On May 21st we met at my house to discuss Janet's book
"The Two Mrs Grenvilles." Janet could not
join us but asked us to carry on in her absence.
Julie, Nancy, Kathy, Madeleine, Betsy and I
welcomed Diana who is finally home from Florida.
We had pizza and salad and caught up with
everyone's busy life and the spring of torrential rains.
The book was written by Dominick Dunne, a former
journalist for Vanity Fair and it was written in
a somewhat gossipy style and told through the
eyes of a character journalist called Basil Plant
who is based on Truman Capote.
The tale is set in the 1940's and 1950's
and is based on a true story about Ann Woodward
who murdered her wealthy husband Billy Woodward in
1955. So the first Mrs. Grenville is Ann, who comes from a struggling
divorced family and though talentless she is beautiful and sexy.
She is a dancer at the El Morroco Club in New York
aspiring to be an actress and manages to reel in Billy who
is the only male heir to a fortune similar to the Vanderbilts.
The second Mrs Grenville is Alice who is Ann's mother in law
and she is matron of the proper New York society family
who strives to maintain her family and it's image and
is truly born a blue blooded woman into the thick of a
very close knit New York wealthy circle. Ann never
gains acceptance into this circle and eventually her marriage
is about to fall apart and she ends up shooting her husband
"accidentally". Alice gets her acquitted through her money and
influence though she despises Ann. Alice prefers to protect the
family from scandal.
Ann continues to live a wealthy, debauched life traveling
as a jet setter in Europe attracting gigolos but always
being denied true acceptance into the New York Society
which is the one thing she craves.
The inevitable happens when Ann commits suicide but
so does her son. There was bound to be collateral damage.
Some said the writing skills of the author was not
too well honed and that it may have been a mindless
read but kept us riveted nevertheless.
Madeleine chose a book called "The Burgess Boys" by
Elizabeth Strout. I have read it and know we shall have a
fine discussion. June 25th was chosen for the next date.
