ot summary of this novel would sound like a soap opera, but it is so well-written that the events seem believable and not so wild, crazy or dramatic. I found the msg of this story very moving - how much people can change over the course of a lifetime is truly remarkable. although there were a couple slow moments where the story lagged, I really enjoyed this novel and would recommend it.

This was my favorite book of 2012. Here's my review of it on our staff picks blog: http://blogs.jocolibrary.org/staffpicks/10/2012/carletonb/9601/

This good read covers a span of Am.history to include Orphan Trains of the 1900's to '70's; enlightening. Morality & mores. I like the writing & will look for more from this author. Easy read, goes quickly.

I waited ages to read this book, the accolades were endless. However, I was somewhat disappointed, an O.K. read.

Can't believe I was on the waiting list for awhile, finally get the book in, go and get it, it sits beside my bed, and I DON'T get around to reading it...I must get it returned because others are on the list waiting to read it....BUT I will be back...to write a summary....it seems to be a popular book...

This isn't just a story of two completely different women who are at different stages of their lives experiencing New York. It is so much more. As each one confronts their own personal demons and dreams, the reader is exposed to life in one of the most challenging decades for women - the 1920's. And soon we find that they are not so much different than we are. And the issues are still pushing us to face our own futures. One of the best books about forgiveness and kindness I have read in a while.

Louise Brooks serves as the instigator for the title character to make drastic changes in her life. The story is interesting and nicely written yet you are left thinking the character would have struggled quite a bit more in making changes that while somewhat politically correct today, were considered immoral and illegal at the time they took place. By not showing that struggle more, an opportunity was missed.

I really enjoyed Moriarty's first book The Center of Everything, and while this book was completely different, I enjoyed in in entirely different ways. I thought the writing was lovely, and I appreciated the progression of the characters and the nuanced gray of right vs. wrong and constant change. The weaving in of so many historical elements (orphan trains, World War I, World War II, Louise Brooks, 1920's NYC, and more) added a good deal. I felt the contradictions and lack of consistency in the main character were more representative of a woman with a lot of questions about herself living in changing times rather than a lack of character development. But I like messy--it is real. A great book club book.

I read this book because I'm a Louise Brooks aficionado. The author, Laura Moriarity uses Brooks' story as a tool for the main character who chaperone's her to NY in the summer of '22 for her studies with the famed Denishawn. It's a painlessly enjoyable book but starts to lose steam about 2/3 of the way into it where the story veers off into politically correct chick lit. She gets the facts of Brooks life mostly right, until she doesn't. I don't feel that a 15 year old Louise would say, even drunk, 'I f#$%, I love to f$%^.' Louise Brooks may have lived the life of the ultimate unapologetic sensual pleasure seeker and party girl, but she was never vulgar in her language. As far as the main character, it almost seems unfinished and when she ran out of ideas, she'd fell back on Louise Brooks. By the way, Louise never wrote her memoirs, in fact famously said she'd never write them, a glaring mistake mentioned in the narrative.

Oh, brother. I liked the story at first, and the writing seemed ok. The main character seemed a bit contradictory and not very consistent (or maybe just not very well-developed), but I kept going. I wanted to learn more about her and the flashbacks to her earlier life was interesting enough. However, the book started to unravel about 1/4 of the way in, and then became more and more ridiculous and unbelievable. The main character seemed less believable as an individual, and then when I got to the revelations about her husband, I had had enough. I could only see the rest of the book getting worse, so I quit while I was ahead. It could have been an interesting book, but it just turned into unrealistic, unbelievable nonsense. This wasn't historical fiction, it was a loose sense of the past as seen through modern eyes.