Tiffany Girl: A Review (or a Study in Rambling about Great Literature)
So...it's been awhile. To my dear readers, whoever you may be, I am sorry (I feel like I apologize for this a lot...I promise I'll get better!) For those of you who are new to my fantastic little blog world (my words...no one else has ever called it that to my knowledge), welcome!
I'm here to provide a service to you today. I'm solving a problem you may or may not have known you even had! Summer is approaching (not nearly fast enough for my fellow teachers and me), and once all that free time hits, I know one of my first orders of business is my reading list. This is especially important this summer, as I will be doing quite a bit of travelling and always need something to read in the car/plane/train/whatever random transportation I'm using at the moment. For those of you who aren't teachers and are just looking for a great beach read (jealous = me) or pool read (still jealous = me) or backyard-whilst-trying-to-get-some-sort-of-tan read (definitely me), then have I got the book for you!
Meet Tiffany Girl. Be warned, though. Once you open that cover and read those first words, you won't be able to stop until you finish. Trust me, I know. See that medal hanging from the cover? I ran a half-marathon on Saturday in the rain (more on that later!) and then turned around on Sunday and devoured this book. And yes, devoured is a most appropriate adjective. 497 pages in one day. I traded one kind of marathon for another (and my Sunday marathon left my legs in a much less achy state).
Where do I even begin???? How about the cover? You may or may not have noticed the white stripe on the cover stating that this book was an advance copy, uncorrected, and not for sale. The book itself goes on sale May 5 (put it on your calendar, set a reminder on your phone, or click one of the links below to preorder). I have been fortunate enough to be part of the Launch Team set up by the lovely and talented author, Deeanne Gist, and her fantastic team. Basically, 200 other lucky folks and myself were sent early copies, asked to read them, and promote the pants off this book (we'll talk about the appropriateness of this turn of phrase later). Wait...you mean I have to read a book as soon as I get it as quickly as I can and share the experience with others via whatever mode I choose? Can this be my job forever?
Before I begin, I promise, I will keep this spoiler free. Instead of going into details on the plot, I'll touch on some of my favorite aspects of this book.
THE HISTORY
Now, if you are immediately thinking "man, I hate history, forget this," then a) you and I need to have a little chat ASAP and b) get those thoughts out of your head and keep reading for a moment. Set in 1893 in New York City, this story centers around a part of history I knew very little about beforehand. The Tiffany Girls were hired by the Tiffany Company to replace men who had gone on strike at just the time they were needed most. Mr. Tiffany had been commissioned to create a chapel for the Chicago World's Fair and would never have completed it without the Tiffany Girls. Flossie, our heroine, is one of those Girls, and she is also a New Woman. One area of history that has always fascinated me is the suffrage movement, and while Tiffany Girl does not deal directly with the vote, it's heroine is a woman entering the work force during a time when it was not encouraged. The women of this time period were very misunderstood and had to deal with the censure of not only men but also other women. Can you even imagine the strength and courage it would have taken? (And, because these are women who were not allowed to wear trousers, it was very easy to promote the pants off this book...because the Tiffany Girls were wearing dresses! Ha! Get it...anyone? No? Moving on.) Historical fiction often makes people think of dry history textbooks, but Deeanne Gist does a truly wonderful job of pulling you into the era completely. The language, the attitudes of the characters, the detailed descriptions of the clothing and scenery--you're going to feel like you're there, like you're watching it happen before you.
THE CHARACTERS
What a cast! Flossie Jayne, our free-spirited, idealist heroine. Reeve Wilder, our cynical hero. Mrs. Dinwiddie, the lovable voice of reason. Mr. Tiffany, the soft-spoken heir to the Tiffany fortune. Mrs. Driscoll and the other Tiffany Girls: Nan, Aggie, Lulu, Ella, Elizabeth, Louise, Agnes, Lydia, Theresa, Grace, and Mary. The Hollidays, Mr. Nettels, Mr. Oyster, Miss Love, and Mrs. Klausmeyer, the gang from the boardinghouse. Deeanne always creates memorable characters who are easy to love, who you as a reader want to succeed. It's been true in every other book she's written and is no less true here.
