A review by emilynied
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Malinda Lo was able to transport me into a different world as I was reading. I'm now convinced she's my new favorite author and I've only read one of her books. From the prologue and the very first pages of the book with young Lily and Shirley watching the "Miss Chinatown" pageant and prancing around the stage themselves to the epilogue and the glimpse into her adult life, I was enamored. Lo manages to describe San Francisco in the 1950s so vividly and colorfully and makes this historical fiction book so incredibly wonderful to read. The Telegraph Club is such an amazing setting to read about and be immersed in.
I feel kind of honored to have read the story of Lily and the forgotten story of many queer Chinese Americans during the 1900's, as Lo wrote in the Author's Note and Acknowledgments. Lily feels like a character that any queer person can relate to. She describes the quiet moments in her childhood were she felt weird or ashamed, and the moments of young adulthood where she came to the realization and fear of being different. I could see myself in her and I could see moments of my "coming of age" in her as well. That was perhaps the best part of the book - even though I'm a white American living on the East Coast in the 2000's, I can still see myself in Lily. She is such a thoughtful yet brave character and she took small and huge leaps that I as the reader cheered her on for throughout the entire story.
The end of the story felt like I was being ripped from San Francisco along with Lily. She finally accepts herself enough just for it all to go away - in a very realistic sense to, as stories like this were common for the time period - queer pride and joy being mistaken for "grooming" and "vulgarity." I honestly thought that Lily and Shirley would reconcile after their first fight but it turns out I was deceived just as Lily was...to have a friend betray you like that is devastating. The familial interactions went from comforting and homely to timid and uneasy.
I feel like the end felt inadequate after the whole story was told, but unfortunately, it's realistic. Lily couldn't have stayed without endangering herself and her family and that's the truth of being queer and Chinese in 1950s America. I'm glad Lo didn't compromise the integrity and truthfulness of the time for a "happy" ending. Overall, this was an amazing story and I'm so glad I read it.
I feel kind of honored to have read the story of Lily and the forgotten story of many queer Chinese Americans during the 1900's, as Lo wrote in the Author's Note and Acknowledgments. Lily feels like a character that any queer person can relate to. She describes the quiet moments in her childhood were she felt weird or ashamed, and the moments of young adulthood where she came to the realization and fear of being different. I could see myself in her and I could see moments of my "coming of age" in her as well. That was perhaps the best part of the book - even though I'm a white American living on the East Coast in the 2000's, I can still see myself in Lily. She is such a thoughtful yet brave character and she took small and huge leaps that I as the reader cheered her on for throughout the entire story.
The end of the story felt like I was being ripped from San Francisco along with Lily. She finally accepts herself enough just for it all to go away - in a very realistic sense to, as stories like this were common for the time period - queer pride and joy being mistaken for "grooming" and "vulgarity." I honestly thought that Lily and Shirley would reconcile after their first fight but it turns out I was deceived just as Lily was...to have a friend betray you like that is devastating. The familial interactions went from comforting and homely to timid and uneasy.
I feel like the end felt inadequate after the whole story was told, but unfortunately, it's realistic. Lily couldn't have stayed without endangering herself and her family and that's the truth of being queer and Chinese in 1950s America. I'm glad Lo didn't compromise the integrity and truthfulness of the time for a "happy" ending. Overall, this was an amazing story and I'm so glad I read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Homophobia
Moderate: Sexual harassment