The Dollhouse: A Novel Paperback – July 11, 2017
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Description
• Enter the lush world of 1950s New York City, where a generation of aspiring models, secretaries, and editors live side by side in the glamorous Barbizon Hotel for Women while attempting to claw their way to fairy-tale success in this debut novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue. “Rich both in twists and period detail, this tale of big-city ambition is impossible to put down.” —People When she arrives at the famed Barbizon Hotel in 1952, secretarial school enrollment in hand, Darby McLaughlin is everything her modeling agency hall mates aren't: plain, self-conscious, homesick, and utterly convinced she doesn't belong—a notion the models do nothing to disabuse. Yet when Darby befriends Esme, a Barbizon maid, she's introduced to an entirely new side of New York City: seedy downtown jazz clubs where the music is as addictive as the heroin that's used there, the startling sounds of bebop, and even the possibility of romance. Over half a century later, the Barbizon's gone condo and most of its long-ago guests are forgotten. But rumors of Darby's involvement in a deadly skirmish with a hotel maid back in 1952 haunt the halls of the building as surely as the melancholy music that floats from the elderly woman's rent-controlled apartment. It's a combination too intoxicating for journalist Rose Lewin, Darby's upstairs neighbor, to resist—not to mention the perfect distraction from her own imploding personal life. Yet as Rose's obsession deepens, the ethics of her investigation become increasingly murky, and neither woman will remain unchanged when the shocking truth is finally revealed. Read more
Details
General
- Publisher
- Dutton
- Publication date
- July 11, 2017
- Edition
- Reprint
- Language
- English
- Print length
- 368 pages
ISBN
- ISBN-10
- 1101985011
- ISBN-13
- 978-1101985014
Dimensions
- Item Weight
- 10.4 ounces
- Dimensions
- 5.39 x 0.71 x 7.99 inches
Frequently asked questions
- What is the format of the book?
- It is a Paperback, as stated in the product context.
- How many pages does it have?
- The print length is 368 pages.
- When was it published?
- The publication date is July 11, 2017.
Customer reviews
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How I treasured The Dollhouse!
When I learned of a book about the Barbizon Hotel for Women, I could not wait to read it. Living in Manhattan in the mid-sixties, I knew three young women who lived there after graduating from college. Throughout my career, I met numerous executive secretaries who had graduated from the Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School, having resided at the Barbizon. What tales they each had to tell; Fiona Davis does not exaggerate. Ms. Davis did her homework well because she perfectly describes the Barbizon of the fifties era. The hotel was akin to a glamorous, expensive college dormitory, complete with stricter rules than I lived under at Mount Holyoke College. While I cavorted unfettered around Manhattan, my Barbizon friends obeyed a curfew and a draconian dress code. It was a godsend for well-to-do parents who were reluctant to unleash their daughters in Manhattan and for young women who were not quite prepared to strike out on their own. What a perfect home for Darby McLaughlin, daughter of what seemed like the mother from hell. Darby, from small Defiance, Ohio, had no self-esteem, thanks to her overbearing, social climbing mother, who sent her to New York with several self-help books and strict orders to excel at Katie Gibbs. Afraid of her own shadow, Darby is unfortunately assigned a room on a floor occupied by Eileen Ford models. She does not know it then, but this is the beginning of Darby's problems. If the hotel had had a room for her on the Katie Gibbs floors, chances are that there would have been no story. Completely daunted by the glamorous and often catty, nasty models, Darby craves friendship and finds it with Esme, a young Puerto Rican hotel elevator operator. Mingling with the help is verboten at the Barbizon; this is likely the first rebellious act of Darby's life. Esme introduces plain, self-conscious Darby to the underbelly of Manhattan. After their clandestine rendezvous, the two young women frequent a bebop club on the lower East Side, an area off-limits to Barbizon girls. Throw in a little love interest, and Darby's transformation is nearly complete. Deftly interwoven with Darby's story is that of Rose Lewis, a present day journalist, who lives at the Barbizon. The hotel had been converted to condos several years prior when it had become a dinosaur. Certain longtime residents had been allowed to remain in their spartan accommodations, and Rose dons her investigative journalist's hat when she hears of an incident between Darby, her downstairs neighbor, and Esme. Darby refuses to talk to Rose, but she successfully cajoles other residents, now in their eighties, to reminisce about the old days at the hotel. Bits and pieces of the story emerge, but Rose cannot put everything together without input from Darby. As the story progresses, both women are plagued with trouble. Darby becomes almost obsessed with the alternative lifestyle and neglects her schooling. Staying out all night becomes her new normal, and she feels the exhilaration of breaking away from her mother. Rose's boyfriend unceremoniously dumps her and evicts her from the condo. And the hits keep coming. The chapter headings make it simple to delineate the two storylines. Slowly but surely the tension builds because I have no idea how the Darby-Esme story will play out. But what fun I had getting to the end! The attention paid to detail is remarkable and entertaining, especially in the chapters that take place in the fifties. When Darby's mother ordered a Jell-O salad, for example, I remembered that those ghastly masses of jiggly green were de rigueur on every lady's lunch menu. Despite wanting to solve the Darby-Esme story, I savored this book. The writing flowed effortlessly. The transition between 1951-2 and 2016 was seamless. By a writer with lesser skills, the story could have been choppy. The characters were wonderful and well developed. I felt genuine empathy for Darby and Rose and will not soon forget them. A stellar debut leaves me waiting for the next Fiona Davis book.
