I really enjoyed this book. The characters were real and believable. Some I loved, some I didn't like too much, but the author presented them in a way that the reader understood their motives. It was a great glimpse into a part of American history that I wasn't as familiar with. Definitely recommend!

The Tumbling Turner Sisters is the story of the four Turner sisters whose mother transforms them into a vaudeville act when their father is injured on the job. I don't know how to describe it other than to say that this book is historical fiction at its most fun. I loved getting acquainted with the vaudeville circuit through the Turner girls' eyes. They meet all kinds of people and find success they never expected and some romance along the way. To say that it's "fun" I don't mean to imply a lack of seriousness. As they rise to fame, the Turners encounter poverty, gain new understanding of racism and discrimination, and are touched by tragedy, all of which add enough heft to story for it to be a truly satisfying read.

Thanks so much to the publisher and to NetGalley for giving me access to this book. Historical fiction is a popular genre in our library. This book hits all the right notes for many of our patrons. This inside look at vaudeville will delight anyone with a love of historical fiction. Strong recommend!

Who wouldn’t love a story about vaudeville? In The Tumbling Turner Sisters, Juliette Fay gives readers a glimpse into life on the stage in the 1920s for four naïve sisters.

When their father is injured and can no longer work, Nell, Gert, Winnie, and Kit ages 13 to 22 take to the stage right along with a stage mother who coaches and supports them in their work

Readers get a glimpse into the glamor (not much of that) and the seedier side of vaudeville while also learning about some things actual vaudevillians had to say about the stage.

The sisters sign up with a tour company in upstate New York, and the adventure begins.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

I loved _Water for Elephants_, Although, not as compelling a story as that, this is a very readable book about the Turner families' life in vaudeville. Told in alternating chapters by different family members, not only does the reader learn about the early days of vaudeville, but various real entertainers make their appearance.

The Tumbling Turner Sisters is entertainment in words. I love the vaudeville aspect of the story. The traveling, the shows, the performers, and of course the drama is all part of the charm of the book. I enjoyed the interactions between the Turner family and the different performers. The timeframe made some friendships taboo, yet Juliette Fay did not shy away from developing them. The ages of the performers made me concerned at some friendships yet they seemed to work.

My biggest worry in this story is the mother. I know that she was doing what she could for her family but she was so into herself. I believe she was a mother entirely living her past dreams through her children. There were times that she seemed to forget she was a mother and a wife.

Juliette Fay most certainly did her research. The stage house they worked in were real. The issues of prohibition, women’s rights, and racism were happening during this time. The reading of The Tumbling Turner Sisters brought me back in time to a wonderful era.


If you love a good vaudeville story this is definitely for you.

Historical fiction reminiscent of Water for Elephants (Gruen) that encapsulates the social mores and pressures of the early twentieth century vaudeville. It's the story of the four Turner girls and their stage mother who dare to dream big and follow their ambitions. This heartwarming story is recommended for book clubs and discussion!

I knew next to nothing about vaudeville when I started this novel, and though it didn't delve especially deep, I felt I learned a ton about it--but most of all, I enjoyed the journey.

At the book's opening in 1919, a father injures his hands and it puts him out of a job. The mother, Ethel, has always had dreams of fame and know now is the chance to grasp those dreams, through her four daughters. Soon Nell, Gert, Winnie, and Kit are traveling the vaudeville circuit, meeting all sorts of interesting people, and falling in love.

The book is told in alternating chapters from Gert and Winnie's points of view. Gert is the second oldest sister. She's attractive, knows it, and uses it. She's always felt too big for her small town. Winnie is the third sister, smart, bookish, and driven. She's also the peacekeeper. Most of the time she and Gert butt heads, but as the family goes on the road together, they have to rely on each other and find themselves coming closer together.

The heart of the book is a coming of age theme, but there are love stories, grief, racism, and other issues touched on as well. The author did a great job of putting lots of relevant historical facts of the time into the novel without making them feel shoehorned in.

Each sister and each vaudeville character we meet definitely has their own unique personality. Some are helping the Turner sisters, and some just want them to get out of their way. Every performance is different, every city they stop in has its own feel.

I think if you enjoy history as well as a great story with fascinating characters then you'll love this novel. I was a bit heartbroken at the events in the end, but I suppose it's more realistic than a happily ever after, perfect ending for each person in the story.

The Tumbling Turner Sisters is a well researched and wonderfully told story of the fictional Turner sisters, who step up to cobble together a vaudeville act when an injury forces their father out of work. It's a historical account of the vaudeville circuit, an unusual subject matter in the over saturated by WWII historical fiction genre but it is also a tale of love and perseverence. Highly recommend

Wowza! What a book, especially for show biz aficionados or lovers of family stories with a specific and unusual setting.

