From the Bookshelf of Retro Chapter Chicks …

Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk

Kathleen Rooney

Start date: April 1, 2018

Finish date: April 30, 2018

Discussion: Chapter Chicks Reading Info

Why we're reading this: Our April Buddy Read
[close] Our April Buddy Read

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

No topics in Chapter Chicks Reading Info yet. Start one now »

What Members Thought

Apr 13, 2017 Brina rated it it was amazing

Shelves: goodreads-friend-author, fiction, historical-fiction, new-york-city, remarkable-women

Kathleen Rooney is a goodreads' friend of mine, and over the past few months I have noticed a number of other goodreads friends reading her debut novel, Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk. I was drawn to the lovely cover and to the fact that Rooney lives in my home city of Chicago and that she has been named one of the city's up and coming writers during the past year. That the subject is an often forgotten pioneering woman reminiscing on the events in her life has been an added bonus. Reading about L Kathleen Rooney is a goodreads' friend of mine, and over the past few months I have noticed a number of other goodreads friends reading her debut novel, Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk. I was drawn to the lovely cover and to the fact that Rooney lives in my home city of Chicago and that she has been named one of the city's up and coming writers during the past year. That the subject is an often forgotten pioneering woman reminiscing on the events in her life has been an added bonus. Reading about Lillian Boxfish's trip down memory lane has been an enjoyable experience that will stay with me for awhile.

Rooney's inspiration for Lillian Boxfish was the real life Margaret Fishback, an accomplished advertiser for Macy's as well as a poet during the 1930s. In this charming debut, the reader encounters the classy, octogenarian Boxfish as she sets out for a walk through Manhattan on New Year's Eve 1984. At each stop along the way, Boxfish reflects on milestones in her life, while sharing her charm with younger New Yorkers who she feels would benefit from her wisdom. We meet a melting pot of New Yorkers who Boxfish feels contribute to making the city a great place to live, while learning about the woman who was once a New York institution.

Boxfish and her best friend, illustrator Helen McGoldrick, attempted to break through the glass ceiling at Macy's long before women's rights picked up steam. Although these women helped make Macy's famous through their witty ads, when they worked, if a woman had a child, her career ended. Yet, Boxfish desired to keep working, and she freelanced at home during the baby boom era when most women were content as housewives. Her verse rivaled Ogden Nash and her volumes of poetry sold almost as well. By these respects, Boxfish was well ahead of her time.

The older Boxfish encounters ageism throughout her contemplative walk as well as in her memories about a taped public television appearance about the history of women in advertising. In both cases, Boxfish is initially disregarded as old until people get to know her better. Rooney has touched on a timely subject as many older citizens are viewed as feeble-minded despite having the wealth of a lifetime of knowledge to offer younger generations. Rooney's prose mirrors Boxfish's wit as she shares the wisdom of a lifetime during stops at New York landmarks such as Delmonicos, Chelsea Piers, Penn Station, and, of course, Macy's. Boxfish's charming story held me captivated as I read to its conclusion.

For a debut author, I found Kathleen Rooney's writing to be exquisite. I enjoyed reading about Lillian Boxfish as I uncovered the history behind trail blazing Margaret Fishback. Perhaps, as Rooney points out in her prose, most people can not appreciate Fishback's wit, but I found her poetry as well as the story she had to tell both humorous and intelligent. Lillian Boxfish merits a 4.5 star rating, and I look forward to reading Rooney's future work, whenever that may be. ...more

250 likes · Like · see review

Feb 04, 2018 Celia rated it it was amazing

Shelves: stellar-recs, historical-fiction-read, 2018-read, elyse, 2018-ec

I didn't know what to make of Lillian Boxfish. Especially after finishing a book about Eleanor Oliphant who is lonely, forlorn and socially inept, Lillian was quite a shock.

But even though Lillian and I have little in common, I found myself liking and respecting her. As she herself proclaims (p 116), 'I am feminine, but hard'.

Lillian has lived a long life. 84 or 85 years depending on who is counting. It is now New Year's Eve, 1984 and she spends it alone but certainly not lonely. She takes a wa ...more

11 likes · Like · see review

Apr 19, 2018 Tasha rated it really liked it

Shelves: audio-reads

I really enjoyed this, Lillian is quite an inspiration. I listened to this and it was well-done. A great narrator, an interesting format and a very likeable character make for a good read.

5 likes · Like · see review

Mar 04, 2017 Theresa rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemporary-general-fiction, new-york, nostalgia, single-day, z-pop-sugar-2019-reading-challenge

It is New Years Eve in NYC, 1984, and Lillian, admitting to 84 years, has just received some sad news from her son which has distressed her and made her melancholy. Lillian has long used walks as a way to handle her emotions, and so she decides to walk for a bit before appearing for her dinner reservation. Lillian is a loner, a poet, and a true New Yorker. Off she sets even though NYC in 1984 is hardly either lustrous or safe.

Lillian's walk doesn't just show us a gritty urban landscape, one I kn ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 28, 2017 Lory Sakay rated it really liked it

I enjoyed the way this book took me through Lillian's journey of life in New York City. It covered a time when women had many expectations strung over them; Lillian battled them as she strove to rise as a copywriter for Macy's. She won some and lost others. As many of us, her life was not perfect and she realized that saying "never" doesn't always work. It was a good story of a regular life, made meaningful by personalizing it with Lillian's spunky words and actions. If I was more familiar with ...more

1 like · Like · see review