“Bloomsbury Books is an old-fashioned new and rare book store that has persisted and resisted change for a hundred years, run by men and guided by the general manager’s unbreakable fifty-one rules. But in 1950, the world is changing, especially the world of books and publishing, and at Bloomsbury Books, the girls in the shop have plans:
Vivien Lowry: Single since her aristocratic fiance was killed in action during World War II, the brilliant and stylish Vivien has a long list of grievances–most of them well justified and the biggest of which is Alec McDonough, the Head of Fiction.
Grace Perkins: Married with two sons, she’s been working to support the family following her husband’s breakdown in the aftermath of the war. Torn between duty to her family and dreams of her own.
Evie Stone: In the first class of female students from Cambridge permitted to earn a degree, Evie was denied an academic position in favor of her less accomplished male rival. Now she’s working at Bloomsbury Books while she plans to remake her own future.
As they interact with various literary figures of the time–Daphne Du Maurier, Ellen Doubleday, Sonia Blair (widow of George Orwell), Samuel Beckett, Peggy Guggenheim, and others–these three women with their complex web of relationships, goals and dreams are all working to plot out a future that is richer and more rewarding than anything society will allow.”
This is a fantastically emotional book that makes you feel empowered, regardless of gender. It’s a book on societal structures and preconceived judgements. A critique on human nature and a champion for women without being degrading on the male sex. It was more a commentary on time period and history than anything else. And a discourse on writing itself.
You would think with all of that in one book, the read may feel sluggish and heavy.
I read it in two days, regretfully putting it down each time life called me away. I turned each page anxiously, thoroughly enthralled with the fabulously written characters on the page and the determination they showed.
The literary references are intellectually brilliant. They’re like little nuggets of happiness for every reading addict.
I would recommend this to readers of any gender, any genre and any time period.
***** Low Language, High Romance (there’s no sex on the page, but it is referred to. For as prudish as I can be, I was never uncomfortable with the language- but I wouldn’t give it a teenager to read either), Low Violence, Low Religion