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    Church of Marvels: A Novel
    Church of Marvels: A Novel
    Church of Marvels: A Novel
    Audiobook10 hours

    Church of Marvels: A Novel

    Written by Leslie Parry

    Narrated by Denice Stradling

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    A ravishing first novel, set in vibrant, tumultuous turn-of-the-century New York City, where the lives of four outsiders become entwined, bringing irrevocable change to them all.

    New York, 1895. Sylvan Threadgill, a night soiler cleaning out the privies behind the tenement houses, finds an abandoned newborn baby in the muck. An orphan himself, Sylvan rescues the child, determined to find where she belongs.

    Odile Church and her beautiful sister, Belle, were raised amid the applause and magical pageantry of The Church of Marvels, their mother’s spectacular Coney Island sideshow. But the Church has burnt to the ground, their mother dead in its ashes. Now Belle, the family’s star, has vanished into the bowels of Manhattan, leaving Odile alone and desperate to find her.

    A young woman named Alphie awakens to find herself trapped across the river in Blackwell’s Lunatic Asylum—sure that her imprisonment is a ruse by her husband’s vile, overbearing mother. On the ward she meets another young woman of ethereal beauty who does not speak, a girl with an extraordinary talent that might save them both.

    As these strangers’ lives become increasingly connected, their stories and secrets unfold. Moving from the Coney Island seashore to the tenement-studded streets of the Lower East Side, a spectacular human circus to a brutal, terrifying asylum, Church of Marvels takes readers back to turn-of-the-century New York—a city of hardship and dreams, love and loneliness, hope and danger. In magnetic, luminous prose, Leslie Parry offers a richly atmospheric vision of the past in a narrative of astonishing beauty, full of wondrous enchantments, a marvelous debut that will leave readers breathless.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateMay 5, 2015
    ISBN9780062404848
    Author

    Leslie Parry

    Leslie Parry is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Her stories have appeared in The Virginia Quarterly Review, The Missouri Review, The Cincinnati Review, and The PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories, among other publications. She was recently a resident at Yaddo and the Kerouac House. Her writing has also received a National Magazine Award nomination and an honorable mention in The Best American Short Stories 2013. She lives in Chicago.

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    Reviews for Church of Marvels

    3.5/5

    166 ratings19 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I like stories set in old New York and I loved this book from the very first sentence of the prologue. This is an amazing first book by the author. It is extraordinarily polished with a delicious, twisty plot that is full of surprises, memorable characters and vivid historical details. Set in 1895 New York City, the story is told in alternating chapters by the various characters. Their histories are revealed very gradually. What the reader knows from the beginning is that the twin sisters Belle and Odile have just lost, in a fire, both their mother and the Circus of Marvels on Coney Island where the three performed. Sylvan, the orphaned night soiler, has just found an infant in a privy. Alphie has just (mistakenly?) been carted off to an insane asylum, where she waits for her husband to come rescue her. Those are the basic details, but how these people are eventually brought together is a mesmerizing, almost dreamlike, tale. I would never give away any of the secrets of this book, but I suggest that you pay attention to every detail. One revelation that I will share is that, before her marriage, Alphie had one of the most unusual jobs I've ever heard of. She was a penny Rembrandt. For a penny she applied cosmetics to men who had been carousing in order to hide the signs of their debauchery. You don't read that in a lot of books. The descriptions of how NYC felt and smelled during the sweltering summer during which most of this story takes place were really splendid. A room smells "like the damp of a ship, wet fur and raw potato" or like "the sweet rot of flowers, a wet flintiness, and then something bitter and earthy, like vegetable root".This was a wondrous book and I felt like reading it again as soon as I finished it to see what I had missed (and I never reread). I hope the author writes many more like this. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
    • 3/5
      A glimpse into the world of New York City around the turn of the century. The author told a vivid tale of the grittiness of life for the poor and the inhumane treatment of human beings in insane asylums. A bit far-fetched but still an enjoyable story line.
    • 3/5
      While this is an interesting, unique story. I did not like the way in which it was told; ie the pace and manner that information is given to the reader.
    • 4/5
      A novel set at the end of the nineteenth century in New York follows the lives of several of societies misfits. Strange tales of the underworld are intertwined making this an unusual but readable novel.
    • 4/5
      A baby is found in a privy by a night worker. He brings that baby girl to a friend and this whole story begins. Four main characters lives become so intertwined that you would think that they were known to each other, but that is not the case.This was written so well. Small tie-ins with each character keeps you interested in how the story will meld and you do not want to stop reading until you get those answers.
    • 4/5
      This book is like a novelization of a Decemberists' album: circus performers, cross-dressing crossed-in-love prostitutes, unwed mothers, fire, tongues, madhouses...

