A Time to Be Born
by Dawn Powell
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Set in pre-World War II New York City, A Time of Be Born offers a satirical send-up of city dwellers whose opportunism is only matched by their egotism. The novel revolves around a conniving novelist, Amanda Keeler, and her husband-a wealthy, self-important newspaper magnate. Amanda's rise to fame as a romance writer is propelled by glowing reviews in her husband's newspapers of her ghostwritten book. Meanwhile, Amanda entangles Vicky Haven, a newcomer from Ohio, in her web of social and show more romantic machinations. A blistering "comedy of manners" (The New York Times), A Time to Be Born scrutinizes the ambitions of a certain class of Manhattanites on the eve of world-changing global events. This Warbler Classics edition includes a detailed biographical timeline. show lessTags
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susanbooks Both are about women in the 1940s escaping suffocating families for the wider world. The heroines reminded me so much of each other.
Member Reviews
If history is written by the victors, there is a particular kind of satire that is written by the losers. In the surprising case of A Time to be Born, how sweet it is!
Supposedly a satire on the career of a young Clare Boothe Luce, Dawn Powell’s novel gives us Amanda Keeler Evans, a social-climber and literary hack. When Amanda decides to help a back-home acquaintance and use her to her own ends, Amanda’s world starts to unravel.
Parts of this book read like what I suspect it is: sour grapes. It’s a fantasy involving an undeserving star who is built up by an ignorant public only to be brought down and given her just deserts by the more worthy author, who would have had all the fame for herself if society weren’t so shallow and show more would just wake up and see how authentic the author herself really is. These sour grapes, however, do have the most peculiarly pleasing taste. Biting and infantile as portions of the book are, it is very funny, very acute, and ultimately very satisfying. Dawn Powell does have a keen insight into social absurdities that makes this a completely worthwhile read. Tough luck that her insight didn’t bring her the fame and fortune in her time that she did deserve, but that’s life. The rest is good fiction…much like this book. show less
Supposedly a satire on the career of a young Clare Boothe Luce, Dawn Powell’s novel gives us Amanda Keeler Evans, a social-climber and literary hack. When Amanda decides to help a back-home acquaintance and use her to her own ends, Amanda’s world starts to unravel.
Parts of this book read like what I suspect it is: sour grapes. It’s a fantasy involving an undeserving star who is built up by an ignorant public only to be brought down and given her just deserts by the more worthy author, who would have had all the fame for herself if society weren’t so shallow and show more would just wake up and see how authentic the author herself really is. These sour grapes, however, do have the most peculiarly pleasing taste. Biting and infantile as portions of the book are, it is very funny, very acute, and ultimately very satisfying. Dawn Powell does have a keen insight into social absurdities that makes this a completely worthwhile read. Tough luck that her insight didn’t bring her the fame and fortune in her time that she did deserve, but that’s life. The rest is good fiction…much like this book. show less
Here's a story that takes place in Manhattan at the Time when people are speculating whether or not the U.S. will enter the war. One of the main characters is a gold-digger who grew up with the protagonist. At the end, we're hopeful that the gold-digger will get her"come-uppance," and the protagonist has a whirlwind marriage with the ex-lover of the gold-digger, so not so hopeful about that. This book is a commentary on the shallowness of those with money, and social climbers, and is really delicious to read for someone who despises both.
This is full of interesting characters, most of them constantly seeking to enhance their social position. Dawn Powell had a wonderful sense of humor about it all. People pursuing selfish ends with a fixed sense of purpose create a tangle of priorities that are funny, and Powell makes full use of these opportunities. The internal monologues of the characters are similar to Jane Austen's as they seek to solve mysteries of the other characters' motivations and values.
Now I am left wanting to know what is going to happen to these characters next! Will Amanda be a success?
Very amusing look at the life of an ambitious woman, originally from a small Midwestern town, in New York City in the time just before the United States entered WW2 (1939-1940).
Very amusing look at the life of an ambitious woman, originally from a small Midwestern town, in New York City in the time just before the United States entered WW2 (1939-1940).
Set in the 40's in New York City, this is the story of vanity, pride, and greed. A young woman from a small town becomes the famed wife of a famous publisher; her friend from her home town has been jilted by a lover comes to New York and takes a job at the publishing company.
This is basically the story of people using each other. Very dated.
This is basically the story of people using each other. Very dated.
Liked the New York setting of this book...want to read more by Dawn Powell
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The Guardian's 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read
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- Original publication date
- 1942
- Dedication
- To Coburn Gilman
- First words
- There was no time to cry over one broken heart. It was no time to worry about Vicky Haven or indeed any other young lady crossed in love, for now the universe, nothing less, was your problem. You woke in the morning with the ... (show all)weight of doom on your head. You lay with eyes shut wondering why you dreaded the day; was it a debt, was it a lost love? - and then you remembered the nightmare. It was a dream, you said, nothing but a dream, and the covers were thrown aside, the dream was over, now for the day. Then, fully awake, you remembered that it was no dream. Paris was gone. London was under fire, the Atlantic was now a drop of water between the flame on one side and the waiting dynamite on the other. -Chapter 1
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)For that matter, neither was Ken.
- Blurbers
- Vidal, Gore
- Canonical DDC/MDS
- 813.54
- Canonical LCC
- PS3531.O936
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- Members
- 328
- Popularity
- 96,538
- Reviews
- 6
- Rating
- (3.84)
- Languages
- English, French, Italian
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 8
- ASINs
- 4
