Henry Holt & Company
Did You Hear about Kitty Karr?: A Reese's Book Club Pick
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REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK
BOOK OF THE MONTH PICK
A multigenerational saga that traverses the glamour of old Hollywood and the seductive draw of modern-day showbiz
When Kitty Karr Tate, a White icon of the silver screen, dies and bequeaths her multimillion-dollar estate to the St. John sisters, three young, wealthy Black women, it prompts questions. Lots of questions.
A celebrity in her own right, Elise St. John would rather focus on sorting out Kitty's affairs than deal with the press. But what she discovers in one of Kitty's journals rocks her world harder than any other brewing scandal could--and between a cheating fiancé and the fallout from a controversial social media post, there are plenty.
The truth behind Kitty's ascent to stardom from her beginnings in the segregated South threatens to expose a web of unexpected family ties, debts owed, and debatable crimes that could, with one pull, unravel the all-American fabric of the St. John sisters and those closest to them.
As Elise digs deeper into Kitty's past, she must also turn the lens upon herself, confronting the gifts and burdens of her own choices and the power that the secrets of the dead hold over the living. Did You Hear About Kitty Karr? is a sprawling page-turner set against the backdrop of the Hollywood machine, an insightful and nuanced look at the inheritances of family, race, and gender--and the choices some women make to break free of them.
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Book Details
ISBN:
9781250815309
EAN:
9781250815309
Binding:
Hardcover
Pages:
416
Authors:
Crystal Smith Paul
Publisher:
Henry Holt & Company
I was ensnared by the story. It is cleverly written and surprisingly insightful. I honestly could not put it down. Well done!
Entertaining! I finished it in a week or so.
This story was excellent and read like a movie; fast paced and highly engaging. The plot was somewhat predictable and there were some elements given away that should have been left for the reader to figure out, but overall it was brilliantly told. As with most novels these days, it was about 25 pages too long but not enough to make you start skipping pages. The novel deals with the practice of passing as a white woman which most black people are aware of. The author spent a couple of parts giving history lessons that I didn’t find interesting but if you’re not educated on *passing*, you will find it informative. I’m surprised the reviews are so mixed on this novel. I rarely give five stars to books these days and I think anyone who gave it less than four was probably uncomfortable with the subject matter. However, it’s becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable that makes you grow. Reese’s Book Club reviews don’t necessarily do authors any favors these day because they are so hit or miss and basically rated on its capability to land on Netflix but this one was a WINNER!
I listened to the audiobook for this story and the narrators were solid. I was not familiar with the story but I found it intriguing and easy to follow, once I got a good sense of the characters. I wish Kitty was able to walk in her truth, instead of leaving the girls to find out after the fact. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed it and finished in less than one day.
This book has been on my TBR for a while but when one of my good friends recommended I read this I went on ahead and picked it up. I am so glad I did because this book had me in a chokehold for the last couple of days. I mean I had been waking up out of my sleep thinking about Kitty Karr! The present portion of the book took me a little while to get into but the past had me all in from the beginning. What I found surprising is how Kitty was introduced to passing. I was very interesting in this underground network of Black Women who were passing. There were so many characters some passing and some not that I found the work they were doing very fascinating. I got so sweep up in Kitty’s world that I wasn’t ready for this book to end. As the story unfolds the people in the present start to make more sense. In the beginning I was lost which is why I had little interest in Elise side of the story but once those pieces started to fall in place the present had my attention as well. This would be an amazing tv series.
