Tag: Historical fiction

Q&A With the Author of HORSE SHOW, Jess Bowers

BonnieReadsAndWrites4 Comments

Recently I did a review of HORSE SHOW for The Historical Novel Society. You can find my blog post containing the review, the author’s bio, and purchase links here.

Jess was kind enough to do a Q&A with me as well, and you can find it below.

Bonnie:  Hi Jess and thanks so much for taking the time to answer my questions.

Bonnie:  Horse Show is a collection of short stories that include horses in some way.  What inspired you to put this collection together?

Jess: Well, the title, Horse Show, is a bit of a pun—each story in the book includes an equine and a “show” or spectacle of some kind, whether that’s a movie, a 19th century stage show, or a woman having her horse tell fortunes in her backyard. That was really my inspiration—the many ways we put this species on display throughout American history.

Bonnie:  One of my favorites, Two on a Horse, is set on the Steeplechase Ride at Coney Island.   This was a highly dangerous and popular ride in the late 19th and early 20th Century.  I became interested in this ride after reading about it in another novel.  What inspired you to place the story here?

Jess: I first saw the Steeplechase in action while watching Ric Burns’ excellent American Experience documentary about Coney Island. Once I learned that there weren’t any seatbelts or brakes on the mechanical horses, and that a lot of early amusement park attractions were designed to create compromising situations between women and men, I thought about all the different kinds of women who would have ridden the Steeplechase, and all the ways that the ride could become a nexus for danger as well as empowerment.  

Bonnie:  Do you have a favorite story in the collection and why?

Jess: I’m fond of “Based on a True Story” because it really captures my sense of humor, in addition to pushing the boundaries of what a story featuring a horse can be, while questioning why there’s a horse in the story at all. Saying much more would spoil the surprise of reading it, though…!

Bonnie:  Many of the stories highlight the abuse of horses in some way.  I know I learned a lot more about this topic when reading your book.  Has this always been a topic you wanted to share with the world?  And have there been improvements in the treatment of horses in the present day?

Jess:  As a lifelong equestrian and animal enthusiast, the anthropocentric way humans approach and exploit other beings, defining what it is to be “human” in opposition to other creatures, or claiming dominion over them and their habitats, has always bothered me deeply. Just as an anti-war book must contain war, Horse Show includes animal abuse to call attention to its inhumanity. While I do think strides have been made in terms of better understanding horses, institutionalized equine abuse continues, from Thoroughbred racing’s questionable breeding and training practices to less publicized situations such as the ongoing abuse of Tennessee Walking Horses for “big lick” competitions, where horses are cruelly mistreated to achieve a specific high-stepping walk, all in the name of “tradition.” Sadly, many humans still see horses as tools or machines or toys, rather than sentient beings who suffer and experience trauma just as we do.

Bonnie:  Horse Show is your first book, although some or all of the stories were published individually.  For the new writers who read this blog, how would you describe your journey to get published and what advice do you have for them?

Jess: I knew that the stories were good, and if I could place them individually in reputable, well-respected literary magazines, it would strengthen the collection’s case once I was ready to approach presses. Lots of writers I admire constructed their debut story collections this way. Publishing is kind of like rolling a snowball downhill. Each story you place, each contest you’re a runner-up for packs more snow onto the ball you’ve got rolling, and eventually you create an avalanche. Be careful about where you send your work. Aim for the most prestigious publications you can—those are the bylines that make publishers and agents e-mail you asking to see more work. And enter contests! That’s how Santa Fe Writers Project acquired Horse Show, after it made the longlist for their annual contest. Lots of great small presses find books that way.

Bonnie:  I have become a fan of your work after reading Horse Show.  Are you working on another book?

Jess: I am! While researching Horse Show, I developed a folder of “strange animal happenings” that had nothing to do with horses but tickled my brain. So, my next book is throwing the barn doors open to welcome in all kinds of obscure creatures from history. So far, there’s a wombat, a snake, some dogs, and Nikola Tesla’s favorite pigeon.

Bonnie:  Let’s go beyond the bio.  Tell us something about yourself that we wouldn’t know just from reading your bio.

