Mystery genre - annotation #3

Author:  Kathleen Marple Kalb

Title: A Fatal Finale

Genre: Mystery (Historical Mystery)

Publication Date: April 28, 2020

Number of Pages: 304

Geographical Setting: New York, New York, USA

Time Period: 1899

Series: Ella Shane Mysteries

Plot Summary:

It’s 1899 in the great city of New York and Ella Shane, who grew up poor in New York’s lower East Side is now an opera diva and owner of her own opera company. Her only problem is that the young woman playing Juliet (her real name was Frances) died on stage a few months ago. While the death is ruled a suicide, Frances' cousin, a duke from England, shows up on Ella’s doorstep wanting to know more about the death. So begins Ella’s exploration into this unusual death. 

During her informal investigation Ella uncovers the truth and develops a relationship with the duke that has the town talking. The novel is rich with period descriptions, particularly about the social conventions of the time.

The pace is quite slow and then the mystery is solved quickly right at the end, which was frustrating. But Ella, the duke, and the other characters that inhabit the novel are nicely developed and make the reader ready to read about Ella’s next adventure

Subject Headings:

Mystery – New York, Gilded Age

Mystery – Cozy, Historical

Mystery -- Opera

Appeal:

Tone: “Cozies strike a humorous and gentle note and assure that all will be made right.” (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019, p. 56).

This was a gentle novel, and in fact the reader does not know that murder has happened until the last few chapters. There is mild romantic tension between the duke and Ella, and there are mild social tensions that happen between people of different social classes.

Characterization: “Regardless of how they are drawn, the central protagonists in Mysteries have their sense of honor and justice challenged by the cases they encounter” (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019, p. 53).

Ella clearly is bothered by the question of whether someone killed Frances or she died because of an accidental overdose. Ella also worries that she could have somehow helped Frances more as the young girl tried to develop her career as an opera diva. These are issues of justice and honor and show that Ella is a person of integrity. She cares to see justice meted out.

Frame: “Frame refers to the details and side subjects, as well as the ancillary learning, that are often integrated into a Mystery. Insights into a favorite detective’s hobby or day job, the inclusion of a recipe, or the listing of a lengthy musical playlist are examples of frame details” (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019, p. 55).

The historical details in this novel made the period come to life. The protagonist speaks plainly about attire, and her background as a child of immigrants, and the challenges of being a woman of business in her time period. Issues of motherhood and careers came up, and while those may have been slightly anachronistic it seems reasonable that professional women of the time (and there were professional women then) had these decisions to make. 

The author includes details about operas and operatic life, as well as a glimpse into the life of newspaper reporters of the time. 

3 terms that best describe this book:  

gentle, richly detailed, female amateur detective

Similar Authors and Works:

What the dead leave behind, by Rosemary Simpson

Set in 1888 New York City, an heiress suspects her fiancé was murdered and works with his best friend to find the truth.

Common appeal: strong female amateur sleuth; Gilded Age New York City; richly detailed

A death of no importance, by Mariah Fredericks

This mystery is set in 1910 New York City. A professional housekeeper becomes involved in solving a society murder.

Common appeal: richly detailed, Gilded Age New York (though near the end of that period); independent/professional female amateur sleuth

Deception by gaslight, by Kate Belli

Genevieve Stewart, a woman from a wealthy family, chooses to become a reporter. She becomes involved in finding a jewel thief and murder. 

Common appeal: Professional woman as amateur sleuth; Gilded Age New York City; richly detailed

  

3 Relevant Non-Fiction Works and Authors

Grand opera: the story of the Met, by Charles Affron

 

This book traces the history of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City since 1883. 

Common appeal: history of the opera, divas

Mrs. Astor’s New York: money and social power in a Gilded Age, by Eric Homberger

 

This book describes New York society during the last part of the Gilded Age (late 1800’s), focusing on Mrs. Astor, who was considered the head of society at that timerou.

Common appeal: New York history, Gilded Age, social expectations

 

 

Rogues’ Gallery: the birth of modern policing and organized crime in Gilded Age New York, by John Oliver

 

This book describes the improvements developed in policing during the Gilded Age in New York. It includes stories of real crimes and criminals as well as policemen.

Common appeal: Gilded Age (history), true crime, society and culture

 

3 Relevant Fiction Works and Authors (not Mystery genre)

The Magnolia Palace, by Fiona Davis

 

This novel mixes two time periods (WWI era and the 1960’s) New York, focusing on art and modeling and the Frick family.

Common appeal: Well-developed character, richly detailed writing style, historical period (includes end of Gilded Age)

Carnegie’s Maid, by Marie Benedict

 

This historical fiction story is set in Andrew Carnegie’s house and times and gives the reader a picture of Carnegie’s life and times, told through the eyes of a fictional maid.