When I learned of a book about the Barbizon Hotel for Women, I could not wait to read it. Living in Manhattan in the mid-sixties, I knew three young women who lived there after graduating from college. Throughout my career, I met numerous executive secretaries who had graduated from the Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School, having resided at the Barbizon. What tales they each had to tell; Fiona Davis does not exaggerate. Ms. Davis did her homework well because she perfectly describes the Barbizon of the fifties era. The hotel was akin to a glamorous, expensive college dormitory, complete with stricter rules than I lived under at Mount Holyoke College. While I cavorted unfettered around Manhattan, my Barbizon friends obeyed a curfew and a draconian dress code. It was a godsend for well-to-do parents who were reluctant to unleash their daughters in Manhattan and for young women who were not quite prepared to strike out on their own. What a perfect home for Darby McLaughlin, daughter of what seemed like the mother from hell. Darby, from small Defiance, Ohio, had no self-esteem, thanks to her overbearing, social climbing mother, who sent her to New York with several self-help books and strict orders to excel at Katie Gibbs. Afraid of her own shadow, Darby is unfortunately assigned a room on a floor occupied by Eileen Ford models. She does not know it then, but this is the beginning of Darby's problems. If the hotel had had a room for her on the Katie Gibbs floors, chances are that there would have been no story. Completely daunted by the glamorous and often catty, nasty models, Darby craves friendship and finds it with Esme, a young Puerto Rican hotel elevator operator. Mingling with the help is verboten at the Barbizon; this is likely the first rebellious act of Darby's life. Esme introduces plain, self-conscious Darby to the underbelly of Manhattan. After their clandestine rendezvous, the two young women frequent a bebop club on the lower East Side, an area off-limits to Barbizon girls. Throw in a little love interest, and Darby's transformation is nearly complete. Deftly interwoven with Darby's story is that of Rose Lewis, a present day journalist, who lives at the Barbizon. The hotel had been converted to condos several years prior when it had become a dinosaur. Certain longtime residents had been allowed to remain in their spartan accommodations, and Rose dons her investigative journalist's hat when she hears of an incident between Darby, her downstairs neighbor, and Esme. Darby refuses to talk to Rose, but she successfully cajoles other residents, now in their eighties, to reminisce about the old days at the hotel. Bits and pieces of the story emerge, but Rose cannot put everything together without input from Darby. As the story progresses, both women are plagued with trouble. Darby becomes almost obsessed with the alternative lifestyle and neglects her schooling. Staying out all night becomes her new normal, and she feels the exhilaration of breaking away from her mother. Rose's boyfriend unceremoniously dumps her and evicts her from the condo. And the hits keep coming. The chapter headings make it simple to delineate the two storylines. Slowly but surely the tension builds because I have no idea how the Darby-Esme story will play out. But what fun I had getting to the end! The attention paid to detail is remarkable and entertaining, especially in the chapters that take place in the fifties. When Darby's mother ordered a Jell-O salad, for example, I remembered that those ghastly masses of jiggly green were de rigueur on every lady's lunch menu. Despite wanting to solve the Darby-Esme story, I savored this book. The writing flowed effortlessly. The transition between 1951-2 and 2016 was seamless. By a writer with lesser skills, the story could have been choppy. The characters were wonderful and well developed. I felt genuine empathy for Darby and Rose and will not soon forget them. A stellar debut leaves me waiting for the next Fiona Davis book.
