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Another Side of Paradise by Sally Koslow is a historical fiction novel about the romance between gossip columnist Sheilah Graham and F. Scott Fitzgerald. That sold me right there but let’s take a closer look.
One of my now favorite reads of all time is Love and Ruin by Paula McLain, which is about the romance between writers Martha Gellhorn and Ernest Hemingway (read my review here). When it comes to the great writers of all time, we’re constantly fascinated by Hemingway and Fitzgerald. And I do love their writing but I’m also interested in the women of their lives and how they made their own mark as well.
Here’s the synopsis for Another Side of Paradise:
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In 1937 Hollywood, gossip columnist Sheilah Graham’s star is on the rise, while literary wonder boy F. Scott Fitzgerald’s career is slowly drowning in booze. But the once-famous author, desperate to make money penning scripts for the silver screen, is charismatic enough to attract the gorgeous Miss Graham, a woman who exposes the secrets of others while carefully guarding her own. Like Fitzgerald’s hero Jay Gatsby, Graham has meticulously constructed a life far removed from the poverty of her childhood in London’s slums. And like Gatsby, the onetime guttersnipe learned early how to use her charms to become a hardworking success; she is feted and feared by both the movie studios and their luminaries.
A notorious drunk famously married to the doomed Zelda, Fitzgerald fell hard for his “Shielah” (he never learned to spell her name), a shrewd yet softhearted woman—both a fool for love and nobody’s fool—who would stay with him and help revive his career until his tragic death three years later.
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Ooo I really enjoy stories from old Hollywood. And the author Sally Koslow crafted the story by Sheilah’s memoirs, interviews and letters. Check back soon for a review.
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