Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours
Read: April 30, 2013
It’s 1935, and Desdemona Hart Spaulding has sacrificed her plans to work as an artist in New York to care for her bankrupt, ailing father in Cascade, Massachusetts. When he dies, Dez finds herself caught in a marriage of convenience, bound to the promise she made to save her father’s Shakespeare Theater, even as her town may be flooded to create a reservoir for Boston. When she falls for artist Jacob Solomon, she sees a chance to escape and realize her New York ambitions, but is it morally possible to set herself free?
════════════════════════════ ❧ ════════════════════════════
 |
| Quabbin Reservoir, inspiration for Cascade. |
At it's heart, this is a story of self-discovery, again, not my usual thing, but I loved how it played out against the creation of Rappahannock. There is a beautiful symmetry between Desdemona's personal tribulations and the fate of her beloved town, her deep seated ambition to leave a mark on the world against acceptance that change is unavoidable and permanence is an illusion of the mind.
Historically I have to give O'Hara points for highlighting both the plight of women in the 1930s and the Federal Arts Project. Early in the book, O'Hara makes it clear that Dez wants something bigger than the life of a pharmacist's wife with a house full of children. She wants a career, to embrace her work and to be involved in the dramatic shift taking place in the art world as new ideas become reality under the New Deal Work Progress Administration. As stated, Depression era lit is not my cuppa tea, but O'Hara managed to put together something very special simply by choosing to express Dez's emotional journey through the context of her artwork.
Stirringly poignant, Cascade is an elegant story of one woman's struggle to find herself amid divided loyalties and passionate desire.
════════════════════════════ ❧ ════════════════════════════
“Life is full of tough choices between less-than-perfect alternatives.”
════════════════════════════ ❧ ════════════════════════════
Check out all the stops on Maryanne O'Hara's HISTORICAL FICTION VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR
Tuesday, May 28
Review & Giveaway at Always with a Book
Review, Guest Post & Giveaway at The Lit Bitch
Review & Giveaway at Always with a Book
Review, Guest Post & Giveaway at The Lit Bitch
Tuesday, June 4
Review at Historical Tapestry & Adventures of an Intrepid Reader
Giveaway at Words and Peace
Review at Historical Tapestry & Adventures of an Intrepid Reader
Giveaway at Words and Peace
3 comments:
What a beautifully written review! Yet another blogger I wish had been around when we were writing jacket copy. Thanks for taking the time to read and review my book.
Maryanne
Thank you! :)
I have read a few books set during the depression era and enjoy them. It helps me to understand better things that my grandparents lived through.
Post a Comment