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An English country house mystery, but set in the Australian countryside in the 1920s. Greenwood’s Phryne Fisher, a woman of independent means and modern attitudes, detects the solution to a number of mysteries involving her hosts and fellow guests including a servant’s murder. Fans of Dorothy Sayers’ Lord Peter should give this series a try.
Tagged: 1920s, Australia, Cozy mystery, Mystery
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An enchanting mystery that will have you on the edge of your seat until the very end! A dark story of the supernatural set in 1920s New York City. Speakeasies, theater, jazz and plenty of twenties slang to keep you giggling.
The story follows a young woman named Evie O’Neill who possesses a power she just can’t explain. After Evie’s brother dies, she is sent to New York City to live with her uncle, a professor of the occult. A chilling murder takes place and Evie’s uncle is called in to help the police investigate the mysterious circumstances. Could Evie’s power help solve this disturbing mystery?
Bray’s characters will stay with you long after you finish reading. Stay tuned for the second book in this series, Lair of Dreams.
Tagged: 1920s, Fantasy, Fiction, Historical fiction, Mystery, Science fiction, Suspense
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There is no doubt that the film is intended as an homage to older films. The film is presented in black and white and everything from the acting, to the intertitles, the score, and even the aspect ratio of the screen is designed to resemble the films of the silent era. And yet, the film feels quite modern, in part, because of the self-awareness it brings to its imitation, but also because the film looks at Hollywood in the late twenties in a manner which could only be done in hindsight. In many ways The Artist has more in common with Singing in the Rain, another great film about Hollywood’s transition to talkies, than it does with any silent film.
And, much as with Singing in the Rain, you don’t actually have to be familiar with films of the silent era to appreciate The Artist. The film is well made, the acting is great, the period costumes are a joy. The characters are larger than life, but sympathetic and likable. They are caricatures, but this is so well done as to be an asset.
I really enjoyed The Artist. It’s funny, stylish, and clever. Recommended for film lovers or anyone looking for something a little different.
Tagged: 1920s, Feature film, Silent film
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Tagged: 1920s, Fiction, Historical fiction, Mystery
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This “book” is the audio to a play performed at L.A. Theatre Works in 2006 starring Alan Alda and was borrowed using Overdrive (see the reference desk for more information on how to download free books to your phone or e-reader!).
The off-broadway play is a fictional account of inspired by an actual camping trip in 1921 with friends Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and Warren Harding. The three men set off camping and their car breaks down and we hear their chatter as they are lost in the woods. It is filled with humor and historical facts as we hear how Ford aspires to be President and President Harding would rather spend time with a mistress.
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We’ve recently been hit with a steady current of material spotlighting Americans residing among the Parisians in the 1920’s. Several fantastic books on the subject have been published this year along with the opening of Woody Allen’s new comedy Midnight in Paris.
Paris in the 1920’s was a creative haven for many artists, critics, filmmakers and writers. Man Ray, who would not wish to be simply classified as a photographer (he considered himself a painter who also took photographs, made films and worked with sculpture and collage), came to France in 1921 and produced some of his most revered photographic work. Basing much of his craft on experimentation and dreamlike imagery, he aligned himself with artists in the Dada and Surrealist movements. In Erin C. Garcia’s book, we see portraits of Man Ray’s colleagues which include Jean Cocteau, Hans Arp, Salvador Dalí and Marcel Duchamp.
Man Ray in Paris provides many stunning photographic plates and also chronicles the artist’s stay in the City of Light.
Tagged: 1920s, Non-fiction, Paris, Photography