48 books
—
32 voters
Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.
Start by marking “Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk” as Want to Read:
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk
by
Kathleen Rooney (Goodreads Author)
NOW A NATIONAL INDIE BESTSELLER
“Transporting…witty, poignant and sparkling.”
—People (People Picks Book of the Week)
“Prescient and quick....A perfect fusing of subject and writer, idea and ideal.”
—Chicago Tribune
It’s the last day of 1984, and 85-year-old Lillian Boxfish is about to take a walk.
As she traverses a grittier Manhattan, a city anxious after an attack by a still ...more
“Transporting…witty, poignant and sparkling.”
—People (People Picks Book of the Week)
“Prescient and quick....A perfect fusing of subject and writer, idea and ideal.”
—Chicago Tribune
It’s the last day of 1984, and 85-year-old Lillian Boxfish is about to take a walk.
As she traverses a grittier Manhattan, a city anxious after an attack by a still ...more
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Reader Q&A
To ask other readers questions about
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk,
please sign up.
Popular Answered Questions
Kathleen
The cover designer is Olga Grlic.
Community Reviews
(showing 1-30)
I wrote it so I think it's pretty good.
Arriving in a Roaring Twenty...more
at a time of hope and plenty
Full of vim and joi de vivre
Aimed to stay and wouldn’t leave
Lilly made her mark with Macy
writing rhymes to make the case he
needed to attract the shopper.
Many tried, but none could top her.
Used her wit to publish books
of poems with a jaundiced look
At romance. And with each edition
earned more cash and recognition.
A true and very public spinster
’till a special guy convinced her
She should wear his golden band.
And risk some tarnish to her bra
THANK YOU *St. Martin's Press*!!!! A BIG TIME THANK YOU!!!! Had I not received their sweet email recommendation --- I may have missed this doozy-knock-out-smashing-whopper-pistol of a WONDERFUL novel!!!!
It's funny... I read most of this in bed -on my Kindle ebook - during the dark sleepy hours listening to the pouring rain outside my window, but I had never seen the book 'cover' until now. The cover perfectly captures the image of our leading lady. "Lillian Boxfish". Its exactly how I imagined h ...more
It's funny... I read most of this in bed -on my Kindle ebook - during the dark sleepy hours listening to the pouring rain outside my window, but I had never seen the book 'cover' until now. The cover perfectly captures the image of our leading lady. "Lillian Boxfish". Its exactly how I imagined h ...more
Lillian at the age of eighty five takes a walk through Manhattan. As she walks she meets many people and remembers the past. Based on an actual person, Lillian has led an interesting life, loved, lost, and reached the pinnacle of success.
I really wish I could have loved this like some of my friends here did, not sure why I didn't. Maybe it was the tone that basically stayed the same throughout the novel or the fact that in many books in the past few years the elderly have walked with varying suc ...more
I really wish I could have loved this like some of my friends here did, not sure why I didn't. Maybe it was the tone that basically stayed the same throughout the novel or the fact that in many books in the past few years the elderly have walked with varying suc ...more
REALLY enjoyed the journey! Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.
Alternating between past and present, Lillian Boxfish revisits her very interesting and long life via a five mile nostalgic trek thru The Big Apple as one year ends and another begins.
During the walk, we learn first and foremost that Lillian has a natural gift of gab with an ability to influence and negotiate with even the toughest of opponents. Determined to be a spinster for life, she has a strong work ethic and
...more
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk
★★★★ 5 Lovely Stars!
I received a free advance e-copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!
***********************************************
For centuries poets have used walking as a conduit to meditate, drive inspiration and find a path to enlightenment. For 85 year-old Lillian Boxfish, the zany, clever protagonist of this novel, her years as a walking poet might be behind her, but she's still someone who has the ener ...more
★★★★ 5 Lovely Stars!
I received a free advance e-copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!
***********************************************
For centuries poets have used walking as a conduit to meditate, drive inspiration and find a path to enlightenment. For 85 year-old Lillian Boxfish, the zany, clever protagonist of this novel, her years as a walking poet might be behind her, but she's still someone who has the ener ...more
It's New Years Eve 1984, and 85 yr old Lillian Boxfish takes a long walk through Manhattan and reminisces about her life as a wife, mother, grandmother, and top paid advertising agent for Macy's in the 1930's. Her main destination is Delmonico's steakhouse where she last had a dinner with her dead ex husband Max, though she makes many stops along the way and comes in contact with many different people.
Lillian has had quite a life, is a true lady and she loves to walk, walks everywhere, and says ...more
Lillian has had quite a life, is a true lady and she loves to walk, walks everywhere, and says ...more
The Hook - Overwhelming praise from my GoodReads friend Elyse sent me quickly to Netgalley to request the e-galley of Lillian Boxfish Takes A Walk. You may read Elyse’s Review here.