Jess: I really love swimming, so much so that I’m always the first one to kick my shoes off and jump into random bodies of water. No swimsuit? No problem. Cold? I don’t care! Pools, creeks, fountains, holding ponds…I’m like a badly behaved golden retriever whenever water is involved.

Bonnie:  Thanks so much, Jess, for answering my questions today!

Remember to check out HORSE SHOW! It was an amazing read.

Book Review: All We Thought We Knew by Michelle Shocklee

BonnieReadsAndWrites8 Comments

Mattie Taylor arrives back in Tullahoma, Tennessee in 1969 to see her dying mother before it is too late.  She left her parents’ horse farm in anger a year ago after her twin brother Mark was killed in Vietnam. Mattie blamed her father for his death, as he had not tried to keep Mark from volunteering to go to war.  Her brother’s best friend Nash McCallum is now working at the farm.  Nash had joined the military the same day as Mark but lost his arm in battle and was sent home.  Maddie’s mother Ava does not have long to live but has requested that Mattie read some old letters Ava has stored away. 

In 1942, Ava has received word of her husband Richard’s death at Pearl Harbor.  She is living on the Delaney farm with her mother-in-law and is grieving for a man she barely knew, as they were only married for a short time.   In need of money and a way to keep busy, Ava applies for and is accepted to a job at a military base, Camp Forrest, which she soon learns is being used to house German immigrants in an “internment camp” situation.  As Ava becomes closer to one of the Germans being held against his will, Gunther Schneider, she faces scorn and judgment for their friendship. 

This heartwarming but sad novel sheds light on the internment of thousands of innocent people in the United States during World War II, as well as the healing and recovery efforts for wounded Vietnam veterans. The themes of grief, forgiveness, and faith are addressed throughout the book. There is also the question, “Why does God allow good people to suffer?”  The revelation of long-held secrets is heart-touching and compelling.  The main characters are easy to connect with, and the story is enjoyable. Recommend.

I received a free copy of this book from Tyndale House via The Historical Novel Society. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR (FROM HER WEBSITE)

Michelle Shocklee

(In Her Own Words) I have always loved the written word. As far back as I can remember I’ve enjoyed books. My mother, an elementary school teacher, read to my four older siblings and me a lot while we grew up in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains in Santa Fe, New Mexico. After I learned to read on my own, books were part of my daily life. When I walk into a bookstore, I take a deep breath, inhaling that wonderful, unique aroma. Ahhh. (Sorry techies, but ya just can’t do that with a Kindle!)

So it wasn’t a big surprise when I discovered how much I enjoyed writing my own stories. I filled pages of notebooks and eventually computer screens with tales of love, heartbreak, drama and humor. Although I write various genres,
historical settings are my favorite.  

When I’m not writing, editing, or dreaming up new stories, my husband and I work as Estate Caretakers, which means we live and work on beautiful private properties and help the owners with just about any need that comes up! We also enjoy spending time at the beach with our two grown sons and their beautiful wives. 

MICHELLE’S SOCIAL MEDIA: FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | WEBSITE

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple Books | Google | Kobo

Book Review of The Ballad of Mary Kearney and a Q&A with Author Katherine Mezzacappa

BonnieReadsAndWrites9 Comments

*This is a book I reviewed for the February issue of Historical Novels Review.

BOOK REVIEW

Ireland, 1765. When young Mary Kearney is sent to work at Goward Hall, she joins her brother and sister in service and lightens the load of her impoverished father, who has too many mouths to feed. She begins to wait on the very married Lady Mitchelstown, who is involved in a scandalous romance with Lord and Lady Goward’s son James. James eventually arranges for Mary to learn to read and write, and as they become much closer, the outrage of both the upper and lower classes descends upon them. They enter into a secret marriage, but in the eyes of the world, Mary is a mistress, and only a few at the time know that she is James’ wife. And nearby, an evil man waits, determined to ruin Mary for good.

