Showing posts with label Laura Moriarty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Laura Moriarty. Show all posts

Sunday, February 9, 2020

Louise Brooks inspired film The Chaperone shows in Australia

The Louise Brooks inspired film The Chaperone will be shown on Tuesday, February 25 at the Stanton Library in North Sydney, New South Wales. More information about this event can be found HERE.

The library announcement reads, "Join us @Stanton_Library for our Books to Movies screening of 'The Chaperone' based on the 2012 novel by Laura Moriarty about teenage Louise Brooks, who dreams of fame and fortune in New York City in the company of a watchful chaperone. All welcome!" Additionally, the library notes, "This friendly group meets to screen films based on both classic and popular books. And it is not necessary to have read the book! Filmic appreciation mixed with lively debate makes this event all the more interesting."

The Chaperone, produced as a film by PBS in the United States, is based on the bestselling 2012 book of the same name by Laura Moriarty, a Kansas novelist. Curiously, The Chaperone has received a lot of "love" in Australia, perhaps as much as the film received in the United States. The titular star of the film, Elizabeth McGovern, flew to Sydney were she introduced it at the Australian premiere. An earlier LBS blog on the Australian opening can be found HERE.

 via Facebook
Though Academy Award nominee Elizabeth McGovern, famous for her role in Downton Abbey, was the star of The Chaperone, many including myself felt actress Haley Lu Richardson stole the show. Richardson plays Louise Brooks in what I would describe as a bravura performance, one worthy of at least an Oscar nomination as best supporting actress. Regrettably, she did not receive a nomination. Here is a slightly different, more briskly edited Australian trailer for the film.


I think it is wonderful that Australia has embraced The Chaperone and Louise Brooks' story. (A major retrospective of the actress' film was held late last year at the Melbourne Cinémathèque. Read more about it HERE. ) I hope a bunch of people turn out for the Stanton screening, and a bunch of people check out a copy of Laura Moriarty's fine novel. The Louise Brooks Society recommends both!


Sunday, November 24, 2019

If you watched The Chaperone and want to find out more about Louise Brooks

If you watched The Chaperone and want to find out more about Louise Brooks, here is where to start.

(Left) Louise Brooks as a Denishawn dancer c. 1923                (Right) Louise Brooks as Lulu in Pandora's Box, 1929
The one and only biography of actress and dancer is titled Louise Brooks, and it's author is Barry Paris. It is a great read. It is a book that will fascinate you, it is a book that will immerse you in the rich history of the Jazz Age, and it is a book that will break your heart. It is full of empathy. And it is smartly written. This biography was first published in 1989 (with a different cover), and it is still in print  today. I read a lot of biographies, and 25 years after I first read the Barry Paris biography, I still feel that it is the single best biography I have ever read and will ever read. I love it. And you will too. Get a copy on amazon HERE.


Later in life, Louise Brooks became an accomplished writer. In 1982, a collection of her autobiographical essays was published (with a different cover) under the title Lulu in Hollywood. It became a bestseller, and it too is still in print today. Get a copy on amazon HERE.

  

Today, Louise Brooks is best known for playing Lulu in the classic 1929 silent film, Pandora's Box. It is a masterpiece, and is considered one of the great films of the silent era. Unfortunately, it is not currently available on DVD or Blu-ray in the United States, but may be found on online streaming services or on DVD in Europe

Fortunately, Brooks' other best film, Diary of a Lost Girl, is available on DVD / Blu-ray. It's a tragic story that may well break your heart - it tells the story of a teenage girl who is raped and conceives a baby, only to have the child taken away; this young unwed mother is then sent to a reform school, but escapes, only to end up as a prostitute. Like Pandora's Box, it is a German silent film; in fact, the two films were made within a year of each other. I recommend the Kino Lorber discs as the best version available. Get a copy on amazon HERE.


Louise Brooks' other best available film on DVD is an American film. It is titled Beggars of Life (1928), and it tells the story of an orphan girl who murders her abusive stepfather and goes on the run dressed as a boy. It is a terrific film, despite its grim story. I recommend the Kino Lorber discs as the best version available. Get a copy on amazon HERE.


If you enjoyed The Chaperone as a film as much as I did, you may well want to read Laura Moriarty's fine novel - the basis for the film. It too is available on amazon HERE.


As is the film of The Chaperone. It too is available on amazon HERE

Of course, there are other books and DVDs available to those willing to go further. This blog was begun in 2002, and needless to say, there are many entries to check out. Also worth checking out is my website, the Louise Brooks Society at www.pandorasbox.com. I started it online in 1995, and it is full of information and images of Louise Brooks, including her days as an aspiring dancer in Kansas and her two seasons with the Denishawn Dance Company.

Friday, September 20, 2019

TV date announced for Louise Brooks inspired film The Chaperone

At last, the date for the television debut of The Chaperone has been announced. According to the venerable Willow and Thatch website, the show will broadcast on PBS on Sunday, November 24th.

