Manhattan Beach: A Novel

Starts off as a slow tale about a New York City family before and during the World War II era. Ultimately, I was very invested in the Kerrigan family, though not in Styles family. There were also some plot moments that didn’t seem realistic, but Egan’s impressive writing carries you along anyway.

This was a fascinating read. It was also hard work, however, as I knew almost nothing about life in 1939s New York and the book contains a lot of specialist vocabulary, words specific to the time and references to unfamiliar famous people.
I especially enjoyed the diving storyline and all the detailed descriptions of Anna’s training and equipment.
I learnt a lot about the impact of the War on America. It made me think a lot about how much life has changed for women since those days, and how the War was a catalyst for some of those changes.

5.57