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Beverly Swerling

Goodreads author profile

born

The United States

gender

female

website

http://www.beverlyswerling.com/

genre

Historical Fiction

member since

March 2011

About this author

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I’m told that a number of critics who have said kind things about my books, have been less kind about the very brief bio on my book jackets. First, don’t blame Simon & Schuster; it’s my fault. Publishers use the data supplied by the author for this kind of thing, and I didn’t supply much. I guess because it seems that almost everything needs a long explanation. Which is probably me being egotistical. What do you care, right? You buy my books to be entertained (and very grateful I am), you don’t give two hoots about me.

But there are those picky critics…
Here then is a somewhat less abbreviated version.

I grew up in the Boston suburb of Revere, and while I won’t tell you when, I will say that it was very different from what it is today. Th...more I’m told that a number of critics who have said kind things about my books, have been less kind about the very brief bio on my book jackets. First, don’t blame Simon & Schuster; it’s my fault. Publishers use the data supplied by the author for this kind of thing, and I didn’t supply much. I guess because it seems that almost everything needs a long explanation. Which is probably me being egotistical. What do you care, right? You buy my books to be entertained (and very grateful I am), you don’t give two hoots about me.

But there are those picky critics…
Here then is a somewhat less abbreviated version.

I grew up in the Boston suburb of Revere, and while I won’t tell you when, I will say that it was very different from what it is today. The beach was, as it still is, one of the natural wonders of the state of Massachusetts, but the front was NOT lined with condo high-rises. It was a boardwalk with stands selling fried clams (Massachusetts has the world’s best fried clams – made from the Ipswich soft shells, they remain what I’d choose for my last meal on this earth) and French fries and soft ice cream that we called frozen custard. Plus there were all kinds of gambling games of the sort found at any fairground – pitch ‘til you win, folks! – and a Ferris wheel and a roller coaster and a tunnel of love.

Another feature of Revere back then was that it was almost entirely either Jewish or Italian (my own family is a mixture of both) and because the town had a dog track – Wonderland - and a horse track – Suffolk Downs – there was a lot of what is politely called off-track betting. Which wasn’t legal then, and for all I know still is not. Nonetheless, any number of family members rented rooms to bookies – the chief requirement being that these gentlemen of the turf had to be able to see one or the other of the tote boards with binoculars, (a world without cell phones, remember) and know how much they were liable to pay out, which in turn affected what odds they could offer on the next race.

I went from that upstanding childhood to a small Catholic girls college in the Midwest, then a job in New York as a file clerk to support my writing – all non-fiction at first – until I was able to earn my way as a free lance journalist.
For a time after that I lived in Europe.
Where I got married for a brief and unpleasant period, then came home and wrote more non-fiction. And got married again.
And went back to Europe.
And started writing fiction, and – hallelujah! – selling it.
And came back to New York with my by now long time husband, and began writing City of Dreams…
Which just about catches you up. Except for the bits I’ve left out.

And, oh yes, one other important part of my life and my work: On that so brief bio on the S&S book jacket it mentions that I’m a consultant. Many people have asked me what kind.

Happens that my husband – who has his own website at www.agentresearch.com – runs the world’s number one consultancy for authors looking for new (or sometimes a first) agents. It’s called Agent Research and Evaluation, Inc. and I do some work for some of his clients. I also occasionally mentor new writers – and some who are not so new. What they all have in common is a passion for what they’re writing, so working with them gives me great joy, and most have found it helpful. (Admittedly not all. I set the bar high.) Some of what I have to share about the hows and the whys of this wonderful but very tough business of writing can be found at The Business of Writing page. At other parts of the site you’ll find more about my books, including excerpts from some not yet published work, such as City of Glory, which continues the story of the Turners and the Devreys of City of Dreams. City of Glory will be out in January. We’ve also put up an excerpt from the next book in that series, still little more than a gleam in my eye. (less)

3 posts
Beverly Swerling's Blog: Oy Vey or I Love You Clarence Allen

MAXWELL PERKINS AND THE E-BOOK*

Latest figures on the e-book revolution show some slowing of the exponential rate of growth, but surely that’s to be expected when the base-line was so recently zero. The numbers are still rising substantially, and the devices are in a healthy clash of heads with serious new entries still arriving and on the horizon. And Amazon has yet to leave Barnes & Noble for dead. In part because the m... read more »

