The Library of Lost Dollhouses by Elise Hooper

 

First Line: New Hampshire, 1950. The woman steps back from her workbench, surveying the completed boxy wooden structure.

When head curator Tildy Barrows discovers a secret room in the beautiful Belva Curtis LeFarge Archival Library in San Francisco, she knows she's found just the thing to save the struggling establishment: two exquisite never-before-seen dollhouses.

Tildy sets out to decipher the histories of the dollhouses after finding clues hidden within the miniatures. Her search sends her to the worlds of Belle Époque Paris, a group of wounded World War I veterans in the English countryside, and Walt Disney's Burbank studios in the 1950s.  As the mystery unravels, she finds not only inspiring, hidden history, but also a family revelation, and a future for herself.

~

I am enjoying all the stories that are being written about overlooked women in world history, whether real or fictional. Elise Hooper's The Library of Lost Dollhouses is another strong addition to this category, and her Author's Note at the end explains the people who inspired her characters.

The story spans a century and is told by two women, one, head curator Tildy Barrows who is passionate about saving the Belva Curtis LeFarge Library in San Francisco. As she described it, I wished I could go there and wander through all the rooms-- marvelous! The second is Cora Hale, extraordinary artist and creator of the most exquisite dollhouses I've ever read about. (I love the Thorne Rooms in the Phoenix Art Museum and have visited them many times, so this is a subject that's interested me for a long time.) I love how Cora was able to incorporate women's secrets into the houses she created for them.

Another strong point in this book was the descriptions of how difficult it is to keep a place like the LeFarge Library afloat, especially after the pandemic. As the book traveled from one place to the next, from Tildy's life and then back to Cora's, I couldn't wait until all was revealed. All in all, this is a heart-warming read that's well worth your time.

The Library of Lost Dollhouses by Elise Hooper

eISBN: 9780063382152

William Morrow © 2025

eBook, 315 pages

Fiction, Dual Timeline

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley

Death in the Details by Katie Tietjen

 

First Lines: Wednesday, October 16, 1946. "Twelve dollars and sixty-seven cents?"

 

Maple Bishop is no stranger to death. Her mother died. So did her brother. Now her husband has died in service to his country. But the discovery that her husband left her penniless puts everything into sharp focus for the grieving woman: she must find a way of earning money so she doesn't lose her home in this small Vermont town. 

 

Maple is the first female Boston City Law School graduate, but no one in town wants to hire her. Fortunately, her eye for detail and her skill have led her to craft intricate dollhouses, and she begins selling them. At first, business is going well until Maple delivers a dollhouse to a customer and finds him dead, hanging from a rafter in his barn.

 

Something about the supposed suicide doesn't seem right to Maple, and in an attempt to figure it out, she recreates the death scene in miniature-- what she calls "death in a nutshell." With the help of a rookie police officer, Maple uses her miniature to dig into the town's secrets... and that makes a murderer very unhappy.

 

~

 

With my interest in dollhouses and miniatures and the author finding inspiration in Frances Glessner Lee, the mother of forensic science, Death in the Details was a book I could not resist. For the most part, this is a very promising start to a new historical series.

The mystery is a strong one and used a factor in World War II life on the homefront that I seldom think about.  The cast of characters is also strong. Maple is smart, has a very handy photographic memory, and has a knack for gathering friends around her-- something which she doesn't seem to be completely aware of.

Her best friend Charlotte and Charlotte's husband Hank run the diner in town, and although I do like Charlotte, if she kept walking into my house unannounced, she wouldn't be my friend for long. Ben, a half-Japanese hardware store owner, Ginger Comstock ("Gossip Central"), and rookie police officer Kenny Quirk round out the major players. Oh, I almost forgot one! Sheriff Sam Scott started life as a cardboard lawman, but I am happy to say that he didn't stay that way.

But... as strong as the mystery and the characters are, one thing really annoyed me: slipshod editing. The book takes place in 1946. When the sheriff tells Maple "Don't get your pantyhose in a twist," it stopped me in my tracks. Did they have pantyhose in 1946? I had to stop and do a little investigating. No, they did not. So... when I find an error like that, it makes me suspicious. Yellowjackets that were hereafter referred to as bees didn't help, and then I found myself doing some digging on the subjects of seatbelts and plywood among other things.

Death in the Details is a strong mystery with a good cast of characters. Unfortunately, it is a bit weak in the details. Will I read the next book in the series? Yes, but I won't be in a rush to do so.

 

Death in the Details by Katie Tietjen

eISBN:  9781639107193

Crooked Lane Books © 2024

eBook, 288 pages

 

Historical Mystery, #1 Maple Bishop mystery

Rating: C+

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

A Visit to the Phoenix Art Museum, Part Three

For our third virtual visit to the Phoenix Art Museum, I want to take you to see the Thorne Rooms, a fantastic collection of miniature rooms. (The museum has twenty of the original thirty rooms.) I apologize in advance for the poor quality of the photos. The lighting was terrible, the reflections on the glass were brutal, the room was crowded, and I couldn't "pretzel" myself into stances that could've allowed for better angles and better photographs. Hopefully what I do share will give you a taste of these fabulous works of art.

From the Phoenix Art Museum website:

 

"...the Thorne Rooms represent a fascinating world in miniature. Created at an exacting scale of one inch to one foot, several of the rooms replicate actual spaces found in the United States and Europe, while the remainder were inspired by the architecture and interior design of their respective periods and countries. These rooms were conceived, designed, and, in large part, crafted by Indiana native Narcissa Niblack Thorne (1882-1966), who began to collect miniature furniture and household accessories during her travels to England and Asia shortly after the turn of the 20th century." 

This is an exhibit I could visit again and again. There are always new details that jump out at you with a second look.

American Colonial Bedroom, 1740-1750. Sometimes the ghost of the photographer can be seen in the glass. *sigh*

English Georgian Library, 1714-1820.

Of course I'm going to gravitate toward books, even if they are too small to read!

English Adam Dining Room, 1762-1794.

Look at the detail on the walls and ceiling!

English Jacobean Hall, 1603-1649. Probably my favorite room in this collection. The ceiling, the walls...

The window and windowseat...

The dog by the fireplace... I could see myself using this room a lot if it were real.

Italian Dining Room, c. 1500. The objects featured in this room come from a variety of sources and represent Thorne's skill as a designer. The wooden shutters, corner chimneypiece, and decorated ceiling beams are inspired by room found in the famous 14th-century Davanzetti Palace in Florence, Italy. The silver on the table and sideboard came from antique shops in Rome and Florence, and the tiny straw-wrapped wine bottle is from Orvieto, a small Italian town that sits on top of a hill known for its wine. Thorne found two rare pieces of needlework, seen on the back wall, in Vienna, Austria. The two chests beneath the tapestries were Thorne's only attempt at woodcarving.

Detail from the Italian dining room.

Even though the photo quality was very poor, I hope you were able to see how incredible these miniature rooms are. Next Wednesday, I'll conclude our virtual tour with a stroll through the Western American art wing of the museum.