Scan barcode
Reviews tagging 'Violence'
American Eve: Evelyn Nesbit, Stanford White, the Birth of the It Girl and the Crime of the Century by Paula Uruburu
1 review
bookmaddie's review
dark
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
2.5
What started out as an interesting chronicle of Evelyn Nesbit's life, and how she attained 'It' Girl status, got caught up in the details and lost whatever energy had been propelling the story from the beginning. I was also intrigued by the "Crime of the Century" tagline, and kept waiting for it to be brought up, but it was only introduced in the latter third of the book. Even once I got to the final third, the scandal didn't really seem that scandalous. The writing felt a bit lackluster, and didn't capture the sensational feeling I wanted from such an intense crime driven by jealousy.
I was also irked with Uruburu's lack of agency as an author. I feel like there were many instances where Uruburu could have, and should have, injected some of her own perspective and commentary at certain moments in Evelyn's life. Men perpetuated violent sexual crimes against her, and it is conveyed to the reader in a very calm tone, just stating the facts. I wanted more acknowledgement of this horrible behavior, rather than someone just summarizing that it happened. It was disappointing, and fed into my general perspective that this book lacks the emotion and narrative. What could have been an interesting narrative and examination of fame and double standards at the beginning of the 20th century instead turned into a boring historical tome.
I was also irked with Uruburu's lack of agency as an author. I feel like there were many instances where Uruburu could have, and should have, injected some of her own perspective and commentary at certain moments in Evelyn's life. Men perpetuated violent sexual crimes against her, and it is conveyed to the reader in a very calm tone, just stating the facts. I wanted more acknowledgement of this horrible behavior, rather than someone just summarizing that it happened. It was disappointing, and fed into my general perspective that this book lacks the emotion and narrative. What could have been an interesting narrative and examination of fame and double standards at the beginning of the 20th century instead turned into a boring historical tome.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence
More...