Common appeal: Well-developed character, richly detailed writing style, historical fiction

 

A beautiful rival: a novel of Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, by Gill Paul

 

This historical novel shares the story of two famous women, how they each succeeded, and how they competed with each other.

Common appeal: richly detailed writing style, well-developed character, professional women in history

 

References

 

Wyatt, N.  & Saricks, J. G. (2019). The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction (3rd ed.). ALA Editions.

 

Prompt Week 7 - literary hoaxes

Reading "Literary Hoaxes and the Ethics of Authorship" by Louis Menand (2020) really opened my eyes to the issue of authorship in a way I had not considered it before. I hadn't realized that these "hoaxes" had happened (and I haven't read any of the books mentioned). I have mixed positions. I'll explain my thoughts, and I'd love to hear your comments and positions as well, especially if they help me understand this issue better.

Position one: a writer should be who a writer says they are.

When I choose a book and I see an author I want to assume that they are who the books says they are. If I am reading "Glass Houses" and it's supposed to be a memoir, then I expect the story to be largely true. I realize that we forget details of our lives over time, or that we reimagine them as we remember them - I know that really happens. But if we tell the story with different facts because we want to sell more books or just tell a better story, then I think that book belongs in the Fiction section and should be listed as a novel. Not a memoir. If I read fiction and the information is not correct then I am much more forgiving. If I read a historical fiction and some of the historical facts are wrong, I count that as bad writing, but it doesn't have the same negative feeling. I maybe feel the author was lazy, but not trying to mislead me.

Position two: writers have been using pseudonyms for ages and there's nothing wrong with that.

I have read books where I know the author's name is a pseudonym (sometimes they list that in the book jacket), and I have read some where I learned that after the fact. I don't mind the fact that George Eliot was a woman, and it feels fine to me that someone would use a pseudonym to get published in those days. But it feels wrong that a person now would use a different cultural identity to get published. But I have to ask myself - is it? It feels wrong to me, but I'd be interested in hearing the other side of that opinion. I think my position would be that if the author could not get published because of their identity and they need to create another one to get a publisher to look at them, then I can understand that. But to write from the perspective of that other identity seems wrong. I don't think George Eliot wrote with the idea of telling the story of white men. She just wanted to get published.

What about the idea Menand (2020) mentions where an author is made up of multiple authors? I remember when I first learned that Carolyn Keene wasn't really one person, and that was disappointing to me. In that case I felt sad that the real authors weren't getting any credit for their writing. I recently learned that Erin Hunter isn't one person, but a group of writers. I guess that's good because I can't figure out how one person could write all of those books. On the other hand, it feels duplicitous to me. 

Summary

I think in the end that if an author makes up material in a book they need to list that book as fiction, rather like what Jeannette Walls did for "Half-Broke Horses" - which could not have ever been a memoir since it was about her grandmother. She called it a "true life novel." I like that. If I read what is called a memoir and later realize it was largely fabricated I will feel cheated, and I won't read that author again. I think if an author uses a pseudonym they need to be ready to identify their real identity once they are published (I'm still a little uncertain on this - I think there are good reasons why an author would want to hide their identity).
I don't entirely know how I would address this topic with the patrons at my library, beyond just affirming their reading choices and maybe also affirming frustration they might feel. Of course, if a patron suggested getting rid of a book because of lies or perceived lies, I would explain our process of reviewing books and have them contact the proper person for that.

Menand, L. (2020, December 7). Literary hoaxes and the ethics of authorship. New Yorker. 

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/12/10/literary-hoaxes-and-the-ethics-of-authorship

Romance genre - book annotation #2

Romance genre book annotation 

Author:  Ali Hazelwood

Title: The Love Hypothesis

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Publication Date: Sept., 2021

Number of Pages: 352

Geographical Setting: Stanford, California, USA

Time Period: present day

Series (If applicable): N/A

Plot Summary:

Olive Smith is a Ph.D. student in a biomedical research program at Stanford University. In an attempt to convince her best friend to go out with a guy Olive had dated but didn’t care for, Olive decides to pretend to date someone else. She randomly kisses a man in the hallway late one night when her friend is watching, and thus the saga begins. The man she has just kissed is none other than Adam Carlson, a professor in the program and one who frequently intimidates graduate students by his hard evaluation of their work. For some reason he agrees to pretend date Olive. Through a series of amusing events their relationship develops into something more.

The novel illustrates graduate school in a realistic yet light-hearted way, and also brings to life some more difficult issues that professional women face.

 

Subject Headings:

Romance -- Fiction

Women in STEM -- Fiction

Graduate school in STEM -- Fiction

 

Appeal:

Tone: “The overarching feeling is one of togetherness, support, and deep bonding.” (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019, p. 217).

