Loving Frank, The End

I finished Loving Frank this week. I have mixed feelings. I think overall the book is good: good writing, interesting characters, based on true life events, etc. However, I had a hard time relating and even liking the main character, Mamah. Like I said in my previous post, I found her to be rather selfish. And she continued on this path throughout the book. And the author paints a picture of Frank Lloyd Wright as a eccentric, egotistical artist who was far in debt. (The author used many sources in her research and I think Wright was known in this way in many circles, so I don't feel she was exaggerating.)

So, what did Mamah see in him? I think he was a man who could understand the fight women were going through in the early 1900s, trying to get the right to vote, equal pay and credit for the work they did. He was more evolved in that way, plus he talked about his feelings and respected her intelligent thoughts about the world. I can definitely see how, to a woman who felt she was in a loveless marriage to a nice, but simple man, this would sweep her off her feet. But sweep her so far as to abandon her children and the rest of her family? That seems crazy to me.

In the midst of her time with Wright in Europe, Mamah met a Swedish feminist, Ellen Key, who seemed to echo her views about life: conventional marriage may not be for every woman, work and fair wages are important for women, perhaps more important than children, and women have so much further to come. A lot of this interested me because I never realized how many women more than 100 years ago were fighting for these rights, and I never realized how many women were in fact very outspoken about these things. Good for them! In the book, this conversation between Mamah and Ellen Key stood out to me, as I think these words could still be considered in today's world:

Men have always been trained to have the courage to dare. Women, on the other hand, are stuck being the keepers of memories and traditions. We've become the great conservators. Oh, I suppose we're suppler, as a result, because we've learned to see many sides. But what a price has been paid. It has kept us from greatness! And most women are happy just to repeat opinions and judgments they've heard, as if they thought of the ideas themselves. It's dangerous! Women need to understand evolutionary science, philosophy, art. They need to expand their knowledge and stop assassinating each others' characters.

I also liked this quote that came a few graphs later:

Attack the personal character of the thinker, and you will kill her ideas.

All very true, still to this day. So, overall, it was a good book. It was entertaining, for the feminist viewpoints and because much was set in the Midwest. I learned more about that time in history, and a lot more about the motivations of Wright, an architect whose buildings can be found on streets around here. I followed my coworkers advice and didn't Wikipedia any of the characters, and I was pretty shocked by the ending. Tragic. I did however look him up afterward, and it was just as interesting to read how Wright lived out the rest of his life as well.

Loving Frank

A coworker lent me Loving Frank by Nancy Horan. She really liked it and it was on my Amazon Wish List, so I thought I'd give it a try. Here is what Kathy Piehl of Library Journal had to say about the book:

In 1904, architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed a house for Edwin and Mamah Borthwick Cheney, respectable members of Oak Park, IL, society. Five years later, after a clandestine affair, Frank and Mamah scandalized that society by leaving their families to live together in Europe. Stunned by the furor, Mamah wanted to stay there, particularly after she met women's rights advocate Ellen Key, who rejected conventional ideas of marriage and divorce. Eventually, Frank convinced her to return to Wisconsin, where he was building Taliesin as a home and retreat. Horan's extensive research provides substantial underpinnings for this engrossing novel, and the focus on Mamah lets readers see her attraction to the creative, flamboyant architect but also her recognition of his arrogance. Mamah's own drive to achieve something important is tinged with guilt over abandoning her children. Tentative steps toward reconciliation end in a shocking, violent conclusion that would seem melodramatic if it weren't based on true events. The plot, characters, and ideas meld into a novel that will be a treat for fans of historical fiction but should not be pigeonholed in a genre section.

My coworker warned me not to Google the real-life characters in this book, so I wouldn't ruin the ending for myself. I've kept this in mind, but now I'm glad I didn't read any reviews either because there are a lot of spoilers out there! Tragic conclusion - oh my!

I'm enjoying this book for several reasons. Mamah is a strong, independent woman, particularly for the early 1900s. She was fighting for suffrage, and searching for meaning in her life. She loves her children but isn't defined by them, and struggles with what to do in a loveless marriage. While I would never promote a married woman to have an affair, I find it so fascinating that in this time, when divorce was hardly the norm, Mamah and Frank did what they did. Mamah struggles with her actions - running away to be with Frank - but I'm not sure if she suffers enough (at least as of now as I'm only halfway through the book). But she firmly believes love conquerors all. And while I can be a romantic, I think she shouldn't forget her responsibilities back home. Could a mother really leave her young children behind like that - no matter how unhappy you are in a marriage? It just screams selfish to me.

But, even if I feel Mamah is selfish and making some tragic choices for a woman of her time, she's still an empathetic character and a woman some may admire. Also, being from Minnesota, it's interesting to read more about Frank Llyod Wright. As the review says, he's from the Midwest - the prairie and nature were his muses - and we have several Wright and Wright-inspired homes in the Twin Cities.

How do you feel about historical fiction? Is it hard to decifer the truth from the fact? Or don't you care?