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A FAIRYTALE RESIDENCE
Fiona Davis’s stunning debut novel pulls readers into the lush world of New York City’s glamorous Barbizon Hotel for Women, where in the 1950s a generation of aspiring models, secretaries, and editors lived side by side while attempting to claw their way to fairy-tale success, and where a present-day journalist becomes consumed with uncovering a dark secret buried deep within the Barbizon’s glitzy past. In The Dollhouse: A Novel, I was caught up by the alternating storylines that swept back and forth in time. In the narrative voice of present day journalist, Rose Lewin, I felt for her situation as she waited expectantly for her lover of three years to come home from work, halfway expecting a marriage proposal. But instead, he told her he was going back to his ex-wife because of problems with his teenage daughter. Then, almost without a second thought, he tells her a few days later that she has to move out. His family needs to move in. I was stunned by her situation, since he had persuaded her to give up her apartment in the West Village. But during her stay at the Barbizon condo, she had met an elderly woman on the fourth floor, the place where the long-term residents were allowed to stay after the building turned into condominiums. She was told the woman was named Miss McLaughlin. She always wore a hat and heavy veil. Flashback to 1952, and a young woman named Darby McLaughlin found herself in an untenable situation. One partially due to being drawn into the world of Esme Castillo, a maid at the Barbizon who had befriended her when the potential models, whom Esme called “giraffes,” were pushing her around. Esme opened up possibilities for Darby, a part of New York she had never seen, a place with jazz clubs and interesting people. Darby had grown up in Ohio, and when faced with going back there, she hoped to find another way to stay in New York. Rose is drawn into Darby’s story, but Miss McLaughlin has refused to talk to her. She decides to try again before leaving her apartment to stay with a friend, but instead, runs into Stella, another resident, who is watching Darby’s dog while she is away for a few weeks. She is in a situation, too, as she has to go to the hospital for tests and needs someone to watch the dog, Bird. She tells Rose just enough to pique her curiosity further. Perfect, right? Somehow Rose finds herself watching Bird and bunking on Darby’s sofa. At work, she presents the story…and the video expert, Jason Wolf, is assigned to shoot film. Can the two of them find out the mysterious story that someone has hinted at, involving a fall from one of the higher floors, a death, a badly scarred face? Who is Sam, the man with a mysterious book of spices, and an incredible ability to mix them? What happened on that roof on Halloween night? Why has Darby become a recluse? By the time the final secrets are revealed, I did not want to let go of these characters…so intriguing, and so much a part of The Barbizon, which could also be another one of the characters. 5 stars.
