A review by internationalkris
Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan

4.0

4.5 stars. Manhattan Beach is a fantastic character-driven historical novel. Anna is a young woman who does her best to plan and think her way forward in life in the 1940s. The first section of the book opens in the heart of the depression when Anna accompanies her father on one of his social calls as a "bag-man" for the Irish mafia. We see that she is a careful young girl adept at transitioning between classes. A bit later in the book we get a portrait of Anna helping her mother and disabled sister and see that she is equally at home ensconced in this softer and very restricted interior world. When Anna begins work in the 1940s to support the war effort she confronts typical mens' and womens' roles in society as she attempts to get a job that would not have been open to her in the past. Alternating with Anna's chapters are those of the men in her life, her father, her lover, her colleagues. These chapters are interestingly also filled with restrictions. This is a fascinating look at a transformative time in history through an empowered woman attempting to blaze her own path. The writing is top-notch so dig in.