Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor (A Book Review)

Jay Gatsby, an alluring young man with promise, was shot to death at his West Egg, NY home. For all intents and purposes, this is a clear cut case of murder-suicide between local mechanic George Wilson and Jay Gatsby.

Not everyone believes this solid and neatly crafted conclusion to this unfortunate ordeal. Enter Detective Frank Charles, who is called in to find out what really happened. Detective Charles is relentless and is determined to do just that once he finds a diamond hairpin near the murder scene.

During his investigation, three women become persons of interest. Daisy Buchanan, a woman from Gatsby’s past who is currently married to Tom Buchanan, a philandering millionaire. Jordan Baker, an excellent golf player who plays on the national circuit, is Daisy”s best friend and knows Gatsby from earlier years as well. Catherine McCoy, a suffragette, passionate about women rights, whose sister Myrtle Wilson, is in an abusive marriage, is also a familiar acquaintance of Gatsby.

All three women are entangled in an intricate web of deception and obsession, carefully orchestrated by Gatsby himself. Will Detective Charles uncover the truth of who really led Gatsby to his demise?

A brilliant remix on the classic, The Great Gatsby, Beautiful Little Fools, offers a strongly crafted possibility of what happened to J. Gatsby. It is told from the perspectives of the women in Gatsby’s world.

I absolutely loved the reworking of The Great Gatsby. In Beautiful Little Fools, Cantor with much care and respect for the original story, beautifully offered a nuanced retelling of the timeless classic. It brought into focus the women of the Great Gatsby in an interesting way. I thoroughly enjoyed every drop.

Rating 9/10

Wild Women and The Blues by Denny S. Bryce (A Book Review)

In 1925 Chicago, Honeree Dalcour is a showgirl at one of the hottest clubs in town. She has socialized with the likes of Louis Armstrong, Lil Hardin, Oscar Michaux, and many other famous celebs.. Her life is fabulous and exciting on the Chicago jazz scene. She befriends a quiet and aspiring showgirl, Bessie Palmer, who becomes like a sister to her. They are protective of one another. They have determined to make the best life possible. Between their dancing, developing friendships with local celebrities, and Honeree’s tailoring skills, they’re well on their way.

Life takes a turn, when she spots Ezekiel, her first love, in the crowd of the club where she dances. The last time she saw him was when he and his family vanished three years ago, leaving her broken hearted. But, there’s something different about Ezekiel. No longer is he the quiet boy from a well-to-do family, there’s an edginess to him now. Ezekiel has connections with several unsavory characters that lends to his edginess. Honeree is torn between anger and the deep seated longing she’s held for him since he left three years ago. Will things work out for them or has the time passed for their youthful promises to be fulfilled? Will Ezekiel’s unscrupulous dealings threaten any semblance of happiness for them?

In 2015. Ms. Honeree is in a senior facility in Chicago. She is visited by a young film grad student, Sawyer Hayes. Sawyer is working on his thesis, which involves a lost Oscar Michaux film that Ms. Honeree can help provide some missing information about. When Sawyer and Honeree meet however, it doesn’t make for an easy rapport at first. Honeree is reluctant and Sawyer is impatient. Over time, Honeree opens up only to weave a story laced with lies and clouded in cover-ups. Sawyer discovers so much about himself during his time with Honeree. Honeree gets to free herself of some ghosts of her past.

This was a gripping story filled with beautiful imagery of Chicago during the 1920’s. I loved the alternating timeline between that time and the present day with Sawyer. It was needed, because it helped to explain the importance of knowledge in many situations. It filled in many blanks for me and brought the story full circle.

Rating: 8/10