La Tienda Vintage De Astor Place (2014) - Plot & Excerpts
Wow! I read all the rave reviews about this wonderful book, but couldn’t read it until now. Some things are worth waiting for, and this is one of them. I am so glad I had purchased this and had it on my Kindle, just waiting….Amanda is a single woman, who is in a complex relationship with her high school sweetheart (who is married). Amanda is also the owner of a little vintage shop, where she gets to sell clothes that are more than just a piece of fabric…there are memories woven throughout. Through a series of events, Amanda comes to terms with her relationship, makes huge decisions about her home/place of work, and her life.However, the true magic is in the diary Amanda finds, stitched inside a fur muzzle. Taken back to the early 1900’s, Amanda reads about the adventures of Sadie, Angelina, and Olive. All independent women, with different adventures in their lives, yet they all hold a valuable bond. They all had great stories to tell, however, I was so taken aback by the challenges young women faced back then. With no rights to vote, it was very hard for women back then to even rent a hotel room! Women had to enter through a different door, labeled for women, they weren’t earning near as much as men, deal with issues of wanting to be independent and faced criticism for it, etc. It was just an amazing and horrible ordeal that women dealt with, but still managed to make great strides despite restrictions.I just loved the stories, past and present, and absolutely loved the pictures in the book! I purchased this book on my e-reader, but would definitely recommend buying the actual book to appreciate the pictures better. It’s a fantastic read and one that I’d recommend to anyone wanting to read a great book about friendships, historical fiction, and love books with a bit of mystery! I enjoyed this book. I wasn't over the moon about it, but it was a fun read.I almost think the book would've been better if the author had only focused on the one story in the past rather than trying to link it to the modern story at the same time. I didn't care all that much about what happened to Amanda but I did care about Olive and her friends.Olive's story is much more adventurous. Seeing New York 100 years ago through her eyes (and the included vintage photos) was wonderful. She actually ended up being more modern than Amanda in almost every way. She manages to get through life on her own without the help of a man (which would've been extremely difficult 100 years ago), finds her own voice, and challenges her comfort zone as often as she can. I don't have a lot of respect for Amanda who relies very heavily on the men in her life, has little backbone, and seemingly even less common sense.Without the second story line the author could've also done away with the semi-fantastical elements of the story. I found this somewhat distracting and didn't add all that much.If you're looking for a light easy read and a step back in time, then try this book out. Just don't pay too much attention to the main character ;)
What do You think about La Tienda Vintage De Astor Place (2014)?
Great read! Finished it in 2 days. If you like clothing and NYC history you will like it.
—spud
I liked the story, but felt that it could have been better written.
—MilkMuncher
Tiny Book Review: Enjoyable/quasi-historical chick lit.
—Andre06
I loved this book. I didn't want it to end.
—ruchitripathi
