Rescued from her abusive parents and poverty in Boston by her sister,
Rosie, she is now a New Yorker. Mazie LOVES New York. She loves it streets, the
men and women who live there, the air, everything. The diary entries are typical
of a developing young lady. As the Jazz Age blossoms, Maize blossoms. The
entries are spasmodic until about 1916.
Rosie had married a wealthy man who owns the Venice movie
theater. Now Rosie is sick, and Mazie needs to help at the theater. Her
brother-in-law, Louis, needs someone who is honest and good with money.
Therefore she is put in the ticket cage. She feels like a caged animal.
Mazie knows everyone in the neighborhood---from the
bums to the upper lower class. That’s who lives in the Bowery. Then the Great
Depression hits. Poverty and homelessness become more widespread. By this time,
Mazie owns the Venice and throws it open to those most in need. Oh, she’s still
showing the movies, but those who need a warm/cool place to stay for awhile are
welcome.
The diary entries continue to be spasmodic and
include a chorus of voices that help fill in Mazie’s story. While Attenberg’s
story ends in 1939, the “Queen of the Bowery,” as she was known, died in 1961.
I was attracted to this story for two reasons: 1)
Supposedly more than 90 years after Mazie began writing in her diary, it’s
discovered by a documentarian in search of a good story. However, readers never
hear from the movie-maker until the last third of the book. It didn’t work for me. 2) Maize was a real
person living; she was profiled in Joseph Mitchell’s Up
in The Old Hotel, a collection of short stories based on real people.
I was never able to get into the plot or the characters.
In my opinion, Attenberg wasn’t able to pull off the story. That’s why I’m
giving Saint Mazie two out of five
stars.
No comments:
Post a Comment