The Girl in the Glass

In Jeffrey Ford's The Girl in the Glass, reality is a con, at least according to illegal Mexican immigrant Diego, his foster father Thomas Schell, and ex-circus strongman Antony Cleopatra. In 1932 Long Island, this diverse trio of confidence men pose as a team of spiritual mediums. Their marks are the city's naive wealthy. During a séance, the group's leader, Schell, experiences a ghastly vision of a murdered young girl, and even though it could destroy their livelihood, he decides to use their considerable talents to find her killer. This life-altering event leads to encounters with sideshow geeks, the Ku Klux Klan, governmental conspiracy, mad scientists, illegal immigrants, and butterflies. This is a story with romance, action, and show more humor. Reminiscent of Geek Love and Carter Beats the Devil, The Girl in the Glass is weird mystery at its finest.

Not that any of that could be gleaned from the book's inappropriate cover and packaging. At first glance, the novel appears to be what the publishing world dubs "Women's Fiction," a nice, staid novel that will only appeal to suburban mothers. This couldn't be further from the truth. The real con of The Girl in the Glass is the one that the publisher is trying to put over on the reading public. Ford weaves a complex plot that explores the nature of evil and the strength of family through the lens of a good mystery. While traversing disparate elements, the author manages to keep the story grounded in reality, never once veering off into the absurd. His portrait of Depression-era Long Island is both provocative and enchanting. Ford's characters and situations, while often unique, are familiar, as though they are from some unremembered communal past. I felt their pain, fear, anxiousness, and joy. Like all good cons, The Girl in the Glass is more than it appears. Beneath the surface of Jeffrey Ford's lyrical prose is a truth for all of us.

(This review originally appeared in The Austin Chronicle, August 12, 2005.)
Link: [http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/review?oid=oid:284201] show less

After a little bit of initial resistance, I really ended up liking this a lot. Its a well told and nicely crafted tale about a group of spiritualist grifters working the inhabitants of the mansions of Long Island during the Great Depression. Like other tales of this era - Paper Moon, The Sting, Bonnie and Clyde even, its an open question whether the grifters or the solid citizens are the greater crooks.

I liked the characters a lot, and there were some wonderfully resonant images here. Also I very much liked the thread of weirdness that runs through the fabric of the tale, just a little glitter here and a sparkle there. This is not a story that goes to strange worlds except in so far as the past is another world, but it does carry a show more slight flavor of otherness. It wouldn't entirely surprise me if the smelly stuffed crocodile amidst the curiosities on display in the corner of some overdecorated parlor winked a cynical eye before returning to immobility as if he never left it. show less

A lovable trio of con-men make a living during the Depression by throwing fake seances for rich folk looking to commune with the other side, until a manifestation occurs that appears to be the real thing, and they set out to find a missing girl, uncovering way more than they bargained for in more ways than one. Excellent novel.

A band of con artists, cum spiritual mediums, focus their psychic and sleuthing powers on a murder mystery set in Depression-era Long Island, on the posh North Shore. Diego, a 17-year-old Mexican illegal immigrant, narrates the escapades, as he follows his mentor and surrogate father Thomas Schell. Disguised as a Hindu swami, Diego helps Schell conduct phony sances to bilk wealthy Long Islanders. But when Schell sees the apparition of a young girl during a sance and then hears of the disappearance of Charlotte Barnes, daughter of shipping magnate Harold Barnes, he is determined to solve the case. Schell and Diego, along with henchman Antony and phony psychic Morgan Shaw, find Charlotte's dead body covered by a cloth painted with a Ku show more Klux Klan symbol. They link her murder, along with those of several other dead children, both to the Klan and to a nefarious Dr. Greaves, aka Fenton Agarias, who headed up grotesque eugenics experiments.

Along with some very funny moments this was an easy book to read and a very hard one to put down. show less

Año 1932, en plena Depresión. Los pobres son más pobres y los ricos más ricos. Muchos de estos ricos están interesados en el mundo espiritual, en contactar con sus seres queridos en el más allá. Y aquí entran en juego Shell (timador ingenioso donde los haya), Anthony Cleopatra (guardaespaldas, chófer y trabajos varios) y Diego, nuestro joven protagonista y narrador de los hechos muchos años después, un mexicano de diecisiete años que acogió Shell como discípulo. Durante una de estas sesiones-timo, Shell ve una niña en el cristal de una ventana y es entonces cuando empiezan sus aventuras, ya que Shell está empeñado en averiguar la verdad sobre este hecho.

Novela entretenida en algunos momentos, no pretende otra cosa que show more hacer pasar un buen rato sin más. A mí no me ha gustado mucho, tal vez porque esperaba más de Ford, autor de 'La fisiognomía' y 'Memoranda', dos novelas de una imaginación desbordante, donde sí explotaba su vena fantástica. Entretenimiento sin más pretensiones. show less

I didn't realize when I got it that it was going to be so incredibly good. I read it all in one sitting, in about 2 and a half hours, without moving from my spot. It's funny, serious and you get a whodunit as well in the bargain.

I'll try to outline this (no spoilers) but you absolutely MUST go read it for yourself. I'm so happy I read it.

This book is set in early 1930s America, during the Depression. To keep himself employed, con man extraordinaire Tom Schell (who is obsessed with butterflies), along with his "ward" Diego, an illegal Mexican immigrant, get into the homes of the upper east coast wealthy by posing as a medium and his assistant. Tom is the medium, Diego (who also narrates the events of this story) is his trusty Hindu show more assistant, Ondoo. There's also Schell's trusty jack-of-all-trades (including driving and pistol packing) henchman Anthony. Tom also has a host of "associates" he can call on for help in pretty much any given situation. The seance sessions tend to go very well, and those who request the seances tend to pay very well. Both Tom & Diego have fun with their work until they are doing a seance and Tom sees a vision of a little girl in a pane of glass. He didn't set up the con, nor did Diego. So is it real? Has Tom stumbled onto powers he doesn't know he has? I won't say any more about the plot. You must find out for yourself.

There is a great scene in this book toward the end that made me laugh out loud and made me think that this book could really work well as a movie. But aside from all of the funny stuff, and all of the hoodoo, there's a serious note to this story, one that sort of sobered me and made me do an "aha" at the end. If you don't mind a bit of irreverent humor amidst a whodunit, you'll really like this one. Don't forget the Acknowledgments section in the back.

Jeffrey Ford is an awesome writer, one not to be missed.

Again...quite good, a fun read, but with a message. Recommended, for sure! show less

Superb! Excellent mystery, excellent characterizations, excellent historical perspective. Incidental commentary about the effects of prejudice. I wish every book were this good, I'd finish a lot more of them. A quote from the back cover sums it up: "At once a hypnotically compelling mystery and a stunningly evocative portrait of Depression-era New York, The Girl in the Glass is a masterly literary adventure from a writer of exemplary vision and skill." Couldn't have said it better myself - that's exactly what I found.