Review: The Girls In The Picture

The Girls In The Picture

by Melanie Benjamin

Why did you choose this book? I’ve enjoyed previous novels by this author

When did you read this book? October 2017

Who should read this book? Fans of Hollywood history  

Source: NetGalley

My Rating:  ✰✰✰✰     4 Stars

Here is a synopsis of The Girls In The Picture from Goodreads

An intimate portrait of the close friendship and powerful creative partnership between two of Hollywood’s earliest female superstars: Frances Marion and Mary Pickford. An enchanting new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Swans of Fifth Avenue and The Aviator’s Wife.

Hollywood, 1914. Frances Marion, a young writer desperate for a break, meets “America’s Sweetheart,” Mary Pickford, already making a name for herself both on and off the screen with her golden curls and lively spirit. Together, these two women will take the movie business by storm.

Mary Pickford becomes known as the “Queen of the Movies”—the first actor to have her name on a movie marquee, and the first to become a truly international celebrity. Mary and her husband, Douglas Fairbanks, were America’s first Royal Couple, living in a home more famous that Buckingham Palace. Mary won the first Academy Award for Best Actress in a Talkie and was the first to put her hand and footprints in Grauman’s theater sidewalk. Her annual salary in 1919 was $625,000—at a time when women’s salaries peaked at $10 a week. Frances Marion is widely considered one of the most important female screenwriters of the 20th century, and was the first writer to win multiple Academy Awards. The close personal friendship between the two stars was closely linked to their professional collaboration and success.

This is a novel about power: the power of women during the exhilarating early years of Hollywood, and the power of forgiveness. It’s also about the imbalance of power, then and now, and the sacrifices and compromises women must make in order to succeed. And at its heart, it’s a novel about the power of female friendship.

My Review

I’m going to start out my 2018 blogging year with a long overdue review for a book I read earlier last fall. The publication date for The Girls In The Picture  is approaching, so it seems like a good time to blog my review!

I really enjoyed this one! It hit all the marks for me for good historical fiction: I learned something new, I was inspired to do some online research to learn more, the author gave some insight into what was fact and what was imagined, and not least important,the story was interesting!

This is a story of the friendship of Mary Pickford, the first ‘movie star’ and Frances Marion, an early Hollywood screenwriter, known as a ‘scenarist’ at that time. While I’d heard of Mary Pickford and her husband, Douglas Fairbanks, I knew very little about them, and I don’t think I’d ever heard of Frances Marion. The story of their friendship, with its ups and downs, was engaging, but I may have liked the glimpse into the early days of film-making even more! As the story started, ‘Hollywood’ was not even a thing, and movie making consisted of filming silent movies. Anyone with equipment could film a movie and call themselves a movie studio. It must have been similar to YouTube today! There were no movie stars, but merely interchangeable rosters of actors. Of course as we know, an industry evolved and changed, with major movie studios appearing complete with a stable of stars.

One thing that apparently has not changed from the early days is the way the power was held by men and the use of the ‘casting couch’. The Harry Weinstein story broke as I was in the middle of this novel, which made the novel and Mary’s role in early Hollywood seem all that much more relevant!

One thing I really appreciated about this book was that, while it was not a ‘can’t-put-it-down’ read for me, it was very engaging. I had to put it down for a couple of weeks at one point, simply because I had two reserves come in from the library that I had to finish for book clubs. Usually when I put a book aside it is very difficult for me to get into the book again, and I often have to go back to the beginning and start over. This time however, I picked the book up and it was as if those 2 weeks hadn’t happened. I had not trouble reconnecting with the story and the characters. While I don’t recommend setting it aside, the book is engaging enough that you will be able to read it and enjoy it is small pieces if necessary.

You can visit the author’s webpage to learn more. Be sure to ‘The World of the Girls in the Picture’ and the author had compiled for background information about the book! I’ve not found a discussion guide yet, but expect that one will appear soon.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book for review purposes.

Review: The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb

The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb

by Melanie Benjamin

Random House Publishing Group Hardcover

ISBN 9780385344159

424 pages

Release Date: July 26, 2011

Available for purchase 

AMAZON          BARNES AND NOBLE

Why did you choose this book? I have heard this book mentioned many times since it was released, and had not decided if I wanted to read it. But when it was on the front shelf in the library and I saw the beautiful cover, I picked it up and took it home!