Late 18th to early 19th-century Ireland comes alive in this book, as the characters speak to us from the past in a dialect true to the time. There is a great deal of epistolary work, and it is woven in beautifully. Letters, articles, documents, and diary entries highlight the many voices, bringing each character to life with great effect. The novel begins with the dictated words of Mary’s father, who cannot read or write. The letters contain everything from love to gossip to threats, depending upon the writer. The class differences of the time are highlighted well, and the Catholic versus Protestant conflict is explored. The attempted uprising by the United Irishmen is well researched, and its consequences spill across the page. The captivating love story of James and Mary endures many hardships, including plotting and scheming from wicked people. Honest and intriguing, this gripping saga will transport and inspire you, and it just might break your heart. Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via The Historical Novel Society. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Katherine Mezzacappa is Irish but currently lives in Carrara, between the Apuan Alps and the Tyrrhenian Sea. She is the author of The Maiden of Florence (Fairlight, 2024) and The Ballad of Mary Kearney (Histria Books, 2025). As Katie Hutton, she has published four historical novels with Bonnier Zaffre (2020-2023), The Gypsy Bride, The Gypsy’s Daughter, Annie of Ainsworth’s Mill and The Maid of Lindal Hall. Katherine’s short fiction has been published in a variety of journals worldwide.

Katherine has been the recipient of residencies from the Irish Writers Centre, the Danish Centre for Writers and Translators and (to come) the Latvian Writers House. She also works as a manuscript assessor and as a reader and judge for three fiction competitions. Katherine holds a first degree in History of Art from UEA, an M.Litt. in Eng. Lit. from Durham and a Masters in Creative Writing from Canterbury Christ Church.

Q&A WITH THE AUTHOR

Bonnie:  Hi Katherine. Thanks so much for visiting with us! You mentioned to me that you started The Ballad of Mary Kearney in about 2016.  Can you tell us the story of your initial inspiration for the book and your journey to get it published?

Katherine: That was my second full-length novel (the first can just stay in the drawer…). The inspiration came on a visit to the Gibside estate in northeast England, which had belonged to the Bowes-Lyon family, the Earls of Strathmore. I had done some research on the Bowes’ presence in County Durham while working for a museum in the area, some years previously. Thackeray had worked for John Bowes as his election agent; Bowes had indiscreetly told the novelist the story of his grandmother’s two marriages, which inspired The Luck of Barry Lyndon. I was interested in this woman’s son’s story, however. On the last day of his life, he was carried on a litter into the fashionable church of St George’s, Hanover Square in London, to marry the servant he had been living with for years and with whom he’d had a son (Thackeray’s erstwhile employer). In that parkland, in the front of the Bowes-Lyon chapel, inspired by Palladio’s Villa Rotonda, I ‘saw’ that story, but transposed to my native Ireland. What if an Ascendancy noble in 18c Ireland married his servant, but in secret? He’d be breaking the law, for a start, as he would be Protestant and she would likely be Catholic. And meanwhile, the stormclouds that broke as the United Irishmen rebellion of 1798 were gathering: a rebellion, it’s often forgotten, led by enlightened Protestants.

The book got quite a lot of interest, but no agent nor publisher. However, as it was doing the rounds I was already writing the next book, as I was terrified that if I paused I wouldn’t get back into writing again. That book, as Merripen (later The Gypsy Bride), was longlisted for the Historical Novel Society’s novel prize and was published in 2020. But, I didn’t lose faith in Mary Kearney. It went through a number of redrafts before I realized that the market I really ought to be aiming for was Irish America, so I started submitting in the US and found Histria Books.

Bonnie:  I assume there was a great deal of research required for this book.  How did you approach the research?

Katherine: I read everything relevant that I could get my hands on, starting with William Edward Hartpole Lecky’s magisterial, if biased, A History of Ireland in the Eighteenth Century (five volumes; he earned his statue outside Trinity College Dublin). I absorbed a lot of novels of the period, which explains why some of my book is epistolary, in search of the right ‘voice.’ I also read journals such as: The Leadbeter Papers, written by the Quaker Mary Leadbeter in Co Kildare;  the sometimes highly-coloured memoirs accounts of the Dublin lawyer Jonah Barrington; court proceedings for the trials of the United Irishmen and so on. The late Dr Brian Traynor, formerly the director of the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, was a great help and support.

Bonnie:  The book is set in a time when women, especially poor women, had few rights and few choices. Some authors are tempted to insert modern circumstances and outcomes into their stories.  Was it difficult to stay true to the period while still portraying a strong woman in Mary Kearney, and how important was it to you to do so?

