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Loading... The Lindbergh Nanny: A Novel (original 2022; edition 2022)by Mariah Fredericks (Author)
Work InformationThe Lindbergh Nanny by Mariah Fredericks (2022)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Well-researched historical fiction narrated by the nanny or “nurse,” Betty Gow, hired for the first-born son of Anne Morrow and Charles Lindbergh, Charlie, who was, in 1932, abducted from his crib and later found dead. The overwhelming majority of the facts come directly from primary sources, and the two instances where Fredericks deviated from the facts, she explained in her notes at the end of the book. Fascinating story surrounding the tragic events and the ensuing media circus. ( ) Thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Press for this review copy! It’s always satisfying to read a well-written historical fiction book, especially when it’s about an event that is integral to American history (the Federal Kidnapping Act was created as a result of this heinous crime). I didn’t know that much about the Lindbergh kidnapping, only that the famous aviator lost his 1-year-old child Charlie, and the baby was never seen alive again. I also was reminded that this took place in central NJ, close to where I live. Learning as I read makes a book more appealing, and this novel did not disappoint. This story is told in the first person of the nanny herself, Betty Gow. Her love for Lindbergh Jr. is greatly professed and makes the story all the more poignant. Lindbergh Sr. is described as a gruff, sometimes joyless man while his wife seems content to live in his shadow. Gow feels guilty because she thinks Charlie is bonded with her, stronger than with either of his parents. She takes her job seriously and blames herself for not being there for Charlie, preventing the kidnapping. Gow is written as a sympathetic character, while the others in the Lindbergh’s circle of servants are all potentially unreliable narrators. Gow does her best to try to find the guilty party while being questioned by the police multiple times. She never gives up hope until she finally identifies his body at the morgue. Her emotions are what makes her character stand out; ironically enough, Lindbergh Sr. is written as a man who despises emotions. Gow sees him as somewhat of an automaton, more interested in engines and science rather than his human wife and child. Despite her misgivings, she tries to win his favor, both before and after Charlie is kidnapped. All the Lindbergh servants start turning on each other, laying blame back and forth until I wasn’t sure who was telling the truth or not. I definitely think I enjoyed the book more by not knowing who, if any, of the servants were to blame. Each character is described well and their motivations for orchestrating the kidnapping seem accurate. The author creates suspense as she advances the plot and I was completely enthralled with how I developed emotions towards the characters, especially Violet. I thoroughly disliked her and was frustrated when Gow tried to sympathize with her. I believe she must have been suffering with depression or some other affliction, considering her actions towards the end of the book. The author also did an excellent job of describing the inside of the houses as well as the surrounding landscape. I found it interesting that Hopewell NJ was noted as being far away from the beaten path, while now it’s quite populated. As the story came to an end, I found chapter 31 to be one of my favorites. As Gow takes a final visit to the house in Hopewell, the desolation is apparent: She uses her old keys to unlock the door. Inside the air is stale with dust and emptiness. Much of the furniture has been left behind. It’s been covered in cloth. The sofa, the coffee table, the grandfather clock – all bodies dressed for burial and eternal silence. Elsie and I part to explore the rooms we can bear. I step into the kitchen, which is empty, the cabinet doors all open for some reason. Peek into the servants’ sitting room, where there is only a chair and the card table. One lamp with its plug pulled out. There are memories to be conjured if I want to. I find I don’t want to. Better to leave these as blank, meaningless spaces. Like the sofa and the clock, cover the feelings in anesthetizing white cloth. And leave them behind. This paragraph sums up Gow’s emptiness, a hole that cannot ever be filled, a chapter in her life best left alone lest the utter insanity of it take her over. THE LINDBERGH NANNY examines this tragedy from another point of view, and Fredericks does an excellent job. Even if you are familiar with aspects of this story, you will enjoy this book. As a Scottish immigrant, Betty Gow has to prove she can handle the jobs she is offered. Interviewing to be a nanny for the Lindberghs (and kind of around the Morrows as well) is a big deal and she isn't sure how things went until she is offered the job. It's the year before the kidnapping and honestly, I was anxious to get to that main event and found some of the gossip and goings on around the servants for the Lindberghs and Morrows a bit much. But it was hard to find jobs during the Depression and not only was the aviator and senator's family hiring, but they also had multiple residences and the young family was building a home of their own. I like learning new historical tidbits while reading fiction and I had no idea that Anne's younger sister had been the subject of a kidnapping attempt via a threatening letter in 1929 while at boarding school. Did this become a way to make a living during the Depression? Anyway, it was an okay read, especially if you have an interest in this family. Betty Gow was the nanny who loved and took care of Charles Lindbergh Jr. in 1932, when he was kidnapped. Using a number of sources the author gives you an inside look at the household at the time of the event. The police were sure that someone inside the house helped the kidnapper either for money or unwittingly. For while they focused on Betty Gow, the last person to see Charlie alive. If you are interested in a non-fiction accounting of this crime I suggest the book Kidnap: The Shocking Story of the Lindbergh Case by George Waller. no reviews | add a review
"When the most famous toddler in America, Charles Lindbergh, Jr., is kidnapped from his family home in New Jersey in 1932, the case makes international headlines. Already celebrated for his flight across the Atlantic, his father, Charles, Sr., is the country's golden boy, with his wealthy, lovely wife, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, by his side. But there's someone else in their household-Betty Gow, a formerly obscure young woman, now known around the world by another name: the Lindbergh Nanny. A Scottish immigrant deciphering the rules of her new homeland and its East Coast elite, Betty finds Colonel Lindbergh eccentric and often odd, Mrs. Lindbergh kind yet nervous, and Charlie simply a darling. Far from home and bruised from a love affair gone horribly wrong, Betty finds comfort in caring for the child, and warms to the attentions of handsome sailor Henrik, sometimes known as Red. Then, Charlie disappears. Suddenly a suspect in the eyes of both the media and the public, Betty must find the truth about what really happened that night, in order to clear her own name-and to find justice for the child she loves. "Gripping and elegant, The Lindbergh Nanny brings readers into the interior of the twentieth century's most infamous crime."-Nina de Gramont, New York Times bestselling author of The Christie Affair"-- No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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