While Olive’s mother has died, they clearly were close, and that relationship informs Olive’s career choice. Olive makes close friends who play an important role in the novel. For example, her relationship with Adam begins because of her desire to make her best friend (Anh) happy. This move also causes her friend to embark on a relationship, though we only hear of it tangentially.

Characterization: “Romance is a character-driven genre. Novels turn on the relationship between the two central characters. They must come to understand themselves and each other in intimate, revealing ways” (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019, p. 217).

Olive’s relationship with Adam helps her to understand herself and her ambitions. We learn that she has many self-doubts and worries about her ability to succeed in her career. Olive (and the reader) also learns that Adam is deeper than initially portrayed. His experiences in his graduate years have informed how he interacts with current graduate students and with Olive. Watching their characters develop is one of the best parts of the novel.

Setting: “Readers appreciate the emphasis on heroines in their professional lives in Contemporary Romance” (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019, p. 219).

The setting is graduate school in the biomedical sciences. Since I was also a graduate student in that area years ago, this was a wonderful setting for me. Anyone interested in learning a little bit about the graduate school life of a professional woman in STEM would enjoy that aspect of this novel. Hazelwood does not bog the story down with details, but lightly peppers the romance with these elements so that the story has more depth and context. She may have slightly overdone this when talking about Anh and her work for women in science (one gets the feeling that Anh does nothing but work in this area, and I’m sure that’s not the case). But this is where Hazelwood takes the opportunity to make some social points about women in STEM, which is an added bonus in some Romance novels, while never taking away from the story of the relationship (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019).

3 terms that best describe this book:  

witty, upbeat, steamy romance

Similar Authors and Works:

The Chemistry of Love, by Sariah Wilson

A fake relationship that develops into something more as Anna Ellis uses competition to attract the man she really is after. This novel is more chaste than The Love Hypothesis. 

Common appeal: women in STEM, romantic comedy, fake relationship

Some Kind of Magic, by Mary Ann Marlowe.

Biochemist unknowingly tests a scent that was developed to increase sexual attraction. It works, and relationship issues ensue. Steamier than The Love Hypothesis.

Common appeal: engaging writing, women in STEM (biochemist), steamy romance, amusing

Loathe at First Sight, by Suzanne Park

A video game developer falls for her intern. Her work life is full of challenges related to gender discrimination.

Common appeal: Women in STEM (computer science), romantic comedy, workplace romance

 

3 Relevant Non-Fiction Works and Authors

The exceptions: Nancy Hopkins, MIT, and the fight for women in science, by Kate Zernike

This is the story of Nancy Hopkins, who with 15 other female scientists made public the way MIT had been discriminating against women for years. 

Common appeal: Engaging writing style, women facing discrimination in STEM

Brave the wild river: the untold story of two women who mapped the botany of the Grand Canyon, by Melissa L. Sevigny

Two women and four men embark on a rafting trip down the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon, surveying and collecting the plant life along the river.

Common appeal: women scientists, engaging writing style, workplace sexism

Bright galaxies, dark matter, and beyond: the life of astronomer Vera Rubin, by Ashley Jean Yaeger

The biography of Vera Rubin, a pioneering woman astronomer who helped discover dark matter, but was never awarded a Nobel Prize.

Common appeal: accessible and compelling writing style, women in science, discrimination.

 

3 Relevant Fiction Works and Authors (not Romance genre)

Sourdough, by Robin Sloan

The genre is magical realism/fantasy rather than romance, but the main character is a software engineer who ends up developing a sourdough startup company.

Common appeal: Likeable character, witty and engaging writing style, women in science

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter, by Theodora Goss

This historical fantasy includes strong female characters. It includes a number of fictional characters from classic novels in an amusing and engaging mystery.

Common appeal: Amusing tone, likeable, strong female characters, engaging and witty writing style

No One Lives Twice, by Julie Moffett

Lexi Carmichael works for the NSA foiling computer hackers. She becomes involved in an investigation to find her best friend who has disappeared. Romance and adventure ensue. Mystery genre.

Common appeal: women in science (computer science), romantic appeal, likeable character

 

References

 

Wyatt, N.  & Saricks, J. G. (2019). The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction (3rd ed.). ALA Editions.

 

Prompt week 6

 What would be an innovative way to promote the Romance Genre at my library?

February is a great month to promote the Romance genre (oh, but Valentine's Day was yesterday!). 😉 Still, the fact that the Romance genre generally promotes strong professional women means it also might be a great March (Women's history month) display.

I think developing a display in our open lobby is a great way to catch people's eyes. To make the display more integrative I think it would be important to include books, videos, DVDs, and then also have a flyer that lists a number of books and audiobooks available through our electronic resources site. 

