Soon to be a feature film from the creators of Downton Abbey starring Elizabeth McGovern, The Chaperone is a New York Times-bestselling novel about the woman who chaperoned an irreverent Louise Brooks to New York City in the 1920s and the summer that would change them both. Only a few years before becoming a famous silent-film star and an icon of her generation, a fifteen-year-old Louise Brooks … her generation, a fifteen-year-old Louise Brooks leaves Wichita, Kansas, to study with the prestigious Denishawn School of Dancing in New York. Much to her annoyance, she is accompanied by a thirty-six-year-old chaperone, who is neither mother nor friend. Cora Carlisle, a complicated but traditional woman with her own reasons for making the trip, has no idea what she’s in for. Young Louise, already stunningly beautiful and sporting her famous black bob with blunt bangs, is known for her arrogance and her lack of respect for convention. Ultimately, the five weeks they spend together will transform their lives forever.
For Cora, the city holds the promise of discovery that might answer the question at the core of her being, and even as she does her best to watch over Louise in this strange and bustling place she embarks on a mission of her own. And while what she finds isn’t what she anticipated, she is liberated in a way she could not have imagined. Over the course of Cora’s relationship with Louise, her eyes are opened to the promise of the twentieth century and a new understanding of the possibilities for being fully alive.
Drawing on the rich history of the 1920s, ’30s, and beyond—from the orphan trains to Prohibition, flappers, and the onset of the Great Depression to the burgeoning movement for equal rights and new opportunities for women—Laura Moriarty’s The Chaperone illustrates how rapidly everything, from fashion and hemlines to values and attitudes, was changing at this time and what a vast difference it all made for Louise Brooks, Cora Carlisle, and others like them.
more
Having found out that this book will be made into a film, I can’t wait to see it. It gave great insight into a period in America that was changing and those who wished to keep it the same. The book covered so many critical social issues and put them all into perspective. Two perspectives in fact: an older woman and a younger one. I thought it well-written and thought provoking, but still easy to read.
The book drew me in and kept me coming back for more.
It has been a while since I read this, but I really enjoyed it. It’s easy reading and would recommend it for those who enjoy historical novels.
I haven’t finished reading this book but I can’t put it down. I just hope there is a happy ending.
Convaluted plot kept my interest
It was very interesting – descriptive of the 20’s and 30’s and how people talked and responded in those years. thought provoking
to follow characters thru their lives.
This book has interesting characters and offers a detailed glimpse into life during the Prohibition years and afterward. It was an interesting view of women of the time.
Very educational. I never knew who Louise Brooks was. A bit sad but it’s based on a true story so what can you do?
What a refreshingly realistic book. The character building and story line building are beyond excellent. You will follow the lives of a small group of characters, as well as follow the political change and social norms evolving throughout their lives. With such an intimate and heart-tingling story, within a much bigger social overview of things like segregation, gay rights, and women’s rights at the time, I feel like I got two wonderful books in one! This story is so dear to my heart and I would recommend it to any woman who loves with her whole heart. <3
In Laura Moriarty’s The Chaperone, 15-year-old Louise Brooks escapes an unhappy home in Wichita for the big lights of New York City. She makes the trip in the watchful company of fellow Wichitan Cora Carlisle, who seemingly has it all – a handsome husband, a lovely home, college-bound twin sons, and the respect and admiration of every lady worth her salt in or around Wichita. What neither woman can know of the other is the baggage that each carries with her to New York in the form of rather dark secrets from the past.
Louise Brooks was a real person. I first heard of her when I read Flapper earlier this year. She was a silent film star who made it big – bigger than even Clara Bow, perhaps – before being (mostly) lost to history. She really did travel to New York in the summer of 1922 in the company of a chaperone, one Alice Mills. After a few mostly fruitless searches for information on Alice Mills, I have the impression that Moriarty likely came to the quick conclusion that a true-to-life historical fiction in the mold of The Paris Wife wasn’t feasible (and might have been far less interesting even had it been) and so created her own chaperone, with a vibrant, twisting story of her own.
All of which is fine and dandy but the question, of course, is what did I make of The Chaperone? It was a good vacation read – easy to pick up and put down, with relatively few characters and a memorable plot that didn’t have me turning back the pages to remember one or another obscure detail. That said, it wasn’t such a page turner that I ever felt a pang at having to lay it aside and, generally, I felt it was a rather middling read. I much preferred Alice I Have Been or, more recently, The House at Tyneford to The Chaperone. I was more than a bit surprised to discover that it’s being adapted into a movie and that Julian Fellowes is writing the screenplay – with Cora Carlisle being played by Cora Crawley, I mean Elizabeth McGovern, herself. If you know me at all, you already knew that I have no plans to see the movie.
(This review was originally published at http://www.thisyearinbooks.com/2013/08/the-chaperone.html)
Terrific book! I’ve read it twice–something I rarely do!
Starts out interesting, ends up weird!
Interesting but I felt a little let down by the characters.
It was an excellent read. I had to share it.
Liked it very much
Thoughtful character development. Interesting story unfolds over long period of time. Excellent reader on Audible.
I loved this book. Takes you back to a time when women’s lives were limited as well as teaches you about actions in our country and their after effects
Never knew much about Louise Brooks except her iconic photo. Made me explore more about her. I found all of the characters believable, each with their own sad story.
I loved this and so did everyone in my book club.
Well written. I loved this book!