Review of Finding Fitzgerald

[Chinaza Nnabuenyi]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Finding Fitzgerald" by Carrie Lynn.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Finding Fitzgerald by Carrie Lynn is a bibliographical book containing the author's research work in putting together the puzzling pieces of the Fitzgeralds. At age eleven, Carrie's mom had brought home a book series, The Great Brain by John Fitzgerald. And from that time, Carrie's love for the Fitzgeralds was etched deeply in her heart. Many years later, she would read John's first early biographical memoir, Papa Married a Mormon, published in 1955. This inspires her search for the Fitzgeralds, who had gone somewhat extinct. In searching out the history of the Fitzgeralds, Carrie unravels shocking truths, some of which were hurting revelations. How would she handle the doubt that all she had thought real could be fictional? Why would John Fitzgerald lie about his story? Find out in this exciting book.

For me, the most positive aspects of this book were the love and togetherness shared among Carrie's family. Her parents had begun this foundational love when she and her brother were little. The Great Brain series was gotten by their mom and read to them during a camping trip in 1976. Her family was "bibliofanatics." So, everyone got a fair share of attention during family time. Carrie carried on with this tradition when she became a mother. Her children and her husband were trustworthy sources of family support. Although they had different characters, their diversity was unique. Clarissa, her first child, was a straight A student committed to "tae kwon do." Elaine, the second, was a competitive equestrian rider, and Mitch, the third, was autistic. Altogether, Carrie's family was a lovely one.

Finding Fitzgerald, to me, was a lot more than researching about the Fitzgeralds. However, this is the primary focus of the book. It was more like an endorsement of John's work. In 1955, John was “an unknown author from a tiny Utah town, who published a best-selling book, Papa Married a Mormon." It was evident in her writing that Carrie Lynn was very interested in expressly communicating the values of the novel. “What were the stories behind his stories—not the ones he wrote, but the ones that inspired his book?" This was one of the many questions that inspired Carrie to carry out this research work. Following these many questions were years of dedication, commitment, disappointment, challenges, joy, and hard work. Carrie Lynn's perseverance was inspiring. I liked this about the book.

Given Carrie's work, I can tell that John's books greatly impacted societal values. This was revealed in what she wrote, “John D. Fitzgerald incorporated many values (family, love, community, support, honor between friends, humor) into a most enjoyable series of books that the youth of our nation should be exposed to in this challenging era of growing up.” This is another positive aspect of the book. I do not find any part of this book negative.

Hence, I rate Finding Fitzgerald four out of four stars. There were very few errors in the book, which is a clear expression that the book was well edited. I recommend this book to readers who enjoy mystery novels or thrillers.

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Finding Fitzgerald
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[Bertha Jackson]

It sounds like the author has written a great tribute to the Fitzgeralds.

[Patty Allread]

What an unusual premise for a book. My first thought was that every author has a backstory that could be fascinating if someone were motivated to dig into it. Therefore there are endless opportunities to research and write about authors.

[Shadreck Rogers]

I like that this book champions values like love and support.

[Amy Luman]

Sometimes people become obsessed with something for really no reason. It is so great that she learned so much about the Fitzgerald's and was able to share that.