Polly loves, loses, and lives in this novel about a rich girl who finds herself seeking something different. It's not especially insightful but it is entertaining.

I'm not sure what to say about this book. It isn't exciting, but it isn't boring. It isn't suspenseful but it isn't entirely aimless either. The best I can say about it really is that the writing makes sense, but the plot never really takes off and leaves you wanting to race to the end.

If you like books with highly thoughtful characters that can be a bit unpredictable this book will probably work for you, but if you are looking for action and adventure...probably not so much. I read this all the way through and kept expecting that something truly fantastic was going to happen eventually, but it never did.

At the end of the book, I couldn't figure out how I had read so much but still felt like everything was unsettled. It's odd. That's really the best I can say.

This review is base don a complimentary copy from the publisher, provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Nancy Cunningham's Reviews > B.F.'s Daughter

B.F.'s Daughter by John P. Marquand
B.F.'s Daughter
by John P. Marquand
108416
Nancy Cunningham's review Jun 15, 2017 · edit
really liked it
bookshelves: netgalley

This book intrigued me because of its perspective--- it is a Great Depression and WW2 era novel --- not an historical novel, but a novel written in 1946. That gives it a decidedly different tone than novels written today, but set in the 30's or 40's.

I have a book called REVIEWING THE 40's that contains contemporary book reviews from that decade. B.F.'s Daughter was one of those featured. Although the author was well-respected, this particular book was criticized for its somewhat patronizing outlook on women and society. Reading Marquand's book, and the criticism, approximately 70 years later I think I can be more accepting of the author's point of view.

I really enjoyed this book, yet the only character I found sympathetic was the title character who served as a foil for other characters to play off. His daughter might bring Gloria Vanderbilt to mind (not that she was specifically intended to) --- a beautiful young woman who seemingly had everything, but couldn't really find her way.

I don't enjoy dithering female characters, but I liked the way Marquand's writing exposed the strengths and weaknesses of the social, intellectual and political classes he showcases in this story. It was interesting that the book took place during the Depression, yet there wasn't much exposition of the stress it placed on business, individuals and families. I fully expected some sort of tragedy to strike one of the characters, but they skated through that period without much explanation. The impact of the war on relationships was handled much more deftly and was one of the strengths of this novel.

NetGalley provided me with a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

There’s not a lot to say about this rather ordinary but nonetheless entertaining and very readable novel about poor little rich girl, Polly Fulton, daughter of an indulgent industrialist father, who loves and loses in fairly predictable ways in war-time America. It’s well-constructed and well-paced and if perhaps not a great work of literary fiction, it’s a good story from a good storyteller and I very much enjoyed it.