4 out of 4 stars
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Alice Rene’s historical fiction novel The Other Side of Him takes us back to life in America during the 1950s. Living in the Chicago slums, Claire Wagner is the daughter of a German immigrant – not necessarily something to be proud of just after World War 2 – who wants more for her life than just marriage. She supports herself through college and then heads off to San Francisco to attend graduate school studying medical social work. Her brother sets her up on a blind date with Greg, a charming older man with an established career as a surgeon and a passion for a sophisticated lifestyle. Claire is drawn into his high-class world, but, as an independent woman, she is quickly turned off by his controlling behaviors and strong words. Perhaps Greg isn’t as perfect as he appears to be.
Prior to the historical, well-known feminist movement of the 1960s-70s, this book takes place in a time period when women were considered vulnerable, weak, and overall inferior to men. Even within her own home from her own family members, Claire dealt with discrimination for the simple fact that she was a young woman. Her mother didn’t support her decision to go to college and always pushed her to get married because it was all that a woman was expected to do. Her brother brushed aside her concerns and insisted she must have been mistaken when she turned to him for help dealing with Greg. Despite the feeling that the whole world was against her, Claire remained strong and didn’t cave in to the pressures of society, which is one point that I loved most about this novel.
The plot moves along at a steady pace; it’s not full of action or suspense that will necessarily keep readers on the edge of their seats, but it certainly doesn’t induce boredom. I found it to be engaging enough that multiple chapters had flown by in a single sitting, and I was always intrigued about what was yet to come for Claire. The setting and time period – neither of which I have personally experienced – were also quite fun to read about, and I could easily picture myself in the scenes right along with the characters.
I credit my enjoyment of this book to the amazing writing style of the author. She managed to capture and entrance me with her words. While simple and easy to follow, I also felt like there was something poetic about the way the story was told. The bits of German added in here and there, mostly thanks to Claire’s wonderfully portrayed mother, only enhanced this experience and made me realize how beautiful language can be, regardless of the language being spoken.
As for negatives of the book, I found only a single punctuation typo in the entire text (a comma instead of a period at the end of a sentence). Plot-wise and story-wise, I can give no criticisms at all. Normally, I’m not much a historical fiction fan, but something about this book called out to me, and I am so glad I followed my instincts. Following your instincts is usually a good thing, as Claire and I both know. It is with great pleasure that I give The Other Side of Him a rating of 4 out of 4 stars and recommend it to those who enjoy historical or women’s fiction.
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The Other Side of Him
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I haven't read many (any?) books from that time period, so maybe I should give this one a try!
