Historical Fiction Picks Summer 2012

I've been on a historical fiction kick recently. I tend to read a little bit of all genres of literature, science fiction being the exception. Historical fiction gives me a trip through time; an enthralling story with credible (and sometimes based on real-life) characters, in a time period time setting. It's just a great chance to be immersed in the past, enjoy a story, and take away some sort historical knowledge. So here's my latest historical fiction picks for Summer 2012.

The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty

I saw this one in Barnes and Noble a while ago, and bought it on my Nook Tablet to read while on vacation. The setting of the book takes place in 1922 in Wichita, Kansas. Cora, an "empty-nester" mother, volunteers to chaperone an acquaintance's daughter, Louise Brooks (who later became a famous silent film star), to New York City to attend the prestigious Denishawn School of Dance. What follows is a summer of discoveries and experiences neither will ever forget. Louis is on the cusp of womanhood and continuing to defy societal limits. Flashbacks of Cora's childhood reveal the true purpose of Cora's hidden motive for coming to New York City. There is so much more to the chaperone than you expect picking up the book. I really enjoyed the personal journeys of Louise and Cora.

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

After I read The Chaperone, Barnes and Noble recommended Rules of Civility on my Nook account, so I decided to pick this one up. The novel is set over the course of a year in 1938 following three main characters: Roommates and working gals Katey and Eve, and the wealthy Tinker Gray. Katey comes from a hardworking midwestern farm family, while Eve comes from an upper-middle-class family, whose father continues to try to send money for her to live off of instead of having to work. Tinker comes from a more privileged background, but when the three meet in a jazz club, they become good friends. Over the course of a year, various events throw off the course of their friendship. An accident takes place that will forever altar their friendship. Katey changes careers, and edges her way into the upper crust crowd, all while keeping tabs on Tinker and Eve as they goof off in Europe. All is not as it seems, as the book reveals in the latter half. Very much reminded me of a Great Gatsby-esque story. I enjoyed the descriptions of the settings in the book - I could see the old movie film in my mind. 

The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

The Paris Wife was recommended to me by a friend after I mentioned how I was into a 1920's/1930's books trend. The book is a fictional recollection of Ernest Hemingway's first wife, Hadley Richardson. Much of the story recounted in the book is the journey to success for Hemingway with his writing and his first marriage and life in Paris after WWI. Hadley and Ernest have a whirlwind romance and marriage. Things get rough when they move to France and Ernest struggles with writing. They encounter and become friends with such generational icons as Gertrude Stein, F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald. Ernest eventually is able to turn some of their experiences into what becomes The Sun Also Rises. The novel was interesting - showed the early development of Hemingway's writing, along with the beginning of his notorious womanizing habits. It inspired me to read more Hemingway - I read A Call to Arms in high school. 

Enjoy!