Following a too limited theatrical release in April, The Chaperone was made available for streaming in August on PBS Passport, a members only channel. Now comes the announcement of its national broadcast date - something Louise Brooks' fans across the United States have been waiting for!

The Chaperone is based on Laura Moriarty’s 2012 New York Times bestselling novel and reunites several individuals associated with the hit PBS series, Downton Abbey. Among them is Julian Fellowes, who scripted Downton Abbey and adapted The Chaperone, and Elizabeth McGovern, who starred in the TV series and produced and stars in The Chaperone. Michael Engler, who directed episodes of the TV show as well as the just released Downton Abbey film, directed The Chaperone.


McGovern, who played Lady Cora Grantham in Downton Abbey, stars opposite young actress Haley Lu Richardson, who plays Louise Brooks. The Chaperone is a fictionalized account of the summer when the 15 year old Brooks left Wichita, Kansas to travel to New York City to attend the Denishawn School of dance. IMHO, Haley Lu Richardson is terrific in the role of Brooks, a talented though petulant teenager. She is deserving of an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actress. The costuming in the film is also quite good.

Despite the many mixed reviews the film has received in newspaper and magazine around the world, it is a film well worth watching -- especially if you are a fan of Louise Brooks OR Downton Abbey. Back in April, I penned a long review about The Chaperone for Film International. You can read my review HERE.

Sunday, June 9, 2019

Norwood Public Library hosts The Chaperone reading group on June 19

The Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts will host a reading group on June 19 to discuss The Chaperone. More information can be found HERE.

Turn the Page Book Group - The Chaperone
Wednesday, June 1910:00—11:00 AM Simoni Room Morrill Memorial Library 33 Walpole St., Norwood, MA, 02062

The Morrill Memorial Library’s monthly Turn the Page Book Group will meet on Wednesday, June 19 at 10 am and 7 pm to discuss The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty. The library describes the book as "A novel about the friendship between an adolescent, pre-movie-star Louise Brooks, and the 36-year-old woman who chaperones her to New York City for a summer, in 1922, and how it changes both their lives."

A New York Times bestseller and the USA Today #1 Hot Fiction Pick, The Chaperone is a captivating account of the woman who chaperoned an irreverent Louise Brooks to New York City in the summer of 1922. It was recently made into a feature film starring Elizabeth McGovern by the creators of Downton Abbey.

Copies of the book in a number of formats will be available to pick up at the Circulation Desk. Light refreshments will be served.

To sign up for either the morning or evening session, led by Patty Bailey and first-time guest host Geri Harrold, please call 781-769-0200, x110, or stop by the library Reference or Information desk. Well more than half of the seats are taken for this highly anticipated event.

#####

On a not unrelated note, author Laura Moriarty was recently on "One on One with Victor Hogstrom," a television show on the local PBS affiliate (KPTS Channel 8) in Wichita, Kansas. In the thirty minute show, Moriarty discusses the mission of her novels. She also talks about The Chaperone, the novel she wrote about a certain Kansas-born film star that has been made into a new movie.


Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Review Round-up: the Louise Brooks inspired film, The Chaperone

Among the Louise Brooks and silent film communities, there has long been interest in the just released film, The Chaperone. Based on the 2012 novel by Laura Moriarty and released by PBS Masterpiece, the film tells the story of the summer of 1922 when the teenage Brooks (played by Haley Lu Richardson) travels to New York City in the company of a chaperone (played by Elizabeth McGovern).

Courtesy PBS Distribution
Over the last year, but especially within the last few weeks, I have posted a number of pieces about the film on this blog. I have also just written my own review, a longer piece which I originally titled  "Louise Brooks, The Chaperone, and the shaping of a legend." My review, which is now titled "Never the Victim: Louise Brooks and The Chaperone," was published by Film International. Please give it a read and let me know what you think. [It was pointed out that my piece contains a factual error, the fact that actress Julia Roberts is not from Kansas, but from Georgia. Mea culpa.]

Courtesy PBS Distribution
With it's Downton Abbey lineage, there were high expectations around the The Chaperone. Unfortunately, those expectations are falling short. Many of the dozens of reviews only give the film a middling review, pointing out its good and not-so-good points. Many of them make similar points. Nearly all of them discuss Louise Brooks. Here is a short list of the interesting reviews and article so-far.

"Haley Lu Richardson on The Chaperone, the Real Louise Brooks, & Getting a Chance to Dance"
by Christina Radish / The Collider 

"Elizabeth McGovern on The Chaperone and women finding happiness on their own terms"
by Maureen Lee Lenker / Entertainment Weekly

"Lawrence author’s tale of famous Kansan is now a movie, with Downton Abbey pedigree"
by Jon Niccum / Kansas City Star

"The Chaperone Is a Sublime Account of Flapper Icon Louise Brooks’ Early Life"
by Rex Reed / New York Observer 
 
"The Chaperone introduces a wild young star, then looks elsewhere"
by Richard Roeper / Chicago Sun Times

"Review: Shades of Downton Abbey color The Chaperone"
By Kenneth Turan / Los Angeles Times

