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I love historical fiction and there were two books that I was looking forward to reading this year but I couldn't find the time to read them - that is until now! Did you miss these two wonderful books or they are buried in your TBR pile? Why not read them now, too.
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Becoming Madam Secretary by Stephanie Dray
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| March 2024; Berkley; 978-0593437056 audio, ebook, print (528 pages); biographical fiction |
You may not know the name Frances Perkins, but you will recognize many of her efforts.
I love biographical fiction, particularly when it features a female that I know little (if anything) about. It is why I was so excited to read Stephanie Dray's new novel Becoming Madam Secretary. While it has languished in my TBR for months, it was every bit as great as I hoped it would be.
I don't read much historical set before the 1930s, but I have been trying to read more books about the Progressive Era at the turn of the century. I thought this would be a WWII-era novel as that is when Frances Perkins served as the first female presidential cabinet secretary. However, it goes back to the beginning of Perkins's career when she worked in tenement housing while studying for her Ph.D in Economics.
With the upcoming election and the possibility of having our first female president, I think now is the perfect time to read this book if you haven't already. I don't think there are very many people alive today who remember a time when we didn't have programs like OSHA and Social Security and I think it is important to remember why these social programs were fought so hard for and why we need to continue to fight for social protections.
Perkins was a formidable woman who let nothing stop her from doing what was right. She felt it was her Christian duty to help others and her patriotic duty to make sure the American experiment was a success. Again, reading about her life reminded me of why the U.S. was established and the lofty goals that we have yet to fully accomplish.
It is a well-written novel that is engaging and informational. It is perfect for those not ready to take on a fully nonfiction history book for Nonfiction November. It is strongly rooted in the historical record and the author provides a note on when she had to deviate from it. The note also provides more information about Perkins's life that had to be left out of the novel.
Buy Becoming Madam Secretary at Amazon
The Briar Club by Kate Quinn
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| July 2024; William Morrow; 978-0063244740 audio, ebook, print (432 pages); historical fiction |
Washington, D.C., 1950. Everyone keeps to themselves at Briarwood House, a down-at-the-heels all-female boardinghouse in the heart of the nation’s capital, where secrets hide behind white picket fences.
I've read a couple of Kate Quinn's works of historical fiction, but they have been WWII stories (my favorite period to read about). I have started to dabble in books set during the 1950s so I wanted to give her new book The Briar Club a try. Though it came out this summer, I think it would be a great fall read.
While I wasn't exactly sure what the book would be about, though I figured it would feature the Red Scare since that is the only historical event I could think of during the 1950s. I wasn't expecting the intricate mystery that was woven into the story.
The ensemble cast of characters live together in a boarding house in Washington, D.C. Each gets their own section of the book. Most books that have multiple main characters will flip-flop chapters between the characters. Quinn chose to give each character a number of consecutive chapters. At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about this structure. I liked that we got to deep dive into a character, instead of just getting breadcrumbs, but at the same time, I would fall in love with a character and would miss them in later sections. In the end, I felt that this structure worked well with the plot.
This is sort of a dual-timeline story. I won't say much about it because it will give away too much of the mystery plot. For people who don't like dual timelines, it is a very short difference - we stay in the 1950s the whole time. It is more that we are tackling the mystery from both ends (the before it happens and after it happens kind of thing).
I love the characters - well except for Pete and Lena's mother who I think we are supposed to dislike. I loved that one of the female boarders played for the women's baseball league during the war. I haven't read any other book that have included this interesting piece of history. From the blurb, Grace seems to be the central character, but my favorite character is Nora. I think she is the character I most identified with.
A lot of 1950s history is touched on in this book. You will get a good overall view of the decade. I already mentioned the women's baseball league, but the Korean War is touched on. Fliss is married to an Army doctor. The Pillsbury Bake-Off also makes a fun appearance. There are popular television shows like Ozzie and Harriet and I Love Lucy. If you are a pop-culture trivia fan, then you will love all these little snippets. It really brought the decade to life.
If you love books with recipes then this book is right down your alley. There are some really fun recipes and several really good-sounding recipes that I might have to try.
Buy The Briar Club at Amazon
Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.
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