A thought provoking novel that delves into the complexities of mental health. The writing is witty and paints a portrait of a remarkable and unforgettable woman who balances moments of bliss with the harsh realities of life.
Many thanks to Random House and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

beautiful to revisit this tale so many years after it's publication. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the 70s vibes of this novel

Delightfully weird and notably ahead of its time.

It’s impossible to discuss this book without mentioning that this is a reissuing of a small press book originally published in the 1970s. Given that, it’s wild how much this has in common with the currently popular woman on/over the edge fiction.

It’s pretty impressive that Kraf was doing this so well 50 years ago, and the fact that we see a lot more of this type of novel now doesn’t make this one feel any less fresh despite the fact that it was actually written well before most of us were born .

I loved Kraf’s writing here, especially the tone, which is gleefully unhinged, but in the most controlled way. Sounds antithetical, I know, but read it and you’ll see what I mean.

The Princess herself is such a delight, and the way she discusses her radiances after the occur showcases some truly exceptional writing. This is a high-energy, relatively quick read, and a really good one.

this was a little tougher for me to get into being written in what i would describe as just stream of consciousness and was often quite dense. but a really important portrayal of women’s mental illness. fans of ‘unhinged, weird girl’ lit-fic will definitely want to pick this up!

thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A descriptive novel of madness and visions and being "other" in the world. The inner world of Ellen and her responses to life around her took me a while to wrap my head around.
I didn't really like it - but it made me ponder what goes on behind the polite words and manners of those with mental illness. I recommend it if you want a mind-bending exploration of the human psyche.

I am glad I read this book, I wouldn't have expected to see such a shocking portrayal of mental illness from 50 years ago, that being said this was a tough read emotionally.

This is a brave, unhinged journey through a kingdom of saturated color and long skirts. We accompany our heroine through the funhouse of psychotic mania and the flat, thudding comedown amongst a cast of characters who are almost but never too silly. The descriptions of "radiance," the episodes the protagonist suffers, are very skilled at making you see a glimpse of what a bystander might see while capturing the hallucinatory magic she herself is subject to. I have never experienced mania myself but there is something strangely hopeful about the enchanted world the Princess inhabits, where behaviors that are outwardly selfish and destructive represent tiny moments in a greater construction. There is a lot of loneliness though; no one she meets can rival her own inner monologue and they mostly just take advantage of her while she is distracted by her radiance.

This was a bit of a challenge to get started, there are a lot of assumptions about the reader's familiarity with New York City (not just the geography of it but the vibes meant to be understood when a location is mentioned) and unfortunately 45 years have passed since original publishing, which adds to the feeling of not really knowing what is going on at the beginning. The author can hardly be blamed for the passage of time, though, and a lot of this book is indistinguishable from modern literature of the same genre. The blinkered therapy-speak one character uses, the catty way people behave in the arts, the occasional deadpan post-ironic humor, it's really contemporary, Every time the Princess describes a new annoying restaurant she is dragged to, I'm imagining Jessa from Girls scowling under a bohemian wall-hanging.

Finally, I found the Princess most relatable when she was dragging a man for doing unskilled, sloppy Kama Sutra stuff to her. She wouldn't let him forget it, an admirable effort to right a wrong. Men haven't learned anything since 1979!

the original™ for those who are fans of My Year Of Rest and Relaxation and Big Swiss.

this was better than both of those and i’m glad i met the princess esmeralda and you should too

many thanks to random house publishing group and netgalley for this advance reader copy.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The Princess of 72nd Street by Elaine Kraf is a first person-POV novel exploring the life of a young woman who has what is now known as Bipolar in the 70s. Ellen, who goes by Princess Esmeralda during her ‘radiance’ periods has a lot of strong opinions regarding monogamy and believes in it in the strictest sense but breaks when own rules. She'd previously been put in a mental health facility by her ex-husband and is familiar with the medications of the time but also their limitations.

