Posts
Synopsis (From Goodreads):
After years of trying to make it as a writer in 1990s New York City, James Smale finally sells his novel to an editor at a major publishing house: none other than Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Jackie--or Mrs. Onassis, as she's known in the office--has fallen in love with James's candidly autobiographical novel, one that exposes his own dysfunctional family. But when the book's forthcoming publication threatens to unravel already fragile relationships, both within his family and with his partner, James finds that he can't bring himself to finish the manuscript.
Jackie and James develop an unexpected friendship, and she pushes him to write an authentic ending, encouraging him to head home to confront the truth about his relationship with his mother. Then a long-held family secret is revealed, and he realizes his editor may have had a larger plan that goes beyond the page...
From the bestselling author of Lily and the Octopus comes a funny, poignant, and highly original novel about an author whose relationship with his very famous book editor will change him forever--both as a writer and a son.
Review:
I first heard about author Steven Rowley when my book club selected his book, Lily and the Octopus, as its monthly choice. Mostly, I enjoyed that book (except for a bizarre sequence on a boat...). Full of insights into the complex world of women, The Editor, is even better.
What I Liked:
Themes:The novel tackles an issue most of us face. How do we see the women who gave birth to us as more than just our mothers? We think we know them, but do we? This is illustrated in the characters of Jacqueline Onassis and James's mother, Aileen. Just as James must find a way to look past the strangeness of working with the legendary Jackie O, he must also try to see his mother as a real person, full of flaws. Actually, it's easy to see the flaws in a person. It's much harder to come to grips with the fact that people are complex. People are not saints or sinners, but a mixture of both.
Characters:
I liked that we only see Jackie as James sees her. We only get glimpses of her life from how he interacts with her, and what she allows him to see. What we do see shows a woman who is so much more than someone's wife, or mother. And isn't that the whole point of the book?
Aileen is also such a complex person. At first it seems strange that she would refuse to read her son's book. But as the novel progresses, we soon find out why this would be so painful. I loved how the book shows, as Jackie says in the book, that women of her generation were once girls with dreams of their own. They wanted far more than marriage and motherhood.
Relationships:
The relationship between James and his boyfriend, Daniel is also complex. While they love each other, both struggle to find ways to support each other without sacrificing their own ambitions. I love that they are truly in this relationship for the long haul.
James relationship with Jackie is also interesting. How does one work with a woman who is so famous? James quickly learns how people are eager to get any juicy information about Jackie. He needs to be careful to guard her privacy if he wants to be around her. But he must also realize that theirs is a purely professional relationship. They are friendly, but are not really friends, however much he would wish otherwise.
James' relationship with his mother is what is central to the book. He can't understand why his mother is so upset that he is writing a book loosely based on his mom. She is appalled that Jackie Onassis is reading about her. Every woman has her secrets, and Aileen has got some whoppers. How will their relationship change when he finds them all out?
Rating:
Release Date: April 2nd, 2019
Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Steven Rowley
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Page Length: 320 Pages
Source: NetGalley
Format: E-Book
Recommendation: This would be a wonderful book club selection. It has so much to say about how the mother-child relationship changes as we age.
0 comments :
Post a Comment