The swans of Fifth Avenue

The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin
on January 26th 2016
Genres: Fiction, General Fiction
Pages: 368
Format: eBook, Kindle Book

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Aviator’s Wife comes an enthralling new novel about Truman Capote’s scandalous, headline-making, and heart-wrenching friendship with Babe Paley and New York’s society “swans” of the 1950s.
Centered on two dynamic, complicated, and compelling protagonists—Truman Capote and Babe Paley—this book is steeped in the glamour and perfumed and smoky atmosphere of New York’s high society. Babe Paley—known for her high-profile marriage to CBS founder William Paley and her ranking in the International Best-Dressed Hall of Fame—was one of the reigning monarchs of New York’s high society in the 1950s. Replete with gossip, scandal, betrayal, and a vibrant cast of real-life supporting characters, readers will be seduced by this startling new look at the infamous society swans.

**Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for supplying my copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.**

Can I just start my review by saying WOW!! Well, it would be a well-deserved wow. The Swans of Fifth Avenue is masterpiece this year by Melanie Benjamin. I am usually very reluctant when it comes to historical novels especially during the 50s or 60s. The reason is that sometimes I feel disconnected and can’t relate to the story. That’s why I choose such books carefully. This time, I am really glad I chose to read The Swans of Fifth Avenue.

The moment I started reading the book it was like Melanie Benjamin has opened to me the golden gates of a glamorous world and gestured for me to come in. I went through those gates fascinated by the settings and above all fascinated by the Swans.

The Swans are the center of this story. They are a group of the most glorious and beautiful ladies of New York in the 50s. They are the crème de la crème of the society. Married to the richest and most successful and powerful men of New York at that time, they were not only gorgeous but powerful too. Each one of the Swans can be a separate story by herself. They are brought together by their wealth, status, beauty and shared interests. It seems like the whole world is at their feet. They love each other yet envy and compete with each other. Second to their love for fashion and jewelry, comes their greatest love for gossip. They live to gossip and boast. However, deep inside each one of the Swans lies her greatest fear. It’s the fear of aging and fading beauty. In a society where a woman’s greatest asset was her beauty, they fought to stop the effect of years, yet no one can. Right?

Well, they had another one shared interest. It is their young friend Truman Capote. Truman was a gifted aspiring writer fascinated by the glamorous upper New York society. Coming from a non-wealthy background, he did his best to be at the heart of this glamorous society. Other from his literature gift, he was gifted at being fun and catching the attention of people. Thus he caught the interest of the Swans and became their beloved friend hanging always around them. He called them his Swans. Though they all liked him, they never took him seriously, except for Babe Paley. Babe was the most beautiful and elegant of the Swans. Yet, beneath this surface, she was the most passionate and kind hearted of them. Married to the most powerful and wealthy man in New York, she maintained a glamorous image and was envied for her perfect life. Yet, beneath this surface lied a sad heart tired of everything around her. As Babe and Truman became best friends, this is the story of Babe and Truman. Each one could see the real person inside the other one and accept him as he was and even like all his flaws. Suddenly there was no need for masks to hide the ugliness.

I really loved this novel. Melanie took me to a different world and age. It was like watching the titanic with all its sparkling beauty one last time before it drowns. The story was so powerful with different emotions. It was romantic, sad, touching and above all it was thought provoking. I loved the indignity and pride within the characters. It was wonderful how they hid their tears and sorrows to face the world with the glorious smiles and keep the image they had to keep.

Melanie is for sure a very gifted writer. I really loved her storytelling style. She was like a talented director zooming with her camera in and out. And as she zoomed in, I got more details about each character. Then when she zoomed out again I got the whole picture. She kept moving with her camera and I kept following her while the pieces were falling together in place. Then, there it was in front of me. The whole story as glorious as the titanic. I liked the characters and above all I loved Babe. I could relate to her and understand every feeling and motive she had.

I also loved how Melanie could mix reality and fiction. I was fascinated to know that the characters within the novel were real, yet the story and dialog were fictional. And just like Melanie opened to me the gates to the glorious story, she opened the gates to a treasure of books. Truman Capote in the novel is the infamous author Truman Capote. His books mentioned in the novel are actually his real books. It’s a treasure that I can’t describe its boundaries. I know now I am going to spend some time reading his books, especially his most famous book In Cold Blood that got him all the fame

and his unfinished book Answered Prayers.

Another thing I am sure of, I am going to read all the books by Melanie Benjamin from now on. I already read the prequel to this book which is Reckless Hearts. It’s not a must read prequel, yet it’s a fascinating one. After I read it, I came to this book, The Swans of Fifth Avenue, feeling prepared like a good girl who’s done her homework. I felt like I knew the characters before, like they were my old friends.

You can check my review for Reckless hearts here