’s viewpoint . . . As it beautifully and shockingly illustrates how Shuggie ends up alone, this novel offers a testament to the indomitable human spirit. Very highly recommended.”―Library Journal (starred review)

Find this book audio cd’s

The Flight Portfolio by Julie Orringer

06 Friday Sep 2019

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biographical fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

France, Jewish refugees, Varian Fry 1907-1967, World War II 1939-1945

Her previous novel, The Invisible Bridge, is one of my all-time favorites. This one is based on the diaries of Varian Fry and again Orringer brings to light another WWII inspiring episode of history where Fry attempts to save the works and lives of Jewish artists.  Part history, part love story drenched in the glorious backdrop of 1940’s Marseille – superb.

“No book this year could possibly compare with The Flight Portfolio: ambitious, meticulous, big-hearted, gorgeous, historical, suspenseful, everything you want a novel to be.”
—Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize winning author of Less

“Sympathetic and prodigiously ambitious…scrupulous… Her landscapes regularly rise to a Keatsian sensuousness.  Her Marseille breathes as a city breathes…a thriller.”
—New York Times Book Review, cover review

“Varian Fry lit a small, bright lamp in a world of darkness, and in the deft hands of Julie Orringer—under the spell of her masterful prose, her feeling portraiture, her classic spy-thriller plotting and her vivid recreation of that beautiful and terrible world—I found the radiance of Fry’s courage, flawed humanity, and steadfast resistance shedding an inexhaustible light on our own ever-darkening time.”—Michael Chabon

Find this book               large print               audio cd’s

Love and Ruin by Paula McLain

05 Monday Nov 2018

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biographical fiction, Historical Fiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

author's spouses, Cuba, Ernest Hemingway, Martha Gelhorn, Spain, United States, war correspondents, women journalists, World War II

What woman could hold her own and be married to Ernest Hemingway?  Meet Hemingway’s third wife, Martha Gelhorn, who did become one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century.  I have read both The Paris Wife and Circling the Sun, but McLain’s novel portraying this stormy, passionate marriage is by far the best of the three.

“Wonderfully evocative . . . This is historical fiction at its best, and today’s female readers will be encouraged by Martha, who refuses to be silenced or limited in a time that was harshly repressive for women.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“Propulsive . . . highly engaging . . . McLain does an excellent job portraying a woman with dreams who isn’t afraid to make them real, showing [Gellhorn’s] bravery in what was very much a man’s world. Her work around the world . . . is presented in meticulous, hair-raising passages. . . . The book is fueled by her questing spirit, which asks, Why must a woman decide between being a war correspondent and a wife in her husband’s bed?”—The New York Times Book Review

Find this book              large print                audio cd’s                 playaway

The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict

31 Wednesday May 2017

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biographical fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Albert Einstein 1879-1955, Germany, marriage, Mileva Maric Einstein 1875-1948, Switzerland, women physicists

The Big Library Read (BLR) @ OverDrive announces the winning title!  The Other Einstein will be available for unlimited access on the OverDrive-powered website between June 12-26, 2017. And, of course, you can pick up a copy at your library:

“Mileva “Mitza” Marić has always been a little different from other girls. Rather than thinking about marriage, she’s studying physics with only male students trying to outdo her clever calculations. And then fellow student Albert Einstein takes an interest in her, and the world turns sideways. Theirs becomes a partnership of the mind and of the heart, but there might not be room for more than one genius in a marriage.”

“In her compelling novel… Benedict makes a strong case that the brilliant woman behind [Albert Einstein] was integral to his success, and creates a rich historical portrait in the process.” – Publishers Weekly

“Benedict’s debut novel carefully traces Mileva’s life-from studious schoolgirl to bereaved mother-with attention paid to the conflicts between personal goals and social conventions. An intriguing… re-imagining of one of the strongest intellectual partnerships of the 19th century.” – Kirkus

Find this book                     large print                     audio cd’s

Subscribe

  • Entries (RSS)
  • Comments (RSS)

Archives

  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014

Categories

  • 20th century
  • action
  • adventure
  • anecdotes
  • Biographical fiction
  • Biography
  • case studies
  • chronically ill
  • Comedy
  • crimes against
  • cuisine
  • detective
  • Drama
  • England
  • fantasy
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation
  • Fiction
  • Future
  • Graphic novel
  • Historical Fiction
  • History
  • homicide investigation
  • Horror
  • Humor
  • London
  • magic
  • meaning of life
  • memoir
  • murder
  • murder and investigation
  • mystery
  • nature
  • Non-fiction
  • poetry
  • romance
  • Science fiction
  • Sports
  • suspense
  • thriller
  • Travel
  • True crime
  • Uncategorized
  • United States
  • western

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
Weston Public Library 781 786 6150

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • feastonbooksblog
    • Join 142 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • feastonbooksblog
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...