I cannot thank the author, Kathleen Rooney or St. Martin’s Press enough for granting my early access to this book, which publishes January 17, 2017.
The Line - Per the publisher’s request a no part of the text may be quoted until the book is published. Paraphrasing a sentence that gave me pause for thought is one that ...more
I cannot thank the author, Kathleen Rooney or St. Martin’s Press enough for granting my early access to this book, which publishes January 17, 2017.
The Line - Per the publisher’s request a no part of the text may be quoted until the book is published. Paraphrasing a sentence that gave me pause for thought is one that ...more
WHAT'S IN THE NAME?
Before I knew that this book was inspired by the true story of Margaret Fishback, I was wondering how the last name 'Boxfish'(and even Fishback for that matter) came about. It reminded me of the joke names chosen in the previous centuries when people were forced to choose a surname and many of them did it under great protest.
Names such as Obadiah Cockswinger and Chastity Goodtime resulted from it. Others were chosen for a different purpose and could easily be changed. For inst ...more
3.5 stars. I liked a lot of things about Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk, but I didn't love it. Lillian is 84 years old in 1984. It's New Year's Eve, and she's walking across Manhattan reminiscing about her life. In her prime, she was the highest paid female advertising copy writer and she was a poet. She had a failed marriage, a son she adores and a stint with serious mental health issues. Alternating chapters take us on different parts of her New Year's Eve walk and through her earlier years. Odd
...more
In a walk her life. Her entire life. No. Not Virginia Woolf, nor her formidable creation Clarissa Dalloway. Instead, this is a figure that's less oppressive, much more chipper. Though not any less literary & monolithic.
Never once in the company of this prolific, successful, mega charismatic woman do you feel betrayed--it contains the certainty of biography, with details so concrete.... rich; you never fall out of her immediate orbit. She's irresistably graceful & dignified. & this is ...more
Never once in the company of this prolific, successful, mega charismatic woman do you feel betrayed--it contains the certainty of biography, with details so concrete.... rich; you never fall out of her immediate orbit. She's irresistably graceful & dignified. & this is ...more
Profound. Utterly inspiring. This is an exceptional book. Lillian plans to walk to dinner on New Year's Eve, 1984, but she ends of walking miles through NYC, and through the decades of her life, both glamorous, tough, and back. Lillian herself is exceptional. She's 85 years old now, but still walking, as if she were still that famous ad-woman, working at Macy's in 1930s at top dollar.
Don't miss the this book. Enjoy.
Let me just tell everyone, that this is not a "cutesy" book just for women. Cert ...more
Don't miss the this book. Enjoy.
Let me just tell everyone, that this is not a "cutesy" book just for women. Cert ...more
2.5 Stars
Overall:
On New Year’s Eve 1984, Lillian Boxfish takes a walk. During that walk, she recounts most of the major (and several minor) events in her life, starting in the 1920s. This life was filled with a glamorous career in advertising, a crumbling marriage and stints of electro-shock therapy.
This sounded really exciting. But to me it felt like when your grandma pulls you aside at Thanksgiving to tell you “back-in-my-day” stories.
I received an ARC of this through Netgalley. Thank you ...more
Overall:
On New Year’s Eve 1984, Lillian Boxfish takes a walk. During that walk, she recounts most of the major (and several minor) events in her life, starting in the 1920s. This life was filled with a glamorous career in advertising, a crumbling marriage and stints of electro-shock therapy.
This sounded really exciting. But to me it felt like when your grandma pulls you aside at Thanksgiving to tell you “back-in-my-day” stories.
I received an ARC of this through Netgalley. Thank you ...more
4.5
You follow a woman born in 1899, who, while on a walk in 1984, starts to recall her life and how America has changed over the years.
I absolutely adored this book. I took my time with this one, as the writing is so beautiful and the message at the end was so powerful, that I wanted to absorb every word.
And the Oreo obsession-loved it.
When I read the ending..I was at a loss for words-I only had this feeling that Lillian offered us a profound message-to not rush through life or "run from it" ...more
You follow a woman born in 1899, who, while on a walk in 1984, starts to recall her life and how America has changed over the years.
I absolutely adored this book. I took my time with this one, as the writing is so beautiful and the message at the end was so powerful, that I wanted to absorb every word.
And the Oreo obsession-loved it.
When I read the ending..I was at a loss for words-I only had this feeling that Lillian offered us a profound message-to not rush through life or "run from it" ...more
A thoroughly delightful story about New York City from the 30s to the 80s. Also, it's about women's rights, through the eyes of someone who had a talent for poetry and advertising. I learned so much from this book like better communication and the results using your kind and realistic voice rather than being fearful. Thank you NetGalley, St. Martins Press and Kathleen Rooney for this enjoyable read.
