This is one of those legendary series of books that I always thought, for some reason, were heavier reads than they actually are - if this first one is anything to go by anyway. Not sure why I thought that. But it turns out it's rather like 1970s chicklit. And why 'legendary' I'm not sure either - it was fun but nothing spectacular, imo.
Briefly, it starts with Mary Ann, a PA from Cleveland, deciding to settle in San Francisco. She's rather green but soon settles into Mrs. Madrigal's boarding house, gets a job and meets all kinds of people. That's it basically.
It's interesting the way Maupin ties a large cast of characters to each other without the others knowing, bit like the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon game. And I liked the small chapters dealing with different people. One thing that did surprise me was how gay San Francisco was in the 70s - I thought that was a later thing. Certainly then this is a pre-AIDS city - if you get my drift. A fun read - there are at least half a dozen more but whether I'll bother I'm not certain; only if I happen to see them in the library (where I found this one) I suspect.
3 comments:
I've never heard of this. I find it interesting that some books seem very daunting and turn out to be quite accessible, and others the opposite.
Is this the best place to visit you? I see you have the same posts on your other blog and would be happy to visit there if it is more convenient.
Yes, this is a good place to visit me. I wanted a book blog here on Blogger for months before I finally took the plunge. The book community here is much bigger and more varied than on Live Journal and I think it's better to keep a proper blog here rather than just a 'name'. And I suspect the two blogs will begin to differ as time goes on too. I'm having a lot of fun. :-)
Hey, I doing a report on Tales Of The City for a grade and I'd really appreciate it if you'd have a discussion with me about this book. I've read half the series and would like someone to talk about it with. Anyone who commented is more than welcome to engage in discussion as well. Thank you very much.
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