Rainey Royal is a teenage girl being raised by her famous jazz musician father in NYC in the70's after her mom leaves her to live on a hippie commune somewhere on the West coast. Her father hosts multitudes of friends in their once lovely brownstone, and some of these friends are a little too friendly to Rainey Royal with her father's implicit approval. Rainey's dad has no problem seducing Rainey's teenage friends either. Although there's plenty of drugs, crime, sexual misconduct, the book doesn't dwell on the sensational aspects but focuses on Rainey's struggle to become an adult when all her adult role models are behaving like infants. I really liked this book but I realize it's not everyone's cup of tea. Quirky but thought-provoking, it's a retrospectoscope into the 70's. I was reminded of "White Oleander" in the portrayal of the parent-child relationship and in Rainey's artistic bent. This book goes beyond "chick lit" in portraying the emotions of the grown child of a flower child. Rainey's father Howard is a jazz musician whose students (Rainey calls them "acolytes") have the run of the family residence. Rainey's BFF's Tina and Leah add contour, and in the end comfort, to her life. Rainey Royal was selected for the 2014 O. Henry Prize Stories collection. I look forward to more from this new writer.
What do You think about Rainey Royal (2014)?
3.75 great writing...has some wonderful moments
—moller