On New Year’s Eve in 1984, 85-year-old Lillian Boxfish decides to walk the ten miles into NYC to attend a party. Along the way, she reminisces about her life writing copy for Macy’s, her loves and heartbreaks, and her role as the highest paid advertising woman in the country, while noting all that has changed in the city and her life. A charming love letter to NYC, Lillian Boxfish is perfect for fans of Harold Fry and Saint Mazie.
Backlist bump: Saint Mazie by Jami Attenberg
Tune in to our weekly ...more
Backlist bump: Saint Mazie by Jami Attenberg
Tune in to our weekly ...more
A New Year's Eve walk through Manhattan sets the stage for Kathleen Rooney's breath-of-fresh-air novel, narrated with energy and conviction by the singular Lillian Boxfish. Once Macy's top female ad writer, 85 year old Lillian Boxfish looks back on her life and career as she revisits old haunts and encounters new adventures, in a city shaken by economic instability and an escalating crime wave.
Rooney captures her breezy, quick-thinking narrator with detail and authenticity, but struggles to do ...more
Rooney captures her breezy, quick-thinking narrator with detail and authenticity, but struggles to do ...more
Finally, New York has a female flaneur. Follow Lillian Boxfish as she walks around Manhattan on New Year's Eve 1984 interacting with a widely varied cross section of New Yorkers. Interspersed with her adventures she looks back at her long life -- with it's acclaim and success in advertising in the days before Mad Men, and it's moments of loss and despair -- I promise you own't regret spending time with her on her perambulations. Her take on life as a professional woman in the 1920s-1940s, her pr
...more
I was eager to read this book and was fortunate to be able to receive an e-ARC to be able to read it pre-publication.
I adored this woman (Lillian) and the way the author (Kathleen) was able to make Lillian real to me. I underlined so many lines that I found either profound or lyrical. Kathleen Rooney turns many new phrases. She does not rely or even lean on trite or mundane.
I will read this book over and over and over again.
Thank you St. Martin's Press for allowing me the joy of this read.
I adored this woman (Lillian) and the way the author (Kathleen) was able to make Lillian real to me. I underlined so many lines that I found either profound or lyrical. Kathleen Rooney turns many new phrases. She does not rely or even lean on trite or mundane.
I will read this book over and over and over again.
Thank you St. Martin's Press for allowing me the joy of this read.
I expected to like this book a whole lot more than I did. That being said, I did enjoy Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk; I would have liked it more if had been shorter. The book was inspired by Margaret Fishback, the highest-paid female advertising copywriter in the world during the 1930’s. She worked for R.H. Macy’s and paved the way for many females following in her footsteps.
The best parts of the book by far were the sections related to Lillian’s days working as an advertising copywriter and the ...more
The best parts of the book by far were the sections related to Lillian’s days working as an advertising copywriter and the ...more
When I read the synopsis for this book, I had a feeling it would be my type of story and it absolutely was that and more. It was a character study as well as a city study and I felt transported immediately to both 1930s New York and 1984 New York. The writing took me a chapter or so to get into, but once I did I could really appreciate Lillian's voice both in the past and present. Lillian Boxfish will be a character I'll remember for a very long time because she came to me right when I needed he
...more
A LITERARY JOURNEY
I would like to thank BookBrowse, First Impressions and the publisher, St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of “Lillian Boxfish Takes A Walk” by Kathleen Rooney.
Lillian Boxfish is a novel of fiction based on Margaret Fishback’s life, that Kathleen Rooney researched. Margaret Fishback was the highest paid female advertising writer for R.H.Macy’s, in the 1930’s as well as a poet who wrote and compiled books. In my opinion the genre is historical fiction, but has the feel of a non-ficti ...more
I would like to thank BookBrowse, First Impressions and the publisher, St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of “Lillian Boxfish Takes A Walk” by Kathleen Rooney.
Lillian Boxfish is a novel of fiction based on Margaret Fishback’s life, that Kathleen Rooney researched. Margaret Fishback was the highest paid female advertising writer for R.H.Macy’s, in the 1930’s as well as a poet who wrote and compiled books. In my opinion the genre is historical fiction, but has the feel of a non-ficti ...more
I received an ARC from Bookbrowse.com in return for an honest and fair review. A variation of this review will be published on that site. The story of Lillian boxfish resonated with me in son many ways. Although I am much younger, I was working nights in NYC in the 1980s and was very careful about where I went and when. Kathleen M. Rooney captured the grittiness of the city in that era, before it was cleaned up and made safer. Lillian goes out for dinner and a walk on New Year's Eve 1984 and mee
...more
I won this via Goodreads giveaways, thanks to St. Martin's Press. I've never won one of these before and I'm so happy my first freebie was such a great read!