"Enjoy The Chaperone for its strong female leads, but don’t expect it to roar"
by Pat Padua / Washington Post 

"Film Review: The Chaperone - Haley Lu Richardson has the sensual vibrance to play silent screen legend Louise Brooks, but this tale of her first New York visit is a staid tug-of-war"
by Owen Gleiberman / Variety

"With The Chaperone, three Downton Abbey veterans reunite. And, boy, is it ever boring"
by Bill Goodykoontz / Arizona Republic

"Downton Flabby: Period Piece The Chaperone Is A Let-Down"
by Mark Jenkins / National Public Radio

A number of the reviews repeat familiar and not always true notions about Brooks (suggesting she was the It girl, and not Clara Bow), while others get their facts wrong. One review called Elizabeth McGovern by the name Maureen McGovern - of "Morning After" fame. Others confused Wichita, Kansas with Topeka and Cherryvale.

There are more reviews which a Google news search will turn-up. Increasingly, reviewers are turning away from describing The Chaperone as the story of a woman on the road to find out (a story of discovery), to it being about Louise Brooks, which it isn't intended to be but kind of becomes. None, so far, have noticed the historical inaccuracies in the film.

Courtesy PBS Distribution
If you are a Louise Brooks fan and this blog post dampens your interest in seeing the film, don't let it. Go see it if you can. I like it, all-in-all. And I think most fans of Louise Brooks will as well.

The film is in limited release - so you will need to check the thechaperonefilm.com website for locations where it is showing. Strangely, so far, it is not listed as showing in Wichita, Kansas. Though, it is set to open in Rochester, New York on April 19. It is not listed as opening in the town where I live - Sacramento, California.

Courtesy PBS Distribution

Thursday, April 11, 2019

Louise Brooks inspired film The Chaperone shows in Lawrence, Kansas on April 18th

A special preview screening of the new film, The Chaperone, based on the best-selling book by  author Laura Moriarty and adapted by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes, will take place at Liberty Hall in Lawrence, Kansas on April 18th. [The film opens in Lawrence the following day.]

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Lawrence author Laura Moriarty & moderator Laura Kirk. Books will be available for sale & signing. More information about the event may be found HERE.

This special event marks a return of-a-kind to Lawrence by Louise Brooks. As a member of Denishawn, Brooks danced in Lawrence on Friday, February 1, 1924 at the Bowersock Theatre, which was later renamed Liberty Hall. More background on the book and film can be heard on this Kansas Public Radio program featuring an interview with Laura Moriarty. Click on the LINK to listen.


Synopsis: Louise Brooks, the 1920s silver screen sensation who never met a rule she didn’t break, epitomized the restless, reckless spirit of the Jazz Age. But, just a few years earlier, she was a 15 year-old student in Wichita, Kansas for whom fame and fortune were only dreams. When the opportunity arises for her to go to New York to study with a leading dance troupe, her mother (Victoria Hill) insists there be a chaperone. Norma Carlisle (Elizabeth McGovern), a local society matron who never broke a rule in her life, impulsively volunteers to accompany Louise (Haley Lu Richardson) to New York for the summer.

Director: Michael Engler
Writers: Julian Fellowes (screenplay by), Laura Moriarty (based on the book by)
Stars: Haley Lu Richardson, Elizabeth McGovern, Miranda Otto
Genre: Drama
Rated: Unrated
Running Time: 1h, 43min
Doors open 1 hour prior to showtime.
For  more information on Liberty Hall, visit www.libertyhall.net/about

Liberty Hall (then the Bowersock Theatre) as it looked around the time Louise Brook danced there as a
member of the Denishawn dance Company


Liberty Hall in 1925, which was then showing the Colleen Moore film, The Perfect Flapper


Liberty Hall today, which will host the first Kansas screening of The Chaperone

Friday, February 8, 2019

Official Trailer for Louise Brooks inspired film The Chaperone

A release date has been set and a trailer released for the new Louise Brooks inspired film The Chaperone. According to it's Facebook page and IMDb page and other sources, the film opens in theaters in New York on March 29, and in L.A. on April 5. Following its theatrical release, the film will air on PBS television.

Produced by PBS Masterpiece and based on the 2012 New York Times bestselling novel of the same name by Laura Moriarty, The Chaperone reunites the writer (Oscar-winner Julian Fellowes), director (Michael Engler), and star (Elizabeth McGovern) of Downton Abbey for "an immersive and richly emotional period piece." The film stars Haley Lu Richardson as a teenage Louise Brooks, as well as Campbell Scott, Victoria Hill, Geza Rohrig, Blythe Danner, and Miranda Otto (as dance great Ruth St. Dennis) and Robert Fairchild (as dance great Ted Shawn). A website for the much anticipated film has also been established at www.thechaperonefilm.com/ (There is also an old PBS webpage.)


The Louise Brooks Society and the Louise Brooks community has long anticipated the release of The Chaperone. (We're fans of the novel, and in fact, the Louise Brooks Society provided the cover image for the hardcover and softcover editions of the book in the United States, as well as other editions released around the world.)

