A Book Set in New York
State: New York
Author: Vera Caspary
Year Published: 1943
Genre: Detective Noir
While I originally hoped to read through all fifty states in the order they were admitted to the Union, that bright idea fell apart pretty quickly, as I couldn’t seem to find a book I wanted to read set in Delaware. I suddenly realized that fifty books is half my reading goal, and I better get started! Delaware would have to wait. I took some time one afternoon to go through all my bookshelves and pick out books set in different states, giving preference in most cases to books I had yet to read. I began with Laura*. I have seen the film a handful of times, and I enjoy reading the books older movies are based on. Overall, I enjoyed this one!
Perhaps I should have guessed from the movie that Laura would read in parts like a hardboiled detective novel, but it surprised me a little there. Did it give me a feel for New York as a whole? No, but the reader does enter into the lifestyles of the upper echelons of 1940s New York City society with a twist along the way. For maximum enjoyment, pair it with the movie.
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