The radiance periods are Ellen's maniac period before she hits the depression part of manic-depression. I've been on the outside of this as some of my loved ones live with Bipolar and they often state that the manic periods do feel different. Colors feel more vibrant, their impulses are lowered, and there's a lot potential where there didn't used to be. But there's also frustration and maybe the strength to get out of a bad situation. I saw a lot of my loved ones’ experiences reflected in how Kraf depicted this still very stigmatized chemical imbalance without making Ellen feel like a sideshow.

One of the things I really liked was how Ellen often stuck up for herself with her partners and criticized then when they weren't making her feel good. The novel was written in 1979 and yet it still feels current and yet radical at the same time, especially in relation to how Ellen's partners treat her and how others view her sexual choices. The men she enters romances with don't often seem to see her but what they want her to be.

Princess of 72nd Street also serves as a reminder that Queer people have always been here. Ellen makes mention of her support for trans people (though the word is not used) and Queer marriage. In some ways, the novel is a product of its time in which words are used (such as an outdated term for Asian peoples), but I largely saw the narrative as a counterpoint to anyone claiming Queerness is new.

Content warning for the use of the term ‘homosexual’ in relation to Gay men, the use of several outdated terms for People of Color, and for depictions of sexual assault

I would recommend this to readers who prefer narratives about mental health, fans of older literature who want something that still feels relevant, and those looking for a novel focused on Bipolar disorder.

As someone with bipolar disorder, when I recognized that the first half was written in a manic episode and the second in a depressive one, I was drawn in by the novel portayal of mental illness. Often in books where characters have mental illness that part is used for the plot or to singularly explain bad behaior, but this is so much more than a study of mental illness and writing. I really appreciated reading the character’s experiences of mental illness that were pleasurable. she was mostly threatened by men and the medical establishment. just a fascinating book, wonderful to read.

Oh wow I’m so glad this is being rereleased as I have never heard of Elaine Kraf and she deserves all the accolades that this cult classic evokes.

There are so many things to say about this book but I think more importantly, there are so many questions. And not in the way of trying to figure out any plot holes (there are none), but in a way that elicits conversation. This is a book you read within a book club or buddy read so you can talk about it with a myriad of people.

The stylistic choices in this book are everything and essential to the books inherent purpose. It is written completely in “train of thought” and wouldn’t be as well done without it, but may be hard to digest for certain readers. It is short though and that helps to getting through it quickly even if it is difficult for some people to stay with.

The train of thought writing and having to try to decipher what was actually happening the entire time, lended a lot to the story. It was disconcerting, discombobulating, and entirely intentional to put you directly into Ellen/Esmereldas point of view. It was difficult to watch the ways in which our society took advantage of her and painful to see her realizations once her Radiance was gone. I went through so many emotions from confused to frustrated and righteously pissed to questioning the choices that were being made and then feeling bad I was having certain reactions. This is a wild ride to say the least and I wish it was part of schools curriculums. It gives us so much to discuss when it comes to how our society treats women and people with mental health issues and how the culmination of all these factors leads to the breakdown of our society and humanity.

3.5 ⭐️
I can absolutely see why the reprinting of Elaine Kraf’s The Princess of 72nd Street is essential. Provocative for its original publishing in 1979, this novel speaks on women’s mental illness in a way that is beyond ahead of its time, almost like an underrated predecessor of the “unhinged women / women vs. the void” genre. While the writing felt a bit dense at times, I did enjoy it and know that many people will love this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the e-ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the read!

Publishing Date: August 6, 2024

I could not get into this book. It was a good read, but it did not make sense a lot of the time. Which is what I think the author was trying to do, but I just didn’t have the brain capacity to keep up with it all.

Ellen is having issues with knowing who she is all of the time and goes into episodes of impulse, and believing she is the princess (she refers to herself as Esmeralda) of W 72nd Street NYC.

It was definitely a short read, but took me a second to get through because I was not understanding all of it right away.