The Chaperone takes place against the backdrop of the tumultuous early 1920’s. A Kansas woman (Elizabeth McGovern in the title role) is forever changed when she chaperones a beautiful and talented 15-year-old dancer named Louise Brooks (played by Haley Lu Richardson) to New York for the summer. One is eager to fulfill aspiration of dance stardom; the other is on a mission to unearth the mysteries of her past.

PBS Distribution puts it this way: "Louise Brooks the 1920s silver screen sensation who never met a rule she didn’t break, epitomized the restless, reckless spirit of the Jazz Age. But, just a few years earlier, she was a 15 year-old student in Wichita, Kansas for whom fame and fortune were only dreams. When the opportunity arises for her to go to New York to study with a leading dance troupe, her mother insists there be a chaperone. Norma Carlisle (Elizabeth McGovern), a local society matron who never broke a rule in her life, impulsively volunteers to accompany Louise (Haley Lu Richardson) to New York for the summer. Why does this utterly conventional woman do this? What happens to her when she lands in Manhattan with an unusually rebellious teenager as her ward? And, which of the two women is stronger, the uptight wife-and-mother or the irrepressible free spirit? It’s a story full of surprises—about who these women really are, and who they eventually become."


Besides a Facebook page, there are also Twitter account and Instagram account to follow the latest on this new film release.

Want to find out more? Check out this 2012 interview with Chaperone author Laura Moriarty by Louise Brooks Society director Thomas Gladysz on the San Francisco Chronicle website. There is also a related LBS blog posted at the time we had the privilege of introducing Laura Moriarty at one of her author events around the time of the book's release. Stay tuned to this blog and the Louise Brooks Society website and Twitter account for the latest news on this exciting new release.

What's a Louise Brooks Society blog post without a gorgeous picture of Louise Brooks? Here is a portrait of the 16 year old dancer (and future film star) taken during her first season (spoiler alert) with Denishawn dancing alongside legend Martha Graham (who is not a character in the new film, though was likely present during some of the NYC scenes depicted in the film). I think Haley Lu Richardson looks the part.


Of all her fellow dancers, Brooks looked up to Martha Graham the most. In later years, she told Kenneth Tynan, “Graham['s] genius I absorbed to the bone during the years we danced together on tour.”

Brooks, apparently, also made an impression on Graham. In her autobiography, Blood Memory, Graham wrote, “Louise Brooks was a member of the Denishawn Company and breathtakingly beautiful. She wore her hair always in that pageboy. Everything that she did was beautiful. I was utterly absorbed by her beauty and what she did. Even before she was introduced to me, I remember watching her across the room as she stood up with a group of girls from Denishawn, all dressed alike. Louise, though, was the absolute standout, the one. She possessed a quality of strength, an inner power that one felt immediately in her presence. She was very much a loner and terribly self-destructive. Of course, it didn’t help that everyone gave her such a difficult time. I suppose I identified with her as an outsider. I befriended her, and she always seemed to be watching me perform, watching me in the dressing room. She later said, ‘I learned how to act by watching Martha Graham dance.”

Saturday, May 31, 2014

New edition of Laura Moriarty's The Chaperone from Spain

A new edition of Laura Moriarty's The Chaperone is out today in Spain. This handsome softcover edition of the bestselling American novel features Louise Brooks on the cover. The book was translated by Carlos Milla and Isabel Ferrer.


The Chaperone, in Spanish titled Una acompañante en New York, tells a story focusing on the 15 year old Louise Brooks and her trip to New York City in the summer of 1922 to join the Denishawn Dance Company. "Inspirada por la vida de la estrella de cine mudo Louise Brooks. esta es la historia de dos mujeres que representan dos mundos opuestos, y del verano que cambió su vida."

This Spanish edition has French folds which have additional text about Louise Brooks not included on the American editions. Also, the Louise Brooks Society is credited.

Here is a bit more text about the book in Spanish, from the publisher's website. "En 1922, la joven y precoz Louise Brooks y su amiga, Cora Carlisle, una mujer casada muy tradicional, viajan juntas desde Witchita, Kansas, a Nueva York, la metrópolis de moda de la época. Cada una tiene sus propios motivos para hacer ese viaje: la rebelde Louise se ha inscrito en la academia de danza vanguardista Denishawn, porque sueña con llegar a ser una famosa bailarina. Una ilusión que cumplirá de largo, convirtiéndose en una conocida actriz del cine mudo y en la mujer más deseada del Hollywood de la época. Por su parte, Cora no solo busca escapar de la monotonía de su vida, sino que quiere cumplir un deseo que lleva tiempo postergando: encontrar sus orígenes, ya que nunca ha conocido a sus padres. Obligadas a pasar juntas un verano en la fascinante y caleidoscópica ciudad de moda, estas dos amigas aprenderán a entenderse y descubrirán que la vida les tienere servadas muchas sorpresas. "

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Polish edition of Laura Moriarty's Louise Brooks novel, The Chaperone