Fiona Davis’s stunning debut novel pulls readers into the lush world of New York City’s glamorous Barbizon Hotel for Women, where in the 1950s a generation of aspiring models, secretaries, and editors lived side by side while attempting to claw their way to fairy-tale success, and where a present-day journalist becomes consumed with uncovering a dark secret buried deep within the Barbizon’s glitzy past. In The Dollhouse: A Novel, I was caught up by the alternating storylines that swept back and forth in time. In the narrative voice of present day journalist, Rose Lewin, I felt for her situation as she waited expectantly for her lover of three years to come home from work, halfway expecting a marriage proposal. But instead, he told her he was going back to his ex-wife because of problems with his teenage daughter. Then, almost without a second thought, he tells her a few days later that she has to move out. His family needs to move in. I was stunned by her situation, since he had persuaded her to give up her apartment in the West Village. But during her stay at the Barbizon condo, she had met an elderly woman on the fourth floor, the place where the long-term residents were allowed to stay after the building turned into condominiums. She was told the woman was named Miss McLaughlin. She always wore a hat and heavy veil. Flashback to 1952, and a young woman named Darby McLaughlin found herself in an untenable situation. One partially due to being drawn into the world of Esme Castillo, a maid at the Barbizon who had befriended her when the potential models, whom Esme called “giraffes,” were pushing her around. Esme opened up possibilities for Darby, a part of New York she had never seen, a place with jazz clubs and interesting people. Darby had grown up in Ohio, and when faced with going back there, she hoped to find another way to stay in New York. Rose is drawn into Darby’s story, but Miss McLaughlin has refused to talk to her. She decides to try again before leaving her apartment to stay with a friend, but instead, runs into Stella, another resident, who is watching Darby’s dog while she is away for a few weeks. She is in a situation, too, as she has to go to the hospital for tests and needs someone to watch the dog, Bird. She tells Rose just enough to pique her curiosity further. Perfect, right? Somehow Rose finds herself watching Bird and bunking on Darby’s sofa. At work, she presents the story…and the video expert, Jason Wolf, is assigned to shoot film. Can the two of them find out the mysterious story that someone has hinted at, involving a fall from one of the higher floors, a death, a badly scarred face? Who is Sam, the man with a mysterious book of spices, and an incredible ability to mix them? What happened on that roof on Halloween night? Why has Darby become a recluse? By the time the final secrets are revealed, I did not want to let go of these characters…so intriguing, and so much a part of The Barbizon, which could also be another one of the characters. 5 stars.
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Capivating inside look at NYC
I read this as the second half of my Fiona Davis marathon. I've had this book for quite awhile and I was really looking forward to reading it since I heard about it pre-release in 2016. I work as a travel advisor and when I started working in the industry in 1988, I worked for a company that booked hotels for travel agents all over the world. I used to book The Barbizon! It was such fun to read the history of what was once a hotel for women tied in with Fiona Davis, signature two time lines, two narratives. Rose Lewin is living in present day NYC with her boyfriend at his condo at the Barbizon. When he dumps her she finds herself squatting in an apartment on the 4th floor, where all the original residents live in rent-controlled apartments. She ends up dog sitting for Darby McLaughlin's dog. Darby has a mysterious past and Rose gets sucked into researching a story about the lives of the residents of the Barbizon in the 1950's for her job as a journalist. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the lives of the Barbizon residents of 1952, Ford Modeling girls and Katherine Gibbs secretarial school girls all living, not necessarily harmoniously at the Barbizon. As usual, the research on the era is evident as we find out about the glamour of uptown and seediness and drugs of the downtown jazz clubs. There's a bit of mystery and romance to round out the story. I eagerly await the next book from Fiona Davis.
I read this as the second half of my Fiona Davis marathon. I've had this book for quite awhile and I was really looking forward to reading it since I heard about it pre-release in 2016. I work as a travel advisor and when I started working in the industry in 1988, I worked for a company that booked hotels for travel agents all over the world. I used to book The Barbizon! It was such fun to read the history of what was once a hotel for women tied in with Fiona Davis, signature two time lines, two narratives. Rose Lewin is living in present day NYC with her boyfriend at his condo at the Barbizon. When he dumps her she finds herself squatting in an apartment on the 4th floor, where all the original residents live in rent-controlled apartments. She ends up dog sitting for Darby McLaughlin's dog. Darby has a mysterious past and Rose gets sucked into researching a story about the lives of the residents of the Barbizon in the 1950's for her job as a journalist. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the lives of the Barbizon residents of 1952, Ford Modeling girls and Katherine Gibbs secretarial school girls all living, not necessarily harmoniously at the Barbizon. As usual, the research on the era is evident as we find out about the glamour of uptown and seediness and drugs of the downtown jazz clubs. There's a bit of mystery and romance to round out the story. I eagerly await the next book from Fiona Davis.
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A GREAT Read!!
This has proven to be one of my favorite books of all time!! I keep re-reading it, give it as gifts to my reader friends and I now have a copy in paperback, hardcover and digital!! I love the short chapters, the attention to detail of the historic NYC building, the past and present perspectives, the mystery with a little twist! I’m going to have to read it again now!
This has proven to be one of my favorite books of all time!! I keep re-reading it, give it as gifts to my reader friends and I now have a copy in paperback, hardcover and digital!! I love the short chapters, the attention to detail of the historic NYC building, the past and present perspectives, the mystery with a little twist! I’m going to have to read it again now!