THE MESSAGE
There are so many important themes and messages rolling around in this novel that I'm probably going to forget one, but here are the two most important ones in my opinion. First of all, Flossie comes to terms with what just about everyone comes to terms with at some point in their lives. Our parents and family members are often notorious for praising us and showering us with accolades, but each one of us realizes, for better or worse, that we are indeed average. There are far more average people in the world than above average. I could go on a whole rambling/rant on what I see as a 4th grade teacher when it comes to entitlement and ego in children as young as ten, but that's for another day. As I mentioned earlier, I ran a half-marathon this past weekend. I ran it in 2:44:36, which for me, is a great time. I placed 2318 out of 2850ish females. Clearly, I'm not above average in running. I auditioned for a show this summer at the theater I acted in last summer and did not get the part. Clearly, I'm not above average in being suited for that part. Facing our averageness isn't always easy, but it's very important. And I loved the way Flossie handled her existential moment. The second message or theme I want to mention is that of love, friendship, and connection. Our hero, Reeve, struggles with being lonely and connecting with others. He's told by a certain free-spirited magpie that being lonely is a choice. Once he opens himself up to new experiences, however, our Mr. Wilder discovers a part of the world (and a part of himself) he didn't know existed. Love and friendship come from making connections with others and putting oneself out there, from being open to new things and tamping down that fear. It's far easier to not do things and be lonely than it is to step out of your comfort zone, much the way the women of this era were doing. It might have been easier for them to just stay home and raise families and not have careers and give their money to their husbands and not have anything that was really theirs (sorry, end rant), but it wouldn't have been better. Not for themselves personally and not for womankind as a whole. (Although on the feminist vein once again, I LOVED the moment when Flossie posed the question and wondered why every issue had to be for the good of all women or against all women or even related to gender. How very true. Some things must just stand on their own, and I think the world would be a more peaceful place if we didn't have to tie absolutely everything back to an overarching ideal. Again, a post for another day).
Anyway, this has been a rather long post, and I'm sorry about that. BUT I'M REALLY NOT!!! Just do us all a favor and read Tiffany Girl as quickly as you can. Buy a copy, check one out of the library, borrow a friend's, do whatever you have to. Just read it. Pretty please.
Here are some links one might find helpful in those endeavors:
Barnes and Noble
Amazon
Books a Million
Deeanne Gist's Website
Happy reading, all!
~Stay Gold!
I'm here to provide a service to you today. I'm solving a problem you may or may not have known you even had! Summer is approaching (not nearly fast enough for my fellow teachers and me), and once all that free time hits, I know one of my first orders of business is my reading list. This is especially important this summer, as I will be doing quite a bit of travelling and always need something to read in the car/plane/train/whatever random transportation I'm using at the moment. For those of you who aren't teachers and are just looking for a great beach read (jealous = me) or pool read (still jealous = me) or backyard-whilst-trying-to-get-some-sort-of-tan read (definitely me), then have I got the book for you!
Meet Tiffany Girl. Be warned, though. Once you open that cover and read those first words, you won't be able to stop until you finish. Trust me, I know. See that medal hanging from the cover? I ran a half-marathon on Saturday in the rain (more on that later!) and then turned around on Sunday and devoured this book. And yes, devoured is a most appropriate adjective. 497 pages in one day. I traded one kind of marathon for another (and my Sunday marathon left my legs in a much less achy state).
Where do I even begin???? How about the cover? You may or may not have noticed the white stripe on the cover stating that this book was an advance copy, uncorrected, and not for sale. The book itself goes on sale May 5 (put it on your calendar, set a reminder on your phone, or click one of the links below to preorder). I have been fortunate enough to be part of the Launch Team set up by the lovely and talented author, Deeanne Gist, and her fantastic team. Basically, 200 other lucky folks and myself were sent early copies, asked to read them, and promote the pants off this book (we'll talk about the appropriateness of this turn of phrase later). Wait...you mean I have to read a book as soon as I get it as quickly as I can and share the experience with others via whatever mode I choose? Can this be my job forever?
Before I begin, I promise, I will keep this spoiler free. Instead of going into details on the plot, I'll touch on some of my favorite aspects of this book.