The Polish edition of Laura Moriarty's novel, The Chaperone, has been published by Bukowy Las. In Poland, the book is titled Przyzwoitka. Alas, there is no Louise Brooks cover art. Here is the publisher supplied description:

"Inspirowana życiem gwiazdy filmu niemego Louise Brooks opowieść o dwóch diametralnie różnych kobietach oraz o nowojorskim lecie, które je odmieniło W 1922 r., jeszcze zanim stała się sławną aktorką filmową oraz ikoną swojego pokolenia, piętnastoletnia Louise Brooks wyjeżdża latem z Wichita w stanie Kansas do Nowego Jorku, by pobierać naukę w awangardowej szkole tańca Denishawn. Ku jej wielkiemu niezadowoleniu towarzyszy jej trzydziestosześcioletnia przyzwoitka. Cora Carlisle nie jest ani matką, ani przyjaciółką, a po prostu szacowną sąsiadką, którą rodzice Louise wynajmują przez wzgląd na przyzwoitość. Tradycyjna i zacna Cora, która udaje się w tę podróż także z powodów prywatnych, nie zdaje sobie sprawy, na co się zdecydowała. Louise, olśniewająco piękna już w tak młodym wieku i paradująca w słynnej krótkiej fryzurze, znana jest z arogancji, nierespektowania konwenansów oraz z żywej inteligencji. Zanim pociąg zatrzyma się na nowojorskim dworcu Grand Central, Cora nabiera obaw, że pilnowanie Louise będzie co najmniej wyczerpujące, a w najgorszym wypadku wręcz niemożliwe. Ostatecznie jednak te wspólnie spędzone z młodziutką dziewczyną tygodnie okażą się najważniejszym czasem w jej życiu."

Translation: "Inspired by the life of silent film star Louise Brooks, a tale of two radically different women and the New York City summer that changed in 1922, even before she became a famous film actress and icon of his generation, fifteen year old Louise Brooks leaves in summer, from Wichita, Kansas to New York to get enrolled in school by Denishawn dance. To her great disappointment of trzydziestosześcioletnia is accompanied by a chaperone. Cora Carlisle is neither her mother nor her friend, and simply distinguished neighbor, Louise's parents rent for the sake of propriety. The traditional zacna and Cora, who goes on this journey with private reasons, does not realize what you decided. Louise, drop-dead gorgeous already at such a young age and paradująca in the famous short hairstyle, is known for its arrogance, to become sources of conventions and with living intelligence. Before the train stops at New York's Grand Central station, Cora takes on fears that ensure Louise will at least be comprehensive, and at worst impossible. Ultimately, however, these jointly spent with young girl weeks will prove to be the most important time in her life."

And for those keeping track, here is the cover of the 2013 German edition. Laura Moriarty's  novel was translated into German by Britta Evert, and titled Das Schmetterlings mädchen

The publisher's description reads: "New York in den Goldenen Zwanzigern: Eine turbulente Metropole voller Leben, Musik, Abenteuer - ein aufregendes Versprechen. Als die fünfzehnjährige Louise aus dem verschlafenen Kansas dorthin reist, um Tänzerin zu werden, geht für sie ein Traum in Erfüllung. Hals über Kopf stürzt sich das neugierige, unkonventionelle Mädchen in diese berauschende Welt - sehr zum Missfallen ihrer Anstandsdame Cora, einer Frau mit traditionellen Wertvorstellungen. Doch hinter Coras korrekter Fassade verbirgt sich ein trauriges Schicksal, von dem niemand ahnt. Die Reise nach New York ist für sie eine Reise in die Vergangenheit."

Translation: "New York in the Roaring Twenties: A turbulent metropolis full of life, music, adventure - an exciting promise. As a fifteen year old Louise from the sleepy Kansas travels there to be a dancer, she goes for a dream come true. Head over to the curious, unconventional girl falls into this intoxicating world - much to the displeasure of their chaperone Cora, a woman with traditional values​​. But behind Cora's correct facade hides a sad fate from which no one suspects. The trip to New York for them is a journey into the past." 

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Louise Brooks Society is "famous" in Italy

The Louise Brooks Society is "famous" in Italy! Today, I received a complimentary copy of the Italian edition of Laura Moriarty's terrific Louise Brooks inspired novel, The Chaperone, on which the the LBS received an acknowledgement. See the October 12th blog for details about this new edition.

And today as well, the LBS got a photo credit on this Italian article about Moriarty's book, which has just been released in Italy. "Louise Brooks: sensuale e ingenua" is di Marina Jonna. Check it out.

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Louise Brooks in Italy: "Le stelle brillano a New York" di Laura Moriarty

As readers of this blog know, Louise Brooks is something of a cult figure in Italy (as she is in France, and Germany too). The latest instance of the spotlight being shown on the actress is the newly released Italian-language edition of Laura Moriarty's bestselling, Louise Brooks-inspired novel, The Chaperone. For the Italian edition published by Piemme, the novel has been given a new title, Le stelle brillano a New York (or Stars Shine in New York).

As with the American edition, the Italian edition features a lovely images of the actress on the cover. Here is the publisher supplied description of book and the the author.

