Manhattan Memoir: American Girl; Manhattan, When I Was Young; Speaking with Strangers [Paperback]

Mary Cantwell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2000

The New York Times said that Mary Cantwell, in telling the story of her life, "Makes you discover yourself." Now, gathered in a single volume, are her three beautifully etched, unflinchingly honest memoirs. Cantwell's first book, American Girl, evoked the delights of her youth in a small New England town; her second, Manhattan, When I Was Young, told of her blossoming career in New York, her marriage and her children, and that marriage's decline. Speaking with Strangers finds Cantwell alone, a single mother struggling in the big city, bereft of her husband but bolstered by friends, thriving in her career yet personally troubled. With a sensibility as distinct as the city she calls home, Cantwell's autobiographical trilogy brilliantly captures her struggle to forge a life with one foot in her past and the other, warily, in her present.

"Cantwell writes with breathless intensity." --People

"As in the best of memoirs, the place is a character in the play, and Cantwell's courage as a wife and working mother also has a life and inspiration of its own."--Los Angeles Times

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mary Cantwell is a former magazine editor and longtime member of the New York Times Editorial Board.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (May 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140291903
• ISBN-13: 978-0140291902
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #321,799 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful walk through time, July 22, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Manhattan Memoir: American Girl; Manhattan, When I Was Young; Speaking with Strangers (Paperback)

The late Mary Cantwell charmingly recounts, in this 3 books in one volume paperback, her years growing up in a small New England seaport town and her youthful foray into the 'glamourous' magazine world of New York City in the 'fities. Sane, sensible and warm nostalgia--without being saccharine. Beautifully written. A must for the literate and for New York lovers-- especially those who remember the days!

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful prose and a fascinating story, February 24, 2002

By 

mike beccaria (newport beach, ca United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Manhattan Memoir: American Girl; Manhattan, When I Was Young; Speaking with Strangers (Paperback)

The other reviews told what the book was about. I just wanted to add to their comments by saying that I couldn't put the book down and was sad when it ended. Her words flowed so beautifully.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Delightful, Engaging and Unflinchingly Honest, February 5, 2002

By 

Xoe Li Lu "xoelilu" (Sea Girt, New Jersey USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Manhattan Memoir: American Girl; Manhattan, When I Was Young; Speaking with Strangers (Paperback)

Mary Cantwell bares her triumphs and joys as well as her shortcomings and insecurities in this collection of three memoirs that span her childhood, early adulthood, and middle- to late-adulthood respectively. Cantwell lead a wonderful, if unremarkable, childhood in an enviably Rockwell-esque seaside town - her depiction of her life through high-school is a real joy to read. Upon graduation from college, Cantwell hits the "Big City" appears to have forgotten some of the lessons learned in her idyllic childhood, however, she still manages to snag a plumb job with Mademoiselle Magazine and occasionally interacts with literary legends with her ambitious young husband. In her later life she is given interesting writing assignments and carves out a life for herself in Lower Manhattan, however, I found it discouraging that she wallows in the collapse of her marriage (which never appeared to be very strong), often to the detriment of her two daughters. I kept wondering how a woman with such a strong background could have allowed herself to sink to the depths Cantwell periodically allowed herself to hit. Regardless, she is not ashamed to remember less-than-glamorous moments in her life (which also include being jeered by fellow classmates as an elementary school student and suffering from paralyzing fits of self-doubt as a young career woman) - these are the events that have made her what she is.

It must have been incredibly therapeutic for Cantwell to write these memoirs. All three books can be seen as a view of the author's life from within her own head. Her message is simple: accept me for what I am. "Manhattan Memoir," in addition to being the story of Mary Cantwell's life, it also about trying to be true to oneself when one isn't always sure what that means. By writing her story, Cantwell examines her life and tries to learn from her experiences - and it can make the reader start to think about his/her own life as well.

While Cantwell's life is not particularly fascinating or different in itself, her writing style and manner of portraying her experiences are magical and riveting. She describes the joyous and painful events of her life in an easy, engaging manner - it is as if she is talking about the past with old friends. She manages to make the mundane fascinating. She also has a real gift for engaging the reader. I wasn't sure if I liked her writing style at first - Cantwell writes almost as one speaks - but within pages of beginning the book I became used to her rambling style and truly enjoyed it.

This book provides an added plus for those from or familiar with Rhode Island and/or New York City. It was fun for me to recognize the addresses of Cantwell's Manhattan apartments and know that the places she frequented, I often go to today.