Book: Whisper of the Moon Moth
Author: Lindsay Jayne Ashford
Pages: 353
Read on: Kindle {via Kindle Unlimited}
Read in: 6 hours
Plot Summary: For nineteen-year-old Estelle Thompson, going to the cinema is more than a way to pass the time…it’s a way out. In 1931 in Calcutta, Anglo-Indian girls like Estelle are considered half-breeds, shunned by both English and Indian society. Her only escape is through the silver screen, where she can forget the world around her.
When Estelle catches the eye of a dashing American heir with connections to a major motion-picture studio, he also captures her heart. Soon, Estelle has a one-way ticket to London and a recommendation for a screen test.
To get to the top, she must keep her Indian heritage concealed—and so begins her new identity as movie goddess Merle Oberon. But just as her dreams are poised to come true, she discovers that her own family is keeping a much more shocking secret from her—one that changes everything she’s believed about her past.
Things I Liked:
- I didn't know who Merle Oberon was. A few years ago, I think I read something about a Hollywood actress who had kept her Anglo Indian identity a secret, but I didn't remember her name at all. So, when I saw this book on my Kindle Unlimited page, I thought it would be quite interesting to read about being Anglo Indian in British India- of feeling like you didn't belong to either India or Britain. Also, an ordinary girl from Calcutta becoming a major Hollywood actress in itself promised an incredible journey, so I picked up the book and didn't regret it at all.
- I am not a non-fiction or even a memoir reader, so this style of memoir writing- reads like a work of fiction, but is well-researched and draws from the real life of the protagonist- is something that works very well for me. I'd read and loved Lindsay Jayne Ashford's Agatha Christie-inspired memoir The Woman on the Orient Express and so, was quite excited to pick up this book.
- I liked how the book starts with Estelle's (Merle's first name) life in Calcutta. Of her aspirations of marrying a British or American man and getting a good life for herself outside of Calcutta. The book delves into what is was like being an Anglo Indian in British India. If you looked white enough, you could hope to marry a white man, but God help you if your child looked brown! Many Anglo Indian women were sent back home if their child looked more brown than white, something, which made them live in a state of perpetual dread even if they did end up marrying a white man. The Indian community, obviously, also didn't really make them feel welcome. Such a terrible and tragic state of affairs.
- I found it interesting how Merle ends up in London and gets her first acting job. The book outlines the studio system of the 1930s quite well and Merle's journey from a junior artiste to a leading lady is also nicely etched.
- Merle had to pay a huge personal price for her success. She not only had to keep her Indian identity concealed but also pretend that her mom (her only real family) was her maid- a decision that broke her mother and made her live with crippling amounts of guilt.
- There is also a bit of a mystery in the book about Merle's past, which is also interesting and presents yet another secret for Merle to deal with.
Rating: 4/5
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