"È impossibile non essere stregati dalla bellissima ragazza che sta salendo sul treno per New York. Sarà anche per quello sguardo, così sfrontato in una quindicenne. O per il suo cortissimo caschetto di capelli neri, così moderno per il 1922 e quella piccola città del Kansas. È irrequieta, si vede. Ha fretta di partire, respirare l’energia della lontana metropoli pulsante di vita, entrare nella compagnia di danza più prestigiosa del momento. Ma neppure lei, per quanto ostinata e ambiziosa, s’immagina che di lì a pochi anni sarà una stella del cinema muto e il suo nome – Louise Brooks – avrà fatto il giro del mondo. Con grande disappunto, viaggia però accompagnata. A farle da chaperon è una rispettabile vicina di casa, Cora Carlisle. Trentasei anni, moglie e madre modello, ligia alle convenzioni, Cora non sa ancora cosa l’aspetti con la ribelle e anticonformista Louise. Ma sa che quel viaggio è un’occasione unica per allontanarsi dal suo matrimonio apparentemente perfetto e intraprendere una ricerca troppo a lungo rimandata. Perché la verità sul suo passato è a New York.Mentre cerca di domare lo spirito libero di Louise sotto le luci sfavillanti di Broadway, dove si respira l’euforia di quegli anni ruggenti, Cora inizierà tuttavia a mettere in discussione i limiti che ha sempre imposto alla propria esistenza. E addentrandosi nella sua ricerca segreta scoprirà un nuovo lato di sé, imparando ad accettare tutte le donne che è stata e quelle che può ancora essere. Finché anche lei, come Louise, muoverà i primi passi verso i suoi sogni, in quell’estate indimenticabile in cui entrambe prenderanno finalmente in mano il proprio destino."

"Laura Moriarty insegna scrittura creativa all’Università del Kansas. Grande bestseller negli Stati Uniti, Le stelle brillano a New York diventerà un film interpretato da Elizabeth McGovern, star della fortunatissima serie tv Downton Abbey. Per maggiori informazioni: www.lauramoriarty.net"

Titolo: Le stelle brillano a New York
Titolo originale: The chaperone
Autore: Laura Moriarty
Traduttore: Margherita Crepax (the translator is the niece of Guido Crepax, author of Valentina)
Editore: Piemme
Collana: Narrativa
Pagine: 462

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Summer is here - Happy 4th of July


Looking for a great read? Take The Chaperone with you on your summer getaway. The Louise Brooks Society recommends it!

"The Chaperone is the enthralling story of two women . . . and how their unlikely relationship changed their lives. . . . In this layered and inventive story, Moriarty raises profound questions about family, sexuality, history, and whether it is luck or will—or a sturdy combination of the two—that makes for a wonderful life."— O, The Oprah Magazine

“When silent film star Louise Brooks was a sexually provocative and headstrong 15-year-old from Kansas, she traveled with a chaperone to new York City to attend dance school.  In this fascinating historical novel, her minder, Cora, struggles to keep her charge within the bounds of propriety but finds herself questioning the confines of her own life. Thorough Cora the world of early 20th-century America comes alive, and her personal triumphs become cause for celebration.”People

"Captivating and wise . . . In The Chaperone, Moriarty gives us a historically detailed and nuanced portrayal of the social upheaval that spilled into every corner of American life by 1922. . . . [An] inventive and lovely Jazz Age story."Washington Post

Friday, June 21, 2013

On the road with Laura Moriarty & The Chaperone



Bestselling author Laura Moriarty is on the road touring in support of her celebrated novel, The Chaperone (Riverhead). It is now out in softcover. As is evident from the cover, the book features Louise Brooks as a character. If you want to keep up with the author, check out her Facebook page. Here are a few snapshots from her tour.

The Chaperone on display at a local bookstore.
In a round-up of new paperbacks, the June 23 New York Times describes the book this way: THE CHAPERONE, by Laura Moriarty. (Riverhead, $16.) As a willful 15-year-old from Kansas, the silent-film star Louise Brooks traveled with a chaperone to New York in 1922 to attend dance school. In Moriarty’s charming historical novel, Brooks’s staid Midwestern matron has her own reasons for going to New York, and finds herself questioning the confines of her life.

A large display piece.

A group of fans from Dayton, OH hold a copy of
The Chaperone and a portrait of Louise Brooks.

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty chosen by national book group

Book Movement, a website that provides web pages to 35,000 book clubs and tracks their selections, has chosen The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty as its Book of the Month for June. As well, they've posted a drink for a cocktail called 'The Lulu.' It looks good. That and more at http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=8c40de26506ca0f9b22d5c6a0&id=18e9a411d1

Want to know more: check out this story, "The Chaperone Tells Story of Jazz Age, Social Morality"  on Kansas Public Radio. 



And here is another review of The Chaperone on Wichita public radio station KMUW. Give it a listen.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

The Chaperone in Norway

Wow! Here is the cover of the Norwegian version of The Chaperone, by Laura Moriarty.  The book is now out in softcover in the United States.


