“Let us never underestimate the power of a well-written [book].” —Karen Joy Fowler
Rachel’s been hangin’ with my boys, Rocky and Ryland. And I couldn’t be happier about it. I think it’s safe to say her lovin’ heart pumped chocolate too as she listened to Ray Porter’s expressive voice enlarge Weir’s so-much-more-than-science story. Project Hail Mary continues to be at the top of my 2022 favorites. I just finished a book that will also land squarely on that list.
Am I late to the Karen Joy Fowler party or what? She’s a New York Times best-selling author, a PEN/Faulkner Award Winner, and a Man Booker Prize short-lister. Plus she loves Jane Austen. Seems like I should have connected with her via the well-written page long before now. Fowler just offered me a fascinating look into John Wilkes Booth’s chaotic family life and insight into the impossibly vain mind of Lincoln’s assassin.
“Yes, we know even before we turn the first page where the intertwined timelines of the Booths and American history will lead, but Fowler’s deftly imagined family portrait keeps us riveted”—I couldn’t agree more with this Washington Post reviewer. Fowler’s strategy to peek into the Booth family dysfunction through the eyes of 3 of John’s siblings works brilliantly. Now I better understand where the brother-who-could-do-no-wrong got it dead wrong.
P.S. Literati, you’re gonna love how Fowler intricately weaves Shakespeare throughout this historical fiction homerun.
One more P.S. This made me think I should read my niece’s recommendation Chasing Lincoln’s Killer. Asap.