So far you might be saying "Janna, this sounds pretty boring" and I would agree. Of course we can make the display catchy, with bright colors (red hearts, yellow and blue and red flowers that evoke the coming of spring). It would be really nice if the display could be a sort of "booth" that people could enter, but this would require some additional work since we don't have one in our lobby. I also think it would be fun to have a little "selfie" station as part of the display and encourage people to take a picture of themselves with their favorite romance novel. We could create a hashtag - #mphplromance. Our marketing people could make sure those get linked to our Facebook page as well as other social media sites. Maybe (if we get their permission) we could put up some of the patron pictures on the display.

Additionally, I'd like to put up pictures of famous people with their favorite romance novels. I don't have an instagram account but that might be a good place to go and find pictures that we could post at the display. This would help mitigate some of the negative publicity the romance genre has gotten (as mentioned in Wyatt & Saricks, 2019, p. 215).

Kirkus style review

The Lost Apothecary

by Sarah Penner

 

This might be the nugget you want to leave in the mud.

A modern-day London tourist rediscovers her true passion in history as she follows the trail of a glass vial she unearths in the Thames river mud. The vial leads her to two eighteenth century women. The glass vial, unfaithful men, and poison, figure in all three of their lives.

 

The novel’s parallel narrative alternates between the lives of two women in 1791 London and one in modern day London. In 1791, Nella is an apothecary who has made it her business to help rid the world of evil men through the judicious use of poison, and Eliza is a girl who enters the story as a customer of Nella but aspires to become her helper or apprentice. During the course of the novel Eliza also becomes attracted to the possibilities magick offers to protect her from evil. Present day Caroline finds herself in London on what was supposed to be an anniversary trip but is alone after discovering her husband’s affair. When walking around London she is accosted by a man who runs “mudlarking” expeditions in the Thames, and she decides to try it. She discovers an old vial (we learn later this vial once belonged to Nella) and begins to rediscover her love of history that she had been suppressing since her marriage. The two different stories share only the vial which once held poison, and the women’s betrayal by men they once loved. While the premise is engaging it misses the mark. Caroline’s discoveries come with such speed that they are not believable, and her character never develops meaningfully. Nella’s character is interesting, and the clues into her past make the reader want to learn more. Eliza’s character doesn’t get the time to develop before a precipitous and somewhat magical ending for Nella and Eliza that is tantalizing but develops unevenly.

 

This might be the nugget you want to leave in the mud.

Book Reviews Prompt

 Week 5 Prompt – Book Reviews

 

            It’s interesting to me that some book review publishers will not publish negative reviews. I guess the way to deal with that is to write a less than enthusiastic review for a book that you thought was not good (if you want your review published in that kind of publication). From a collections standpoint I would want to know what the publisher’s rules are. If I know that Booklist doesn’t publish negative reviews then I will have to “read between the lines” in considering a book for the collection. I would prefer to read reviews from somewhere like Kirkus that I know will give an honest review. A question I have, though, is what does a group like Kirkus do if there are some reviewers who like the book and some who do not? As far as I can tell they just publish one review. Surely some books get mixed reviews?

            I think it’s a problem that ebooks don’t get a review if they are only in that format. I don’t yet know about cost differences, but in terms of building a collection I would be less interested in having ebooks that aren’t well vetted. I feel like in my library there are many more ebooks than physical books, so I think it’s easier to have more and that may be why the review of them is less rigorous.

            Looking at the ebook only reviews you provided, they both are very weak in my opinion, and neither compels me to suggest the book for my library. Just thinking about the review, they focus on plot, though I like that the one review mentions it’s a “clean” romance (referencing our last prompt assignment!). That information is helpful. But I don’t get a sense of character development or writing quality.

            The reviews of “Angela’s Ashes” are compelling. I have not read the book, but based on those I would certainly suggest we buy it for my library. I do think there is disparity in that well known authors and bigger publishing companies get more attention and so will more likely get included in a library’s collection. There are several authors for whom our library always has multiple copies of their latest books. So where does that leave us for getting new and aspiring authors? I think my library will always be one that gets books that are from “tried and true” authors. While that disappoints me a little, every library has limited space and has to make the best use of it for their patrons.

            I don’t work in collections so I’m not involved in that process. As for myself, I don’t usually read reviews of books before I read them. I do use Goodreads to keep track of my reading, and I usually read a few reviews AFTER I read the book. I guess I don’t want to bias myself before I read it. I usually get suggestions from friends – either on Goodreads, or just in conversation. I am currently reading a novel that I don’t really love, and I looked it up on Kirkus and laughed because the review was spot on. Would I have gotten this book if I had read the reviews first? Maybe not. I should add that it’s a library book – I didn’t spend money on it. But I won’t be reading the rest of the series! This whole idea of book reviews is new to me!