Monday, June 3, 2013

Radio Review - The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty

Check out this review of The Chaperone on KMUW, a public radio station from Louise Brooks' hometown of Wichita, Kansas. Laura Moriarty's The Chaperone features a teenage Louise Brooks as a main character. The review starts this way, "One beautiful thing about reading is the travel it allows. Through books, you can visit other times, places, or even dimensions." 

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Laura Moriarty's The Chaperone in paperback - tour schedule

The paperback version of Laura Moriarty's wonderful novel, The Chaperone (which features a young Louise Brooks as a lead character), is due out any day now. Laura's author tour kicks off on June 4th at Watermark Books & Cafe in Louise Brooks' hometown, Wichita, Kansas. Laura's complete tour can be found at http://www.lauramoriarty.net/events.html

Tuesday, June 4
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Watermark Books
4701 E. Douglas
Wichita, KS 67218
event details

Wednesday, June 5
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Bluebird Books
2 South Main
Hutchinson, KS 67501
event details

Thursday, June 6
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Unity Temple on the Plaza
707 West 47th Street
Kansas City, MO 64112
event details

      sponsored by Rainy Day Books
      2706 W. 53rd Street
      Fairway, KS 66205

Monday, June 10
7:30 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Tattered Cover Book Store, Colfax Avenue Store
2526 East Colfax Avenue
Denver, CO 80206
event details

Tuesday, June 11
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Magers & Quinn Booksellers
3038 Hennepin Avenue S.
Minneapolis, MN 55408
event details

Wednesday, June 12
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Anderson's Bookshop, Naperville
123 W. Jefferson Avenue
Naperville, IL 60540
event details

Thursday, June 13
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
St. Charles City-County Library District, Spencer Road Branch
     Barnes-Jewish St. Peters Hospital Event Room
     Community Commons
427 Spencer Road
St. Peters, MO 63376
event details

Friday, June 14
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Joseph-Beth Booksellers
Lexington Green
161 Lexington Green Circle
Lexington, KY 40503
event details

Saturday, June 15
1 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Books & Company
The Greene Shopping Center
4453 Walnut Street
Dayton, OH 45440
event details

Monday, June 17
6:30 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Parnassus Books
3900 Hillsboro Pike
Nashville, TN 37215
event details

Tuesday, June 18
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
A Cappella Books
208 Haralson Avenue NE
Atlanta, GA 30307
event details

Wednesday, June 19
6 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Garden District Book Shop
2727 Prytania Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
event details

Thursday, June 20
6 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
Page & Palette
32 South Section Street
Fairhope, AL 36532
event details

Friday, June 21
7 p.m.: Talk, Q&A, & Signing
The Ivy Bookshop
6080 Falls Road
Baltimore, MD 21209
event details

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Laura Moriarty's The Chaperone

Laura Moriarty's The Chaperone is scheduled for release in paperback in the United States on June 4, 2013. Happily, the paperback cover is very similar to the hardcover edition. The Chaperone is also in development as a film, with a script by Julian Fellowes of Downton Abbey fame. If you haven't read this rather fine novel, we recommended it.

In the mean time, if you are looking to read the book in German, check out the German edition, Das Schmetterlingsmädchen (The Butterfly Girl), which is available as both a print book and ebook. It too has a pretty appealing cover.

Here is some of the considerable praise the book has received since its publication last year.


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"The Chaperone is the enthralling story of two women . . . and how their unlikely relationship changed their lives. . . . In this layered and inventive story, Moriarty raises profound questions about family, sexuality, history, and whether it is luck or will—or a sturdy combination of the two—that makes for a wonderful life."—O, The Oprah Magazine

"In her new novel, The Chaperone, Laura Morirty treats this golden age with an evocative look at the early life of silent-film icon Louise Brooks, who in 1922 leaves Wichita, Kansas, for New York City in the company of 36-year-old chaperone, Cora Carlisle. . . . A mesmerizing take on women in this pivotal era."—Vogue

"With her shiny black bob and milky skin, Louise Brooks epitomized silent-film glamour. But in Laura Moriarty's engaging new novel The Chaperone, Brooks is just a hyper-precocious and bratty 15-year-old, and our protagonist, 36-year-old Cora Carlisle, has the not-easy mission of keeping the teenager virtuous while on a trip from their native Kansas to New York City. After a battle of wills, there's a sudden change of destiny for both women, with surprising and poignant results."—Entertainment Weekly

"Throughout The Chaperone, her fourth and best novel, Laura Moriarty mines first-rate fiction from the tension between a corrupting coastal media and the ideal of heart-of-America morality. . . . . Brooks's may be the novel's marquee name, but the story's heart is Cora's. With much sharpness but great empathy, Moriarty lays bare the settled mindset of this stolid, somewhat fearful woman—and the new experiences that shake that mindset up."—San Francisco Weekly