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Books by Beverly Swerling

Average rating: 3.85 · 1,681 ratings · 312 reviews · 6 distinct works

	City of Dreams: A Novel of Nieuw Amsterdam and Early Manhattan 3.91 avg rating — 866 ratings — published 2001 — 12 editions	My rating:
	City of Glory: A Novel of War and Desire in Old Manhattan 3.70 avg rating — 277 ratings — published 2007 — 8 editions	My rating:
	City of God: A Novel of Passion and Wonder in Old New York 4.06 avg rating — 210 ratings — published 2004 — 6 editions	My rating:
	Shadowbrook: A Novel of Love, War, and the Birth of America 3.63 avg rating — 204 ratings — published 2001 — 7 editions	My rating:
	City of Promise: A Novel of New York's Gilded Age 3.77 avg rating — 121 ratings — published 2011 — 4 editions	My rating:
	Der Traum des Baders 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	My rating:

More books by Beverly Swerling…

Series by Beverly Swerling

New York City (4 books)
by Beverly Swerling (Goodreads Author)

3.88 avg rating — 1,474 ratings

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Interviews

October 2009, Beverly Swerling
" Quick Start SS: What is your motto or maxim? BS: All of writing is rewriting. What Readers want to know... SS: How would you describe perfect happiness? BS: All the wounds healed. SS: What’s your greatest fear? BS: Not believing or hoping to belie..." ...More

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Beverly is Currently Reading

Beverly Swerling is currently reading:

The Unruly Passions of Eugenie R.

by Carole DeSanti

bookshelves: currently-reading

My rating:

May 25, 2012 04:14am

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Beverly's Recent Updates

Beverly Swerling is now friends with Jordyn Redwood
May 29, 2012 04:06am
Beverly Swerling is currently reading: The Unruly Passions of Eugenie R. by Carole DeSanti	My rating:
May 25, 2012 04:14am
Beverly Swerling liked Janie's review of The Imposter Bride: This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. " This book mesmerizes from start to finish, with beautiful, controlled prose that belies the ordinariness of a post-war immigrant community that is trying to forget the tragedies they escaped. Mail order bride Lily Azerov gets off the train in Mont... " Read more of this review »
May 19, 2012 03:49am · see review
Beverly Swerling marked as to-read: Paris, I Love You but You're Bringing Me Down by Rosecrans Baldwin	My rating:
May 13, 2012 06:20am
Beverly Swerling gave to: Restaurant Man by Joe Bastianich read in May, 2012	My rating:
I really loved this, but I've lived in NYC for years (currently in Philly, but that's beside the point), have been to many of the restaurants mentioned, know the scene he's describing, and am an admitted foodie. I'm not sure that anyone for whom thos...more
May 13, 2012 06:17am · see review
Beverly Swerling added: Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese read in May, 2012	My rating:
May 09, 2012 02:55am
Beverly Swerling gave to: Beastly Things by Donna Leon read in April, 2012	My rating:
I adore Leon's Brunetti series for the writing, the superb characterization, and the exquisite evocation of beautiful Venice. If her stories display cracks it is in the area of plot, and in Beastly Things that fissure is a bit wider than usual. It is...more
Apr 26, 2012 05:00am · see review
Beverly Swerling joined the Black and White and Read All Over group.
Mar 23, 2012 08:52am · see group
Beverly Swerling gave to: Lucky by Alice Sebold	My rating:
Mar 14, 2012 05:12am
Beverly Swerling gave to: Ali in Wonderland: And Other Tall Tales by Ali Wentworth read in March, 2012	My rating:
When you're looking for a few laughs and an easy, fun read, Ali won't disappoint. I thoroughly enjoyed it - and political junkie that I am, particularly the chapters that had to do with her life after her marriage to George Stephanopoulos. And I ador...more
Mar 14, 2012 05:10am · see review

More of Beverly's books…

Quotes by Beverly Swerling

“The Canarsie People said the knowing belongs to the old and wise, but the unfolding is in the keeping of the young. The old prevent the young from straying off the path of wisdom. The young yearn after the path of dreams. Between the two there is truth.”
― Beverly Swerling

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