I downloaded this book from girlebooks because I have previously enjoyed Edna Ferber’s writing. I believe she won the Pulitzer prize twice. This reads like a book but I think they were stories which were published in a magazine between 1911 and 1913. It also includes a lot of illustrations, I didn’t even realise that was possible on a Kindle!
Emma McChesney is a travelling saleswoman working for the Featherloom Petticoat Company and travelling in the mid-west of the U.S. The title of the book comes from her advice to stick to roast beef medium at the many hotels she has to frequent in the course of her work. Apparently fancier food with rich sauces ruins your digestion and complexion.
Emma is a single parent, a divorcee with a 17 year old son, Jock, her pride and joy. She has brought him up on her own, is the best salesperson in the firm and earns a man’s wage. She’s determined to stay independent – in fact, considering her character was written 100 years ago, she’s an amazingly sassy and modern lady.
She runs rings around all the male characters and does it all with great style and wit. My only complaint is that this ‘book’ ended very abruptly.
The only other books I’ve read by Ferber are Show Boat and Ice Palace but I’ll be looking out for more. She was wildly popular in her day and quite a few of her books were made into films/movies. Yes, that Show Boat!
I haven’t read anything by her, but I also downloaded this one – I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed it.
Lisa,
The three books I’ve read by Ferber have been very different from each other but I liked them all.
Well, it is a pleasure to find another reader who enjoys Ferber. I have not read a lot of her stories, but Librivox has several audio files available for free download, and I listened to “April 25th, As Usual” last year. A good story, rather more tart than expected.
Fay,
I’ve never listened to an audio download but I’m tempted now. I think it’s amazing that she was so famous in her day and almost unheard of now.
Sounds delightful! I’ve never read Edna Ferber but I’ve trying to get one of my book groups to read Giant, as it’s set in Texas. I’ll have to give her a try.
Karen,
I want to read Giant but I haven’t managed to get a hold of it yet, I wonder if it’s free for download anywhere, I’ll have to have a look.
I still haven’t finished any Ferber after I proposed her for the CPR! I did get about 3/4 of the way through Giant and it is immensely interesting yet somehow ranty. There is a tone about it that bothers me. I do want to finish it someday, though. Roast Beef, Medium sounds a bit more lighthearted than Giant is so I might try it.
Anbolyn,
I read a summary of Giant and it seems she was writing about local issues which presumably she felt strongly about. I hardly ever give up on books but I sometimes plough my way to the end of one and give it a very hard look indeed! Her books seem to be very different from each other, this one is definitely lighthearted.