Helpful Score: 1
Based on a real friendship of socialites and an author taking place at a different time in the USA. Author Truman Capote made a name for himself after writing Breakfast at Tiffany's and In Cold Blood. His fame gave him a ticket to parties in New York that would introduce him to a group of woman famous in their own right, for being fashionistas and marrying men with wealth and stature. Truman's favorite lady socialite was Babe Paley and he was her favorite as well. This historical fiction author Melanie Benjamin imagined conversations that probably happened within the "Swans". Eventually leading towards the downfall of Truman Capote and the change of what is fame and who has it. .
Melanie Benjamin really has a knack for finding the voice of the people she is writing about. Everything feels so truthful as if she was actually in the room with the characters she wrote about. Since what she is writing about is historical fiction, the characters are real people but the social interactions are imagined by author.
This book did take me a little longer to fall into and really believe the voices. This could also be because it was the first by Melanie Benjamin that I read in ebook format. I find that I do not connect to the story as well as I do with a physical book. I also like to draw out reading the end of her books because they are just so good.
Historical fiction books are good after a reading slump because if it is written well enough you want to read other books about people the book is based on. This is the 4th book by Melanie Benjamin all historical fictions and all have been so enjoyable. I now have to wait for her next one. I hope the wait is not too long.
Melanie Benjamin really has a knack for finding the voice of the people she is writing about. Everything feels so truthful as if she was actually in the room with the characters she wrote about. Since what she is writing about is historical fiction, the characters are real people but the social interactions are imagined by author.
This book did take me a little longer to fall into and really believe the voices. This could also be because it was the first by Melanie Benjamin that I read in ebook format. I find that I do not connect to the story as well as I do with a physical book. I also like to draw out reading the end of her books because they are just so good.
Historical fiction books are good after a reading slump because if it is written well enough you want to read other books about people the book is based on. This is the 4th book by Melanie Benjamin all historical fictions and all have been so enjoyable. I now have to wait for her next one. I hope the wait is not too long.
Helpful Score: 1
This was a book about the rich and famous of the 1950s and their lives. The tale begins with a vignette about swans since the key characters were the most beautiful, wealthy and fashionable women of the time who were friends. And, then they met Truman Capote whose beginnings were far different from theirs. He wanted to be a great writer. He wanted to win the Pulitzer Prize. He wanted to be their friend. And, he was a writer for a time who never won the Pulitzer. He was their friend for a time, too, but he lost his focus and became a writer who flourished on trash about others. However, one of the swans was a kind, caring and loving individual who cherished friendship with all, including Truman. She discovered that he was the one person to whom she could unveil her deepest secrets. But she died. And, Truman mourned it all but especially the loss of this beautiful woman who cared for everyone, whose beauty outshone them all, and whose kindness was neverending.
The author completes the tale with another brief scenario about the swans and how they left Truman behind at the end. If you enjoy stories about the rich and famous you will probably enjoy this book. The people were real but almost all the conversations came from the author's mind after she completed her research and tried to imagine the interaction between the women and Truman Capote. Of course, there are other famous and wealthy people who occupy the background and interact with them all.
The author completes the tale with another brief scenario about the swans and how they left Truman behind at the end. If you enjoy stories about the rich and famous you will probably enjoy this book. The people were real but almost all the conversations came from the author's mind after she completed her research and tried to imagine the interaction between the women and Truman Capote. Of course, there are other famous and wealthy people who occupy the background and interact with them all.
I wasnt sure I loved this, but I do. Its a great approach to telling the story, and its well written and well researched.
Melanie Benjamin writes of The Swans of Fifth Avenue, women who were the symbols of style and wealth in 1960s New York and their "True Heart," author Truman Capote. This historical fiction is a character study of two lonely individuals and a period piece of the lifestyle of the very rich. Beautifully characterized with an exaggerated extravagance that matches the individuals, the book is a delightful introduction to a history I enjoyed researching after reading the fiction.
Read my complete review at: http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2016/01/the-swans-of-fifth-avenue.html
Reviewed based on a publisher's galley received through NetGalley
Read my complete review at: http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2016/01/the-swans-of-fifth-avenue.html
Reviewed based on a publisher's galley received through NetGalley
Melanie Benjamin has written another fascinating fictionalized account of real-life people. This time her focus is on the socialites of Manhattan who set the standards for fashion in the 1950s. The most well known of these women was Babe Paley, an icon of style and beauty. When Truman Capote enters her life, she and her equally fashionable friends became known to him as his "swans."
As their lives intertwine, these women entrust him with their secrets and confidences. Babe is especially vulnerable and convinced that they are true soul mates. Truman is seen as a shallow, manipulative, insecure man whose only loyalty is to his own ego when he betrays the swans, especially Babe, in a despicable, self-serving act that results in his ostracism from their society. Their public images define them, and his betrayal of them is very painful on many levels.
Melanie Benjamin writes the kind of fiction that results in her readers researching all the real-life characters in her books to learn more about them. She is an exceptionally good writer with the skills necessary to blend fiction and fact into an absorbing read. I am grateful to Librarything to read this book as an ARC.
As their lives intertwine, these women entrust him with their secrets and confidences. Babe is especially vulnerable and convinced that they are true soul mates. Truman is seen as a shallow, manipulative, insecure man whose only loyalty is to his own ego when he betrays the swans, especially Babe, in a despicable, self-serving act that results in his ostracism from their society. Their public images define them, and his betrayal of them is very painful on many levels.
Melanie Benjamin writes the kind of fiction that results in her readers researching all the real-life characters in her books to learn more about them. She is an exceptionally good writer with the skills necessary to blend fiction and fact into an absorbing read. I am grateful to Librarything to read this book as an ARC.
