Books to Keep On the Bedside Table: Part One

Clara and Mr. Tiffany by Susan Vreeland
Review by Christina Crocker

Clara and Mr. Tiffany by Susan Vreeland is one of those books that took me a little while to get immersed in, but after a few chapters, I was hooked. I became totally absorbed in the world of New York City at the turn of the century. We get a taste of both the poverty the newly arrived immigrants experienced in the Lower East Side, and we also see how the other half lived, the mansions of the moneyed Fifth Avenue crowd. The author has a knack for making the reader feel as he/she is part of the main character's circle of friends and is experiencing the exciting events of that time period. When Clara and her colleagues are confronted with a picket line, it is both nerve-wracking and thrilling.

Vreeland was inspired to write this historical novel after seeing the exhibit, A New Light on Tiffany: Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany Girls, at the New York Historical Society. After undertaking meticulous research on Louis Comfort Tiffany, the culture of New York City during the Gilded Age and immersing herself in Clara Driscoll's letters, Vreeland proceeded to write a story (one that reflects many of the events mentioned in the letters) about the unsung artistic contributions of the Women's Department in Tiffany Studios. It seems that those beautiful, celebrated leaded-glass lampshades were conceived and designed by Clara Driscoll and not Louis Tiffany! Unfortunately, Clara and her industrious team of women were never given any credit for their achievements. Tiffany probably only initially created the Women's Department because he wouldn't have to worry about them going on strike like the unionized male employees were capable of. Another chauvinistic policy of Tiffany's was that he wouldn't allow married women to work for him.

I ended up caring very much for Clara and her friends. I totally empathized with Clara's frustrations with not having her artistic accomplishments recognized as they should have been. Louis Tiffany is portrayed as a man with many faults. At times he appears capable of breaking out of his prejudices and old-fashioned ways of thinking, but he never fully does. I guess that is what makes him a fascinating character.

Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson
Review by Marcia Blackman

It’s been a long time since I’ve read such a delightful book. Helen Simonson certainly tackles many weighty issues such as discrimination, honor, family relationships and greed but does so within the framework of a story that is whimsical, laugh-out-loud funny and unforgettable.

Major Pettigrew, 68, is a very proper widower with a wonderful English sense of humor who resides in the quaint village of Edgecombe St. Mary in Sussex. As the novel opens he realizes that the local shopkeeper, Jasmina Ali, is someone he has a lot in common with and that he is attracted to her. Of course, a Pakistani woman is not exactly what his son Roger or the other inhabitants of the village envision for the Major. There is also the matter of a family heirloom, matched Churchill hunting rifles, that the Major is fighting to keep his greedy relatives (including his son) from selling because he feels it symbolizes his family’s stature.

There are lovely romantic scenes, ones that are a testament to the human spirit and those that have marvelous understated humor. The book is also a lesson to never give up on life or love. For those who love the charm of the "Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society," you're in for yet another treat.