Katherine: It was of crucial importance that I got the context right. Mary’s agency is indeed limited, whether as servant or fine lady (though she never quite feels that she is the latter), so her choices are indeed circumscribed. A book can’t claim to be a historical novel if all the author has done is put modern characters in historical costumes and make them refer to a reticule every third sentence. Shows like Bridgerton are great fun, but they are not history; I’m not referring to the color-blind casting, but to the fact that people of that class at that time would not for the most part behave as they do on screen, at least not prior to marriage. There was a particular challenge in writing the character of Mary Kearney because accounts of the lives of women like her are pretty thin on the ground. Some of the character of Mary Milner, the mistress of the Earl of Strathmore and my Mary’s prototype, came into play. While she was Strathmore’s mistress, she was reticent about meeting people from his social stratum, so while she lived with him as though she was the countess, she would disappear when his family members called. After his death, she was very dignified and truthful in giving evidence in their son’s failed attempt to be declared legitimate.

Bonnie:  I’m a fan of great epistolary work in a novel, and there is a lot of it in this book, such as letters, records, diary entries, etc.  It is a wonderful way to show the personalities of many of the characters.  I haven’t read your other books yet. Is this the first time you have done this type of writing in a novel, and how would you describe the epistolary writing experience?

Katherine: Yes, it is the first time I have done it, partly because of the guide I had from the sources I was using and also because the epistolary form lent itself to what I was doing. People communicated through letters then; they had to. People kept diaries. I have also used it in other books though not to the same extent. In The Gypsy Bride, the hero is illiterate and starts to read and write only when he is in prison, where his attempts at correspondence have a deeper poignancy. The withholding or destruction of letters also has a greater impact than would be the case now; we know when a WhatsApp message has been read. We can also see if someone has written and then recalled their message. A great deal of our communication is fleeting in the way that pen on paper isn’t. In The Maiden of Florence, there is someone writing his ‘ricordanze’, a kind of daybook, a common practice amongst educated Renaissance Florentines, thanks to which we know a lot more about them than we otherwise would.

Bonnie:  Are you working on a new book, and if so, can you tell us about it?

Katherine:  I am working on a Renaissance crime novel. Crime is a new departure for me, obliging me to plan more than I usually would. My hero is a physician, the illegitimate son of a Florentine banker. The banker existed (his ancestor was the father of Dante’s Beatrice, and the hospital that ancestor founded in 1285 functions to this day) but the doctor is my invention. He trained at the School of Salerno and so was influenced by Arab medicine. Salerno also trained women, but I decided to make my lead character a male to give him greater agency and to enable him to move around the courts of various city states (I plan five books). So right now I am immersed in Renaissance medical treatises and accounts of the organization of hospitals of the period.

I have another novel out on submission currently. It’s the fictionalized story of the mistress of the novelist Samuel Butler and of his best friend and biographer (an arrangement set up and paid for by Butler; the lady’s reaction to this is not recorded), so it’s a tale from the hidden part of Victorian life.

Bonnie:  Both of these books sound amazing! Let’s go beyond the bio.  Tell us something about yourself that we might not know from reading your bio.

Katherine: I got married to the same man twice. We married civilly in 1995 and ten years later had a quiet religious ceremony with our two little boys present. I made my dress each time.

Bonnie: That’s awesome to have a later ceremony with your children! Thanks again, Katherine, for agreeing to this interview.  I absolutely loved your book.

Katherine: I am so glad you did. The Ballad of Mary Kearney means a lot to me.

KATHERINE’S SOCIAL MEDIA: FACEBOOK | BLUESKY | LINKEDIN

BOOK LINKS

AMAZON | AMAZON UK | GOODREADS | HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY

Book Review: A Profitable Wife

BonnieReadsAndWrites4 Comments

*This is another review I did for The Historical Novel Society.

In 1812 New York, Easter Hackley is born to a white man and a Native American (Algonquin) woman. She grows up as America is growing. She marries young and accompanies her husband Will to Ohio, looking for land to homestead. As Easter and her family survive on the land, America is struggling. Andrew Jackson has come up with a plan to relocate the “natives.” Congressman David Crockett is horrified, and he joins with John Ross, the son of a white man and a Cherokee woman, to try and stop the removal. As Easter’s family continues to grow, so does America, and with that growth comes the good and the bad.