When did you read this book? September 2011

Who should read this book? read of historical fiction, readers interested in 19th century views of disabilites

Here is a synopsis of ‘The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb' from Goodreads, where it rates  3.78 stars.

“Never would I allow my size to define me. Instead, I would define it.”

She was only two-foot eight-inches tall, but her legend reaches out to us more than a century later. As a child, Mercy Lavinia “Vinnie” Bump was encouraged to live a life hidden away from the public. Instead, she reached out to the immortal impresario P. T. Barnum, married the tiny superstar General Tom Thumb in the wedding of the century, and transformed into the world’s most unexpected celebrity.

Here, in Vinnie’s singular and spirited voice, is her amazing adventure—from a showboat “freak” revue where she endured jeering mobs to her fateful meeting with the two men who would change her life: P. T. Barnum and Charles Stratton, AKA Tom Thumb. Their wedding would captivate the nation, preempt coverage of the Civil War, and usher them into the White House and the company of presidents and queens. But Vinnie’s fame would also endanger the person she prized most: her similarly-sized sister, Minnie, a gentle soul unable to escape the glare of Vinnie’s spotlight.

A barnstorming novel of the Gilded Age, and of a woman’s public triumphs and personal tragedies, The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb is the irresistible epic of a heroine who conquered the country with a heart as big as her dreams—and whose story will surely win over yours.

My Review

This is the fictionalized story of Lavinia Warren Stratton, known as Mrs. Tom Thumb to her audiences. At the beginning the book was somewhat slow moving story, especially during Vinnie’s early years before she entered show biz. However, it was an interesting story. The story did not have as much historical detail as other ‘historical’ novels. There was a bit of history to put the times into context, such as the start of the Civil War, and many real people from that time were mentioned; General Grant, the Vanderbilts, President and Mrs. Lincoln. But most of this history was mentioned in passing. However, one thing the book did well was give insight into how differently people thought about people with ‘disabilities’ in the late nineteenth century. The idea of dwarfs, giantesses, bearded ladies, etc, being displayed as ‘oddities’ seems so wrong to audiences of today, but audiences of the nineteenth century saw these people merely as ‘entertainment’! It was also interesting for me to read about things that I’d had some idea about, without realizing it. For example, I did not know of Lavina Warren Stratton, or of General Tom Thumb. BUt I remember hearing of Thumbelina and Tom Thumb in fairly tales. I’d always thought they’d married and lived happily ever after, but when I look up fairy tales, I see that Thumbelina is Hans Christian Andersen and Ton Thumb is Grimm, so perhaps at one time I’d been told of this real-life ‘fairy tale’.

One thing I have learned since reading this book is that the real Vinnie did attempt to write an autobiography, but that it was very ‘dry’; a simple recounting of facts with little or no insight into her thoughts and emotions. The author did an excellent job of taking these basic facts and building a story around it, using her imagination to give Vinnie thoughts and emotions. That was something I had to keep reminding myself of while I was reading, because the Vinnie of this story is not a very likable character. At the beginning of the story, she is a hard worker, and considerate. But as the story develops, she becomes very self-centered, thinking highly of herself and using people for her own benefit. The biggest example is when she marries Charles as a career move. She never gives Charles love, and barely tolerates him. Ironically, she does not like Barnum’s second wife, though she has never met her, and believes she married Barnum only for the money and status it brings her. And as Barnum points out to her, she only comes to him when she needs something and never treats Barnum as a true friend. She is also unable to see herself honestly. She overinflates her singing talent in her mind and believes she has a successful career because of those talents. She does not seem to be aware that to her audience, she is no different than the sideshow oddities. Though she is able to see the value in adding her sister, also a little person, and other little people to the act, she does not see the her ‘littleness’ is what brings people to see her! Even though Vinnie, the character, is not the most likable character I have met, this telling of her story is a good read!

My Rating:  ★★★+ 3-1/2 Stars

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine in which we spotlight upcoming releases that we are eagerly anticipating!