I figured I'd like this when I opened it up and saw it had a map on the inside cover. Fantasy novels where they're basically required aside, maps are a good sign for me (see also: To The Bright Edge of the World , another recent favorite).
The story started slow for me; the chronology was jumping around and I had to keep track of that and a w ...more
I figured I'd like this when I opened it up and saw it had a map on the inside cover. Fantasy novels where they're basically required aside, maps are a good sign for me (see also: To The Bright Edge of the World , another recent favorite).
The story started slow for me; the chronology was jumping around and I had to keep track of that and a w ...more
This is an entertaining novel about a Lillian Boxfish who published poetry and wrote ad copy for Macy's in the mid-twentieth century. Kathleen Rooney researched Boxfish and created this lovely portrayal of what Lillian may have encountered on New Year's Eve in 1984 as she set out to have dinner. Lillian loved to walk and we have the unique setting of 1980 Manhattan as the backdrop of thoughts, wishes, memories, and encounters she shares with us. Lillian's relationship with her late ex-husband, M
...more
This book stands out in its unique approach to its subject matter. Based on the life of an early feminist ad writer for Macy's but a fictional account, Lillian reviews her life choices as she is in her 80's. An ode to Manhattan, from the '20's to the mid 80's, from Horn and Hardart to the subway vigilante, we see the good and the bad in a vibrant city. Lillian walks New Year's Eve of 1985, and along the way, encountering both the grace and grittiness of life, while reviewing the ups and downs of
...more
Pub. Date: January, 17, 2017
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Our location is New York City. The story takes place from the 1930s till New Year’s Eve, 1984. Our heroine is Lillian Boxfish. As a young woman, Lillian took the city by storm. Working at Macy’s she was the highest paid advertising woman in the country. She also managed to have a few books of her poems published. Her every move was documented in the society pages. She was a dynamo of a woman that other working females longed to be. Then sh ...more
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Our location is New York City. The story takes place from the 1930s till New Year’s Eve, 1984. Our heroine is Lillian Boxfish. As a young woman, Lillian took the city by storm. Working at Macy’s she was the highest paid advertising woman in the country. She also managed to have a few books of her poems published. Her every move was documented in the society pages. She was a dynamo of a woman that other working females longed to be. Then sh ...more
This is what I wanted Lillian on Life (another odd naming coincidence!) to be, but it wasn't. Lillian Boxfish is a much wittier, more feminist take on the "old woman remembering her life" genre. (Is this a genre? I'm going to call it a genre. Why not.)
This is also another "wandering New York" narrative, in a year that has been all about those for me. The parallels between Lillian (and her real life inspiration, Margaret Fishback) and my 2016 idol, Maeve Brennan, are striking, although I'm glad t ...more
This is also another "wandering New York" narrative, in a year that has been all about those for me. The parallels between Lillian (and her real life inspiration, Margaret Fishback) and my 2016 idol, Maeve Brennan, are striking, although I'm glad t ...more
In 1985, eighty-six year old Lillian Boxfish once again defies stereotypes and the advice of others, walking alone at night through New York City, revisiting and ruminating on her past, while still very much alive to the present.
Lillian's aunt Sadie was a Manhattan career girl who wrote poems about her elegant advertising creation Phoebe. She inspired Lillie. In 1926 Lillie arrived in Manhattan, secured a copywriter job at R. H. Macy's, and in the 1930s became the highest paid female in advertis ...more
Lillian's aunt Sadie was a Manhattan career girl who wrote poems about her elegant advertising creation Phoebe. She inspired Lillie. In 1926 Lillie arrived in Manhattan, secured a copywriter job at R. H. Macy's, and in the 1930s became the highest paid female in advertis ...more
Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC. I found this to be absolutely charming. What about the title? Or the name, Lillian Boxfish? Doesn't it sound awfully British? Like Mrs. Queen Takes the Train perhaps? Well it isn't. It set in those, or rather these, upstart Colonies. It also reminded me of a movie I watched long, long ago between Christmas and New Year's, after a colossal day long hangover, called Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris. In my head, I substituted the beloved Jean Stapleton for Angela Lansbury
...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Book of the Month...: Lillian Boxfish Takes A Walk Discussion Thread | 1 | 11 | Jan 04, 2017 05:45PM |
Kathleen Rooney is a founding editor of Rose Metal Press, a publisher of literary work in hybrid genres, and a founding member of Poems While You Wait, a team of poets and their typewriters who compose commissioned poetry on demand. She teaches English and Creative Writing at DePaul University and is the author of eight books of poetry, nonfiction, and fiction, including the novel O, Democracy! (F
...more
More about Kathleen Rooney...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
“I thought at times that poetry might be an elegant way of screaming.”
—
3 likes
“The point of living in the world is just to stay interested.”
—
2 likes
More quotes…
Jan 27, 2017 12:01PM
Jan 27, 2017 03:26PM