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The Chaperone Laura Moriarty Books

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The Chaperone Laura Moriarty Books

THE CHAPERONE by Laura Moriarty was published in 2012. I read about this book recently in an article about a new movie and PBS event, based on this book and scripted by Julian Fellowes. How exciting. I had to read it as I am a big fan of Fellowes’ style and work.
Set in the early 1920s, a Kansas woman chaperones a very talented, headstrong and beautiful 15 year-old dancer (Louise Brooks) to New York City for the summer. One is looking towards the future - what it will bring (and trying to manipulate it) and one is revisiting the past (and trying to manipulate it).
The writing is extremely detailed which I like. I feel an intimate part of every scene, every event, and every character. The sense of place is extraordinary - the orphanage, the train ride, the Kaufman farm, Wichita, Kansas, Cora’s home, NYC - very detailed and precisely written.
A story of identity. A story of evolution - Cora and her core values developing and maturing. A story of ordinary people living their lives - with secrets and lies, high and low points, joys and frustrations and sorrows and (always) kindness.
I liked the author’s list of books and documents she read while working on this book.
All the characters ‘spoke to me’, even Louise. I felt much affected by the Kaufman’s. They were particularly kind and courageous in their quiet, humble way.
If you are a fan of detailed, personal, period writing, you will like this book.


Tags : Amazon.com: The Chaperone (9781594487019): Laura Moriarty: Books,Laura Moriarty,The Chaperone,Riverhead Books,1594487014,Literary,Middle-aged women;Fiction.,Motion picture actors and actresses;Fiction.,New York (N.Y.);History;1898-1951;Fiction.,AMERICAN HISTORICAL FICTION,Biographical,FICTION Historical General,FICTION Historical.,Fiction,Fiction - General,Fiction Biographical,Fiction Historical,Fiction Literary,Fiction-Coming of Age,Fiction-Historical,GENERAL,General Adult,Historical - General,Middle-aged women,Motion picture actors and actresses,United States,bisacsh

The Chaperone Laura Moriarty Books Reviews

This was a beautifully written book dealing with many issues confronting women from the early 1900s on. The chaperone, herself, was left at an orphanage until she was selected for an orphan train. For those not familiar with orphan trains children would be sent on trains across the country, stopping at locations where the children would be paraded before possible adoptive parents.The babies and youngest children were usually selected first. Those not selected were put back on the train to the next stop and the process continued. Cora ( the chaperone of this story) went through this process until she was selected by a farming couple from Kansas. And, this is just the beginning...
I loved the glimpse Moriarty gave me into life in the 1920s - what it was like to be in New York City, what it felt like to wear a corset, and how easily people went along with the beliefs of the time. Cora herself was such an interesting character I totally related to her as someone who is around the same age and in a similar phase in life, and I liked how the author portrayed her as someone supported the antiquated notions of the time (she is shocked to see black people mingling with white people in a theatre, and she thinks Prohibition is a positive thing) - it was done in a way where you could see how easily middle America agreed with these laws, even those who are smart and kind and will eventually be enlightened that there's a better way to live, as does Cora.

The most compelling section of the book was definitely the time that Cora spent in New York City. I couldn't believe how long the book lasted after this part, though, it dragged and dragged as Cora lived the rest of her life, and since it wasn't nearly as interesting as her time in New York, I felt like it was extraneous. It was, however, intriguing to see historical events and the country changing through Cora's eyes.

Moriarty is skilled at writing historical fiction, though, and I'd welcome the chance to read another book of hers.
A well crafted story of a woman's life (Cora) and the events and issues that shaped it. I found this book because it featured Louise Brooks. Cora is the chaperone for Louise, an aspiring 15 year old dancer from Kansas who is accepted at the Denishawn dance school in New York. Cora's adventures in chaperoning Louise could probably be expanded to fill a novella by itself, but the book isn't about Louise Brooks, who appears in the early chapters and occasionally later on. Cora has already gone through more challenges than most people, and this during the tremendous social upheavals of the 1920s. A world war had recently ended although the peace process went on long after hostilities had stopped, women gained voting rights and Prohibition was the law of the land, although not widely obeyed even by its own supporters. Louise Brooks embodies the wild, hedonistic and often disrespectful views and values of the era. Cora processes these influences and develops her own views and beliefs quickly as life's events happen. The author shows us Cora's thoughts, for example during the controversy over the use of birth control, when Cora boldly steps away from the conventional wisdom of her peers.

There are many different ways a person might respond as they find their way through life. Another person may have done it differently, but to take issue with how Cora's views change misses that point. This is Cora's story, not that of Louise or anyone else. I found this book fascinating and it held my interest all the way through. As a student of history I appreciate Laura Moriarty's accuracy and fairness. In any work of historical fiction one can find quibbles and bits but there is little of that in The Chaperone. Using the word 'humongous' might be a quibble but the feeling of authenticity of the book is not harmed. I say that as someone who has recently done a lot of research of the 1920s and 1930s, including reading books that were written in that time. People make up words all the time, for example 'posilutely' (combining positively and absolutely) was in fashion in the later 1920s.

I highly recommend The Chaperone for those who enjoy historical fiction with interesting and unique characters. Cora may not get drunk every night and dance in speakeasies, but she gives us a perspective of how a woman a generation older than Louise Brooks and the 1920s flappers could also be agents of social change.
THE CHAPERONE by Laura Moriarty was published in 2012. I read about this book recently in an article about a new movie and PBS event, based on this book and scripted by Julian Fellowes. How exciting. I had to read it as I am a big fan of Fellowes’ style and work.
Set in the early 1920s, a Kansas woman chaperones a very talented, headstrong and beautiful 15 year-old dancer (Louise Brooks) to New York City for the summer. One is looking towards the future - what it will bring (and trying to manipulate it) and one is revisiting the past (and trying to manipulate it).
The writing is extremely detailed which I like. I feel an intimate part of every scene, every event, and every character. The sense of place is extraordinary - the orphanage, the train ride, the Kaufman farm, Wichita, Kansas, Cora’s home, NYC - very detailed and precisely written.
A story of identity. A story of evolution - Cora and her core values developing and maturing. A story of ordinary people living their lives - with secrets and lies, high and low points, joys and frustrations and sorrows and (always) kindness.
I liked the author’s list of books and documents she read while working on this book.
All the characters ‘spoke to me’, even Louise. I felt much affected by the Kaufman’s. They were particularly kind and courageous in their quiet, humble way.
If you are a fan of detailed, personal, period writing, you will like this book.