Welcome to another Tuesday celebrating bookish events, First Chapter/Intros, hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea; and Teaser Tuesdays hosted by The Purple Booker.
Today’s feature is a new download: Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk, by Kathleen Rooney. “Extraordinary…hilarious…Elegantly written, Rooney creates a glorious paean to a distant literary life and time—and an unabashed celebration of human connections that bridge past and future.
—Publishers Weekly (starred and boxed)
Intro: (The Road of Anthracite)
There once was a girl named Phoebe Snow. She wore only white and held tight to a violet corsage, an emblem of modesty. She was not retiring, though, and her life spun out as a series of journeys through mountain tunnels carved from poetry. I never saw her doing anything besides boarding, riding, or disembarking a train, immaculate always, captivating conductors, enchanting other passengers.
No, there wasn’t. She was just an advertisement: the poster girl for the Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western Railroad. Her unsoilable Antarctic-colored clothes were proof that the line’s anthracite-powered locomotives were clean-burning, truly—unlike their sooty and outfit-despoiling competitors:
Her laundry bill for fluff and frill
Miss Phoebe finds is nearly nil.
It’s always light, though gowns of white,
Are worn on Road of Anthracite.
***
Teaser: When the book came out five months later, under the title I desired, it was a smash, selling out its print run within the first thirty days and hurrying through four subsequent printings. The reading public, at least some of them, wanted a break from the Depression, and found repose in my pose, world-weary but still cheery. (p. 52).
***
Synopsis: “In my reckless and undiscouraged youth,” Lillian Boxfish writes, “I worked in a walnut-paneled office thirteen floors above West Thirty-Fifth Street…”
She took 1930s New York by storm, working her way up writing copy for R.H. Macy’s to become the highest paid advertising woman in the country. It was a job that, she says, “in some ways saved my life, and in other ways ruined it.”
Now it’s the last night of 1984 and Lillian, 85 years old but just as sharp and savvy as ever, is on her way to a party. It’s chilly enough out for her mink coat and Manhattan is grittier now—her son keeps warning her about a subway vigilante on the prowl—but the quick-tongued poetess has never been one to scare easily. On a walk that takes her over 10 miles around the city, she meets bartenders, bodega clerks, security guards, criminals, children, parents, and parents-to-be, while reviewing a life of excitement and adversity, passion and heartbreak, illuminating all the ways New York has changed—and has not.
A love letter to city life in all its guts and grandeur, Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk by Kathleen Rooney paints a portrait of a remarkable woman across the canvas of a changing America: from the Jazz Age to the onset of the AIDS epidemic; the Great Depression to the birth of hip-hop.
Lillian figures she might as well take her time. For now, after all, the night is still young.
***
I like the sound of this quirky character. What do you think?
***
A completely new book to me, but I like it. I’d already taken with Phoebe.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Margot, I especially like Phoebe’s surname: SNOW. LOL
I think it will be an intriguing read. Glad you could stop by, and enjoy yours.
LikeLike
Oh yes – I love the sound of Phoebe and the whole book sounds a little different with her at the helm. Happy reading Laurel.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think so, too, Cleo….glad you could stop by, and enjoy your pick!
LikeLike
I was lucky enough to read an ARC of this and it’s great. Hope you get a chance to read it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Cathy, I’ve been looking forward to it since I first spotted it on a blog. Glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for visiting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Definitely quirky and sounds different on. I like it and would keep on reading.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Emma, I love the cover, too….that outfit says a lot, doesn’t it? Enjoy your pick.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This one’s on my list. I would definitely keep reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Heather, I think it will be a delightful ride. Enjoy your pick!
LikeLike
Love the sound of this one! Can’t imagine someone 85 walking 10 miles around the city of New York, but who knows? Will be glad to watch for your review of it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am impressed by an 85-year-old walking so much…she sounds like my maternal grandmother, who was like that, only not in NY. Thanks for visiting, Kay.
LikeLike
Interesting. It’s not often we see such a quirky and of age main character, least of all one who’s a woman. They’re usually relegated to the side character realm.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, ‘Chel…those facts definitely contributed to my interest in this book. Glad you could stop by…enjoy your pick.
LikeLike
Sounds interesting! Thanks for stopping by Colletta’s Kitchen Sink!
Colletta
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Colletta, glad you could stop by. Enjoy your pick!
LikeLike
I figured you liked her surname. What a delightful premise and well told judging by the opening. What fun! Here’s my link for today: http://wp.me/p4DMf0-1t1
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Ms. M….I love older characters these days (I wonder why?). Glad you enjoyed it, and I hope you love your pick, too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I LOVE the sound of this character and such a sparky introduction!
LikeLiked by 1 person
So do I, Miss Cellany…I am very eager to get to know her better. Thanks for visiting.
LikeLike
What a lovely premise:). I hope you’re enjoying this one, Laurel:)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Sarah, I am intrigued by the excerpts, the blurb, and I love that cover. This character should be a lot of fun.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope it proves to be an entertaining book and look forward to hearing what you make of it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, I ‘ve been hearing so much about this one lately! It sounds great, I definitely think I’ll have to check it out. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Jordan, glad you could visit, and I hope to start reading this one soon.
LikeLike
Interesting title.
sherry @ fundinmental My TT
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Sherry, the character’s name and her outfit on the cover make me smile.
LikeLike
I wish I could get a response like that!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Definitely! The dream of every author. Thanks for stopping by, Alice Audrey.
LikeLike
She definitely sounds like a kind of “I’m not scared of you, ruffian. Go back to your marbles and kites” woman. Not sure if I would read this, but the scene reminds me of Hell’s Kitchen from Luke Cage, Daredevil and Jessica Jones.
LikeLiked by 1 person
A cartoon hero, then; yes, I can see that. Thanks for stopping by, Al, and enjoy your pick.
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is new to me Laurel; I’m curious for more.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Diane, I am a fan of quirky characters…and the older ones are very interesting to me, too. Glad you could stop by…and thanks for hosting.
LikeLike
I haven’t heard about this one, but it sounds really good.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Yvonne, I saw it on a blog, checked it out, and now I’m eager to read it.
LikeLike
I’ve seen the cover of the book in a couple of places but hadn’t really read much about it and now I am going to put this one on my TBR list. Sounds like a great read!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks,Iliana…I am fascinated by the sound of the character….glad you could stop by.
LikeLike
Not heard of this one before. Love that cover.
My TT from Heart Of Eve
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Laura, I only recently discovered it…but then I saw it on several blogs. Enjoy yours.
LikeLike
That sounds really interesting. The writing style is unique and intriguing. Glad you shared this!
Happy reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Tracy Beth, I am looking forward to it. Enjoy yours!
LikeLike
Sounds like things in that area, at least, are going well! Great teaser! Thanks for stopping by! Happy reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Louisa, I am enjoying my reading….and resting. Glad you could stop by.
LikeLike
This sounds like a fantastic read. I’m adding it to my TBR. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Becky, I hope to love it. Enjoy your week!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks. Enjoy your week too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had this on my TTT post this week. I thought the synopsis was interesting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Charlie, I have been impressed with what I’ve seen so far. Enjoy!
LikeLike
Not at all what I expected from the title, which is a good thing. It sounds like an interesting book. I’d keep reading. As for why your link on my blog led back to my blog, I have no idea. Thanks for posting the link in the replies. And thanks for coming by and sharing your teaser.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Laura, and I am eager to immerse myself in this book and with these characters. Happy reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person