Easter is described as an amazing woman, and she definitely knows how to survive on the land better than most of the other female pioneers. She provides well for her family by using the skills her Algonquin mother taught her, fighting against great odds and extreme circumstances.

Easter’s story is entertaining, but this book also tells the story of America through the points of view of a large cast of characters, including Davy Crockett. Some of views become almost separate stories unto themselves, as they are not closely tied or tied at all to Easter. This makes the novel less cohesive, but still interesting and informative.

In this novel, Easter is the daughter of an Algonquin woman, Sooleawa. Sooleawa is fictionalized, but it is hard to reconcile the fact that Easter is portrayed as half Native American and still supported Andrew Jackson and willingly took over land in Ohio from which Native Americans had been “cleared.” This makes her appear much less remarkable than she is otherwise portrayed.

I received a free copy of this book via The Historical Novel Society. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

BOOK LINKS

AMAZON | GOODREADS

Sunday Post: Snowed In

BonnieReadsAndWrites17 Comments

Thank you to The Caffeinated Book Reviewer for hosting Sunday Post.

We got between 3 and 4 inches of snow this weekend. Since we live on a gravel road, we’re basically snowed in, but Doug’s out there snow blowing because we are headed to Johnson City tomorrow to close on our house there! I’ll be so glad when that is finished.

Last week I reviewed Miranda Fights by Gail Ward Olmsted and participated in WWW Wednesdays.

Next week I will review Find Me in the Stars by Jules Larimore, Saving Madonna by Kate Bristow, and possibly other books.

BOOK HAUL

I have really stopped requesting so many books on Netgalley. A lot of books come to me via The Historical Novel Society, such as the three below: The Four Queens of Crime, The Socialite’s Guide to Sleuthing and Secrets, and A Lady Would Know Better. These are unedited pictures of the books next to me on my desk. I changed lamps recently, so the green lamp is the most recent.

I also got a wish granted on Netgalley, which is rare, so I’ll be reading The Crime Brulee Bake Off by Rebecca Connolly.

My Netgalley shelf is down to 16, which is low for me, and some of them aren’t due until May and June. I plan to keep the shelf to less than 10 going forward.

How was your week?

Top Ten Tuesday: Best Books I Read in 2024

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Thank you to That Artsy Reader Girl for hosting Top Ten Tuesday. The topic this week is “Best Books I Read in 2024.”

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These are in no particular order, but one standout is Slow Noodles by Chantha Nguon. It is an absolutely haunting true story of how the author lost everything during the Pol Pot regime in Cambodia, but the memories of her mother’s recipes kept her going through starvation. It describes her struggles as a Cambodian refugee in Thailand, and how she used what she knew about food to survive. You won’t soon forget this sad but amazing story.

All of the above books were fantastic reads for me. If you click on the covers, you will find my review for each book on this blog, except for Find Me In The Stars and O Little Town of Bethlehem. The links for those two will take you to my review on The Historical Novel Society website.

Question of the Day: What books stood out for you this year?

Book Review: Mona Lisa’s Daughter by Belle Ami

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**This is a review I did for the November issue of Historical Novels Review, the magazine of the Historical Novel Society. You can see it here on the Historical Novel Society website, as well as below.

In 16th-century Florence, Leonardo da Vinci meets Lisa del Giocondo, whose husband has commissioned a portrait of her. They begin a close relationship as Leonardo works on what will become possibly his greatest masterpiece. In 20th-century Florence, a nun, Valentina Amati, becomes the custodian of a box of letters written between Leonardo and Lisa. As the Nazis approach, Valentina tries to safeguard the precious letters, which her convent has protected for 400 years. But as she attempts to prepare for the Nazi threat, Valentina finds that she is also haunted by a relentless demon from her own past who will not stop until all she holds dear is destroyed. Also in 20th-century Italy, Meira and her parents, who are Jewish, are facing persecution from the Nazis.