"Film star Louise Brooks was a legend in her time, but the real lead of The Chaperone is Cora Carlise, Brooks' 36-year-old chaperone for her first visit to New York City in 1922. As Cora struggles to tame Louise's free spirit, she finds herself moving past the safety of her own personal boundaries. In this fictional account of Cora and Louise's off-and-on relationship, Laura Moriarty writes with grace and compassion about life's infinite possibilities for change and, ultimately, happiness."—Minneapolis Star Tribune

“When silent film star Louise Brooks was a sexually provocative and headstrong 15-year-old from Kansas, she traveled with a chaperone to new York City to attend dance school.  In this fascinating historical novel, her minder, Cora, struggles to keep her charge within the bounds of propriety but finds herself questioning the confines of her own life. Thorough Cora the world of early 20th-century America comes alive, and her personal triumphs become cause for celebration.”—People

"Captivating and wise . . . In The Chaperone, Moriarty gives us a historically detailed and nuanced portrayal of the social upheaval that spilled into every corner of American life by 1922. . . . [An] inventive and lovely Jazz Age story."—Washington Post

"#1 Summer 2012 novel."—The Christian Science Monitor

"A fun romp."—Good Housekeeping

"Devour it."—Marie Claire

"The novel is captivating, and the last lines about Cora (you might think I’m giving everything away, but I’m not giving anything away—the story rolls through changes in terrain so subtle that it’s like a train from Wichita to New York and back) capsulate it all, revealing the richness of the saga.”—The Daily Beast

"The Chaperone," an enchanting, luminous new novel by Laura Moriarty, fictionalizes the tale of the very real caretaker who accompanied a 15-year-old Louise Brooks on the first leg of her journey to silent-movie stardom. . . . Moriarty is a lovely writer, warm and wise."—Cleveland Plain Dealer

"It is [Louise Brooks's] endearing and surprising companion Cora Carlisle—a sharply drawn creating—who is the heart and soul of this stirring story.”—Family Circle

"Captivating and wise."—Newsday

“While Louise lends The Chaperone a dose of fire, the novel’s heart is its heroine, who has a tougher time swimming in the seas of early-20th-century America than her ward does. As the story carries on, Moriarty’s greatest strength proves to be her ability to seamlessly weave together Cora’s present, future and colorful past.”—Time Out

“Set to be the hit of the beach read season.”—Matchbook

“The challenges of historical fiction are plentiful—how to freely imagine a person who really lived, how to impart modern sensibility to a bygone era, how to do your research without exactly showing your research. And yet, when this feat is achieved artfully (we’re talking Loving Frank or Arthur and George artfully), it can transport a reader to another time and place. Laura Moriarty’s new novel,The Chaperone, falls into this category.”—Bookpage

“It’s impossible not to be completely drawn in by The Chaperone. Laura Moriarty has delivered the richest and realest possible heroine in Cora Carlisle, a Wichita housewife who has her mind and heart blown wide open, and steps—with uncommon courage—into the fullness of her life. What a beautiful book. I loved every page.”—Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife

“What a charming, mesmerizing, transporting novel! The characters are so fully realized that I felt I was right there alongside them. A beautiful clarity marks both the style and structure of The Chaperone.”—Sena Jeter Naslund, author of Ahab's Wife and Adam & Eve

The Chaperone is the best kind of historical fiction, transporting you to another time and place, but even more importantly delivering a poignant story about people so real, you'll miss and remember them long after you close the book.”—Jenna Blum, author of Those Who Save Us and The Stormchasers

Saturday, August 4, 2012

New book offers another view of silent film legend Louise Brooks

Be sure and check out Jack Garner's write up of Laura Moriarty's recent novel, The Chaperone, in the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. Garner, the former film critic for the newspaper, was friends with Louise Brooks during the last years of her life in Rochester. (Garner also wrote the forward to Peter Cowie's Louise Brooks: Lulu Forever.)

The article, "New book offers another view of silent film legend Louise Brooks," can be found at http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20120801/LIVING0107/307300079/1032/LIVING

What is special about this piece is that Garner recalls some of his own encounters with Brooks, including the time she told him about her heading to New York City in the summer of 1922 - a key event in The Chaperone. Garner begins "Louise Brooks, the silent screen legend of Pandora’s Box, spent the last third of her life in Rochester. Before her death in 1985, she became a memorable and engaging friend to my wife and I. . . . I also remember Brooks’ stories about her first venture to New York from her home in Wichita, Kan. She was only 15 (15 going on 20!), so Brooks’ parents sent along a friend, an older woman, to be Louise’s chaperone."

If you haven't read The Chaperone - do so. It is a great read!

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Laura Moriarty (and Louise Brooks) on CBS

Today, author Laura Moriarty appeared on CBS This Morning, where she spoke about her new book, The Chaperone, and its silent film inspiration, Louise Brooks. Be sure and get a copy. It is terrific, and as they mention on the show, it is on everyone's must read list.


The video is titled, "Louise Brooks book author on how she wrote it" and its descriptor is "One of this summer's hottest reads is The Chaperone, a book about the famous '20s film star Louise Brooks and her fictional chaperone. The author, Laura Moriarty, spoke with Rebecca Jarvis."
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