The Turner Sisters are accidentally pushed into vaudeville stardom by an ambitious mother when their father is injured on his menial job. With the help of their agent Mort Birnbaum, they start out in the dregs of "small time," undistinguished houses in the worst spots on the bill, and through native smarts and determination, create a memorable acrobatic act with shtick and "leg" that makes them an audience favorite.

Personally, the girls form a strong family bond and friendships with other performers, some in forbidden territory. Two older Jewish men with a "German" act become unofficial guardian angels. A black tap dancer becomes one sister's obsession despite the fact that society forbids even a friendship. Tip teaches the Turner sisters new stunts for their act and shows sister Gert the humanity in every person despite their color.

Winnie falls in love with an Italian piano player while pursuing an unsanctioned dream: college and maybe a crack at being a nurse. She represents the "new woman" in a world still locked into old values.

Sister Nell, a widow with a small child, steps up to become part of another performer's act and later marries the man in an inevitable turn in the story.

Youngest sister, Kit, performs but, when her best friend is lost in an horrific fire that scars her sister Winnie, she returns to a life of relative normality.

Trivia buffs, of which I am one, will immediately, recognize British acrobat Archie Leach as the future Carrie Grant, despite Gert's prediction that he won't amount to much.

True vaudeville history is stretched for the author's convenience but this is a book you won't want to miss. On with the show with this highly recommended book.

Thank you for the opportunity read and review this title! I didn't enjoy it as much as I"d hoped, and rather than post a negative review, I chose to not feature it on my blog. I look forward to seeing what new releases you have in store!

I've found that I really enjoy historical fiction and there have been some really outstanding titles in that category in the last few years. And when I saw that there was this book, The Tumbling Turner Sisters by Juliette Fay, which centers around some performers in vaudeville, I knew this was something I had to read.

Fay is clearly a fan of the period and has done a tremendous amount of research to get at the heart of vaudeville - the real vaudeville, and not just the Hollywood version of vaudeville.

It is 1919 and the Turner family is just barely getting by on the meager wage Mr. Turner earns as a boot stitcher. But when his hand is crushed and he's no longer able to work, the future looks bleak. Ethel Turner, the family matriarch, takes matters into her own hands and decides that the girls, teenagers, need to perform a sister act on stage. She settles on acrobatics and sets to work training and rehearsing the girls. Gert, Winnie, and Kit are the girls still at home, and Nell becomes a widow with an infant and joins her siblings on stage.

But vaudeville has its own set of challenges and the Tumbling Turners have to learn the ropes as they go and other performers may prove to be close friends or bitter rivals.

Juliette Fay weaves so many wonderful characters into this historical tapestry and touches on many important historical moments. I found the situation with the black tap-dancer, Tip, to be most interesting, with the showing of <em>Birth of a Nation</em> and the subsequent assault on him uncomfortable prescient of what has happened in the world around the time I write this review. But I found the relationship between Winnie and performer, Joe, also quite interesting.

The history in the book really works and the characters are nicely defined and unique, but too often it just didn't quite hit the mark for me.

Despite all the troubles and the worries, I never sensed the desperation that I thought was trying to be there. The girls were often oblivious to the troubles, though I could accept that given their youth.

The journey was interesting, watching the Turner's progress, and yet it never really seemed to be emphasized (though at least mentioned) that the sisters were growing up in a rough show-business setting. We learned that they were out-growing their costumes as their bodies developed, and they took to developing relationships with other performers, but I never got a sense of how Ethel felt about this.

But most of all ... I'm not sure what the story is trying to say. It's a little (fictional) slice of history, but where is the story going? What are we, the readers, to take away from this? I can't really tell you.

Looking for a good book? <em>The Tumbling Turner Sisters</em> by Juliette Fay is a well researched historical novel in the vein of <em>Water for Elephants</em> or <em>The Other Einstein</em>, but it doesn't have a clear goal for the reader.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

While this was a fun novel, it was not quite what I was expecting it to be. The story line was interesting, and the characters were well written and exciting.

This book traces a slice of history, vaudeville in the early 1920's, through the eyes of a family. The Turner family, the mother, father, and four daughters, are caught up in the throes of too little money to make ends meet. Through their mother's perseverance and creativity, they become the Tumbling Turner Sisters and perform around the country.
The people they meet and the experiences they accumulate all add up to a great read. The surprise ending only adds to the Turner family saga.

I very much enjoyed this engaging read and the insight it gave into a period of American history that I am pretty unfamiliar with. The characters were beautifully developed and pressing social issues were woven into the story. Overall very well-done and a title I will be recommending!