This dual-timeline novel works on all levels. Both timelines support each other seamlessly, and the storylines and characters are balanced and make sense. The life of Leonardo da Vinci is well researched. The relationship between Leonardo and Lisa is fictional, but fascinating, and the author makes it utterly believable. The reader is also given an intriguing glimpse of the art world during the Florentine Renaissance, and we get to meet Michelangelo and see evidence of his difficult personality. The World War II Florence timeline is just as strong. Valentina is an incredibly brave and resilient woman, and her story is both heartbreaking and inspiring. Meira’s part in this book appears separate at first, but instead it is another layer that makes the complete work even more powerful. I felt transported to both periods of history and enjoyed the incredible stories in each one. Captivating, engrossing, and compelling. Highly recommended.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

(From the Author’s Amazon page): I’m Belle Ami, and if you’re reading this bio, then you may be a lover of historical fiction, historical romance, time travel thrillers with romantic elements, and romantic suspense because that’s my passion, and that’s what I write. I’m a #1 Amazon bestseller of THE GIRL WHO KNEW DA VINCI, THE GIRL WHO LOVED CARAVAGGIO, & THE GIRL WHO ADORED REMBRANDT – Books 1, 2, and 3 in the compelling OUT OF TIME SERIES—art thrillers with a time-travel twist.

Be sure to pick up a copy of my brand new historical fiction novel MONA LISA’S DAUGHTER, I believe this is my best book to date. A truly unique look at the maestro Leonardo da Vinci!

Historical Romance is a genre I’ve just begun to write, and I love it! My publisher, Dragonblade, is the cat’s meow when it comes to historical romance. There is no publisher better or more supportive. My release of LUCK OF THE LYON (Lyon’s Den Series) is quite a romp filled with challenges for my star-crossed lovers. I’m stoked to hear from my readers what they think of this new addition to my oeuvre. Be sure to drop me a note and let me know how you enjoy this book, because there are more historical romances coming! View the rest of Belle Ami’s Bio on Amazon.

BELLE AMI’S SOCIAL MEDIA: WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK

PURCHASE LINK

**Click the image below to purchase on Amazon.

Top Ten Tuesday: How My Reading Habits Have Changed Over Time

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*Thank you to That Artsy Reader Girl for hosting Top Ten Tuesday.

What an interesting topic! I went all the way back to childhood and thought about my reading habits, and what has changed. Starting with number one, my first favorite book series, I noticed something interesting. Starting with favorite books I read as a kid and working foward, I see a distinct pattern.

  1. Encyclopedia Brown: I loved reading this series about the boy detective when I was a kid. I liked it much better than Nancy Drew.
  2. Johnny Tremain: Fourteen-year-old Johnny Tremain, after an accident, eventually becomes a messenger for The Sons of Liberty and is involved in the events leading up to the American Revolution.
  3. The Chronicles of Narnia: In this series, Lucy Pevensie walks through a magic wardrobe and finds a land of talking animals and a special Lion, Aslan.
  4. Little House on the Prairie: Laura Ingalls recalls what it was like to grow up as a pioneer girl in the 19th Century.
  5. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle: Meg Murray and her brother Charles Wallace search through time for their father, who disappeared while experimenting with time travel.
  6. The Door Into Summer: Dan B. Davis loses everything, but finds a way to get it all back by going to the future.
  7. The Ring by Danielle Steel: Historical romance set mostly during WWII. I loved this book in my twenties, but it is too simplistic for me now.
  8. Harry Potter: I don’t need to describe this one. It’s fantasy at its finest with some of the best world-building I have ever seen.
  9. and 10. The Chronicles of St. Mary’s and The Time Police: About ten years ago, I bought Jodi Taylor’s first book in the Chronicles of St. Mary’s series because it was about time travel and it was 99 cents. She had self-published at the time. Fast forward to the present, and Jodi is now a best-selling author with Headline books and has just published Book 15 of The Chronicles of St. Mary’s. I loved this series from the beginning and now I realize it’s because Taylor took time travel and combined it with historical fiction, both of which have been my favorites for a long time. She provides a history lesson in every book. She also adds a heavy dose of humor. The Time Police is a spinoff of the Chronicles, and Taylor continues her hilarious trips along the timeline.