THE HISTORY
Now, if you are immediately thinking "man, I hate history, forget this," then a) you and I need to have a little chat ASAP and b) get those thoughts out of your head and keep reading for a moment. Set in 1893 in New York City, this story centers around a part of history I knew very little about beforehand. The Tiffany Girls were hired by the Tiffany Company to replace men who had gone on strike at just the time they were needed most. Mr. Tiffany had been commissioned to create a chapel for the Chicago World's Fair and would never have completed it without the Tiffany Girls. Flossie, our heroine, is one of those Girls, and she is also a New Woman. One area of history that has always fascinated me is the suffrage movement, and while Tiffany Girl does not deal directly with the vote, it's heroine is a woman entering the work force during a time when it was not encouraged. The women of this time period were very misunderstood and had to deal with the censure of not only men but also other women. Can you even imagine the strength and courage it would have taken? (And, because these are women who were not allowed to wear trousers, it was very easy to promote the pants off this book...because the Tiffany Girls were wearing dresses! Ha! Get it...anyone? No? Moving on.) Historical fiction often makes people think of dry history textbooks, but Deeanne Gist does a truly wonderful job of pulling you into the era completely. The language, the attitudes of the characters, the detailed descriptions of the clothing and scenery--you're going to feel like you're there, like you're watching it happen before you.
THE CHARACTERS
What a cast! Flossie Jayne, our free-spirited, idealist heroine. Reeve Wilder, our cynical hero. Mrs. Dinwiddie, the lovable voice of reason. Mr. Tiffany, the soft-spoken heir to the Tiffany fortune. Mrs. Driscoll and the other Tiffany Girls: Nan, Aggie, Lulu, Ella, Elizabeth, Louise, Agnes, Lydia, Theresa, Grace, and Mary. The Hollidays, Mr. Nettels, Mr. Oyster, Miss Love, and Mrs. Klausmeyer, the gang from the boardinghouse. Deeanne always creates memorable characters who are easy to love, who you as a reader want to succeed. It's been true in every other book she's written and is no less true here.
THE MESSAGE
There are so many important themes and messages rolling around in this novel that I'm probably going to forget one, but here are the two most important ones in my opinion. First of all, Flossie comes to terms with what just about everyone comes to terms with at some point in their lives. Our parents and family members are often notorious for praising us and showering us with accolades, but each one of us realizes, for better or worse, that we are indeed average. There are far more average people in the world than above average. I could go on a whole rambling/rant on what I see as a 4th grade teacher when it comes to entitlement and ego in children as young as ten, but that's for another day. As I mentioned earlier, I ran a half-marathon this past weekend. I ran it in 2:44:36, which for me, is a great time. I placed 2318 out of 2850ish females. Clearly, I'm not above average in running. I auditioned for a show this summer at the theater I acted in last summer and did not get the part. Clearly, I'm not above average in being suited for that part. Facing our averageness isn't always easy, but it's very important. And I loved the way Flossie handled her existential moment. The second message or theme I want to mention is that of love, friendship, and connection. Our hero, Reeve, struggles with being lonely and connecting with others. He's told by a certain free-spirited magpie that being lonely is a choice. Once he opens himself up to new experiences, however, our Mr. Wilder discovers a part of the world (and a part of himself) he didn't know existed. Love and friendship come from making connections with others and putting oneself out there, from being open to new things and tamping down that fear. It's far easier to not do things and be lonely than it is to step out of your comfort zone, much the way the women of this era were doing. It might have been easier for them to just stay home and raise families and not have careers and give their money to their husbands and not have anything that was really theirs (sorry, end rant), but it wouldn't have been better. Not for themselves personally and not for womankind as a whole. (Although on the feminist vein once again, I LOVED the moment when Flossie posed the question and wondered why every issue had to be for the good of all women or against all women or even related to gender. How very true. Some things must just stand on their own, and I think the world would be a more peaceful place if we didn't have to tie absolutely everything back to an overarching ideal. Again, a post for another day).
Anyway, this has been a rather long post, and I'm sorry about that. BUT I'M REALLY NOT!!! Just do us all a favor and read Tiffany Girl as quickly as you can. Buy a copy, check one out of the library, borrow a friend's, do whatever you have to. Just read it. Pretty please.
Here are some links one might find helpful in those endeavors:
Barnes and Noble
Amazon
Books a Million
Deeanne Gist's Website
Happy reading, all!
~Stay Gold!
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