Looking back, I can see that even from childhood I loved historical fiction and time travel, as well as fantasy, and I have continued that as an adult. I still read mysteries, but mostly historical mysteries. Not much has changed in my reading choices, except for the complexity of the books.

How about you? How have your reading habits changed over time?

Book Review and Q&A: Katharine’s Remarkable Road Trip by Gail Ward Olmsted

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BOOK DESCRIPTION (FROM AMAZON)

In the fall of 1907, Katharine decides to drive from Newport, Rhode Island to her new home in Jackson, New Hampshire. Despite the concerns of her family and friends that at the age of 77 she lacks the stamina for the nearly 300-mile journey, Katharine sets out alone. Over the next six days, she receives a marriage proposal, pulls an all-nighter, saves a life or two, crashes a high-society event, meets a kindred spirit, faces a former rival, makes a new friend, takes a stroll with a future movie mogul, advises a troubled newlywed, and reflects upon a life well lived: her own!

Join her as she embarks upon her remarkable road trip.

Katharine Prescott Wormeley (1830-1908) was born into affluence in England and emigrated to the U. S. at the age of eighteen. Fiercely independent and never married, Kate volunteered as a nurse on a medical ship during the Civil War, before founding a vocational school for underprivileged girls. She was a philanthropist, a hospital administrator, and the author of The Other Side of War: 1862, as well as the noted translator of dozens of novels written by French authors, including Moliere and Balzac. She is included in History’s Women: The Unsung Heroines; History of American Women: Civil War Women; Who’s Who in America 1908-09; Notable American Women: 1607-1950; A Biographical Dictionary; and A Woman of the (19th) Century: Leading American Women in All Walks of Life and figures prominently in With Courage and Delicacy: Civil War on the Peninsula by Nancy Scripture Garrison.

BOOK REVIEW

I always love a good road trip, and I enjoyed traveling along with Katharine Wormeley from Rhode Island to New Hampshire in 1907. The thing that struck me the most is that simple things, like stopping to get a flat fixed or sitting in a park, turned into meaningful connections. Katharine really got to know remarkable people from all stations of life just by engaging with them. It makes one think about missed opportunities to get to know others better.

Katharine, an author, translator, and nurse, uses all of her skills on this trip. During the trip, She reflects on working with Frederick Ward Olmsted, the designer of Central Park, and her mostly unspoken love for him. She is surprised to meet his wife on her journey. She also visits another love from the past. This is a journey of memories, paths not taken, and a lesson to reach out to others with all of your talents. I came away with a picture of a lovely woman who was also strong as steel. Gail Ward Olmsted has also reached out, to the past, and introduced us to an extraordinary woman. I’m glad I got to meet her.

I received a free copy of this book from the author and publisher via Netgalley. I also picked up the Audible version of this book, which I very much enjoyed. The narrator, Lisa Bozek, did a great job of capturing the spirit of Katharine Wormeley.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, GAIL WARD OLMSTED

(In Her Own Words)

I enjoy writing about quirky, lovable women in search of their happy ever after. Second chances, do-overs, fresh starts: whatever you want to call them, our ability to reinvent ourselves is a beautiful thing.

My first visit to Sedona, AZ prompted me to start writing JEEP TOUR, my first novel. I fell in love with the red rocks and blue skies. My second novel is Guessing at Normal, a rock and roll love story. Driving on the Left is a romantic sequel of sorts to JEEP TOUR, based in Ireland. I decided to follow up Guessing at Normal with Second Guessing because I was looking for a ‘happy ever after’ for my main character Jill. Landscape of a Marriage is the mostly true story of park builder Frederick Law Olmsted and his late brother’s widow Mary. Together they transformed the American landscape. My husband is a distant relative of Olmsted’s and I was thrilled to write their story.

After writing a pair of contemporary novels with a legal twist: Miranda Writes (9/22) and Miranda Nights (7/23) I am back with a biographical novel about an amazing woman. Watch for Katharine’s Remarkable Road Trip: 6/13/24!

A hopeless romantic, I am married to the love of my life. I am mom to two adults and two cats, and I enjoy reading, music, water sports and travel.

Q&A WITH GAIL WARD OLMSTED

Below is my Q&A with Author Gail Ward Olmsted.

Bonnie:  Welcome, Gail! How did you learn about Katharine (Kate) Wormeley, a real-life nurse, author, editor, and translator, and what made you decide to write a book about her?

Gail: I first came across her name while doing research for Landscape of a Marriage which was published in 2021. She was a longtime friend and trusted confidante of Frederick Law Olmsted, and the more I read about her, the more I wanted to know.

Bonnie:  OK, let’s tackle the elephant in the room early.  Was Kate really in love with the very married Frederick Law Olmsted, designer of Central Park, or was that the “fiction” part of historical fiction?

Gail: Based upon her journal entries and letters, I can say without hesitation that she was very much in love with him. Perhaps it was his being unavailable that attracted her or his clear appreciation of her sharp wit and intellect. One quote which was attributed to a mutual friend of theirs spoke of her regarding him ‘with something quite close to ardor.’ Kate claimed that, besides her father, Olmsted was one of the two men she loved most in the world. I have no idea who the ‘other’ man was, so I made him up.

Bonnie:  Kate embarked on a road trip by herself, which raised a lot of eyebrows.  That used to happen to me in the 1980s when I traveled by car alone, so I imagine it was quite shocking back in 1907.  Did that really occur?  I know a lot of women couldn’t drive even back in the 1940s and 1950s.

Gail: Driver’s licenses cost about a dollar in the early 1900’s and most states did not require them. I could not find any reference to Kate having one, but based on her lifestyle and personality, I believe she would have loved the freedom of the open road.  I invented the road trip between her two homes as a way to highlight her independence and her desire to live her life on her own terms. A solo journey is a great time for self-reflection as well as new adventures.

Bonnie:  I was thinking about what the condition of the roads must have been in 1907.  Did that come up in your research?

Gail: Even within the city limits, the roads would have been narrow and dirt-packed with ruts from the horse-drawn carriages and wagons. Lots of dust on dry days and plenty of mud when it rained. In a word, dreadful!

Bonnie:  I loved that Kate made so many unplanned connections on her travels just by taking an interest in others.  Often, they were not of the same class as Kate, who was quite well off.  In real life, was she someone who reached out to others regardless of class or station?

Gail: Having read her letters as well as comments made by family members and close friends, Kate was clearly a ‘people’ person. As a nurse, teacher, and philanthropist, she went out of her way tohelp others. I found no reference to snobbery or class-consciousness attributed to her.

Bonnie:  In the book, Kate has some unnamed health concerns.  The road trip she takes is in 1907 and she died in 1908.  Do you know her cause of death?

Gail: A fall on the steps of her beloved home Brookmead sent her to the hospital. She developed pneumonia and died from complications at the age of 78.

Bonnie: One last question, and this one’s for you. Let’s go beyond the bio. Tell us something about yourself we might not know from reading your bio.

Gail: I love to entertain. Finalizing the guest list, planning the menu, setting the table (I’ve been known to do this days in advance). I really enjoy it, whether it’s a casual cookout, a luncheon with my friends or an evening event with candles and wine. 

Bonnie: That sounds so lovely! It was great talking to you, Gail. Thanks for answering my questions, and I hope you come back and visit us again.

PURCHASE LINKS

AMAZON | AUDIBLE | AMAZON UK

Book Review: Jackie by Dawn Tripp

BonnieReadsAndWrites17 Comments

This fictionalized story of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis is beautifully written, with a rhythmical tone that shares so many horrible events in the former First Lady’s life in almost a soft way. Her life story in the 1960s is closely intertwined with American history, and we follow Jackie through the courtship and marriage to John F. Kennedy, her time as First Lady, and the President’s support of the Civil Rights Movement. We watch in horror as John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, and Robert Kennedy are killed.. Then we watch Jackie strike out on her own and emerge from the shadow of the Kennedy family, rebuilding her life in her own way.

This book is fiction, but combines historical facts with fiction in a believable way. The writing is so eloquent and includes Jackie’s love of books and poetry. It is an enjoyable read about a tumultuous time and a woman who weathered many storms. Highly Recommend.

I received a free copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

BOOK TRAILER

The publisher sent me this book trailer, so I have added it to the post.

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple Books | Google| Kobo