      Alphie's last chapter felt a little too pat, though I'm happy she was landing on her feet. I guess her story is one of arriving at that point, but, the novel only spans about 2 days.

      Belle's chapter at the end felt unnecessary. She was this somewhat inscrutable ghost throughout most the book, but you still got a sense of her as a person. You could infer a lot of things that happened, and others just didn't seem so important to learn about -- better for them to have remained vaguely half-imagined than explicitly spelled out. The curtain was pulled back a little too far, I guess.

      There was also the Dickensian pile-up of acquaintances and paths crossed...but I don't hold this against the book.
    • 4/5
      Seemingly unrelated stories come together in this turn-of-the-century story. A woman's daughters carry on her sideshow legacy. A man finds an abandoned baby. A woman marries the man she loves and gets a nasty mother-in-law in the bargain. But this is more than a period pieces. There are mysteries to be solved, and there is a good deal of heartache. The characters, nothing like me, are nevertheless relatable. I enjoyed the period flavor of the story and I came to like and care about the characters. This story was a nice change from the books I've been reading, and I would read more by this author if it is written.
    • 4/5
      This is very unique and unusual tale. Shifting points of view through a myriad of characters, Parry tells a story full of mystery and intrigue centred upon a circus family.Odile and Belle are the twins daughters of the mother who started the Church of Marvels, a Coney Island sideshow. And they are both performers in her show. But when an accidental fire destroys the Church of Marvels, killing their mother, her beloved tigers, and the girls' childhood friends, Belle packs up and leaves while Odile is left to cope with the details.After a mysterious letter arrives for Odile, she goes in search of her sister, unsure of what she will find. At the same time, Sylvan - a nightsoiler - finds a baby girl from a privvy he is cleaning out. The infant appears dead but revives after a few minutes. Unable to simply drop her at an orphanage, he sneaks her home and starts the search for her family, certain that no mother could abandon a baby like that.What follows is a surprising action-packed adventure. The pacing in this book is perfect. And the characters are fully developed individuals with their own unique perspectives on what is happening in their lives. Parry doesn't shy away from difficult subjects and approaches them with a clear and authentic voice. The intertwining of narratives and the interconnectedness of the plotlines are brought together masterfully in the finale.The only weakness in this novel is its dark tone. This is not a happily-ever-after, feel good novel. But that's what makes it so real.Highly recommended!
    • 5/5
      I’m going to avoid spoilers as much as possible, so I’ll keep plot details brief. There are three intersecting stories: that of Odile, a former carny trying to find her twin sister after losing almost everything in a fire; Sylvan, a night-soiler searching for the origins of a baby he finds while shoveling shit (really); and Alphie, a woman locked in an asylum because of her overbearing Italian mother-in-law. The only complaint I have with these three characters is that Sylvan is at times way too nice/likeable to be believed, but maybe that’s just my cynicism speaking.

      The secondary characters are excellent. I DARE you to tell me you wouldn’t be terrified if you met the Signora in a dark alley. Though she is dead before the book begins, the mother of Odile and her sister Belle, Friendship Willingbird Church, is in the running for biggest badass in literature (also best name). Case in point:

      “My mother was fearsome and beautiful, the impresario of the sideshow; she brought me and my sister up on sawdust, greasepaint, and applause. Her name—known throughout the music halls and traveling tent shows of America—was Friendship Willingbird Church. She was born to a clan of miners in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, but ran away from home when her older brother was killed at Antietam. She cut off her hair, joined the infantry, and saw her first battle at the age of fourteen. In the tent at night, she buried her face in the gunnysack pillow and wept bitterly thinking of him, hungry for revenge.”

      There are more plot twists than you can shake a stick at. This is basically the modern, feminist version of Dickens; I kept thinking of Sarah Waters’ Fingersmith, though that’s not really a perfect comparison. One of the characters collects teeth. TEETH. That’s straight-up a page out of Miss Havisham’s book. At a certain point, you’ll get to a major plot twist and everything will make so much more sense. There were several plot twists which made me re-read the paragraph multiple times because I was thinking, “Fuck, does that mean what I think it means? Wait, really? How did I miss that???”
      Most of the novel takes place in the seedy underbelly of turn-of-the-century NYC (thank CHRIST b/c I’m really tired of hearing about rich people, Downton Abbey), but all of it is described with completely lovely prose.

      It’s seriously been AT LEAST a year since I’ve read a book I liked this much, the last one I can recall being Octavia Butler’s Kindred (don’t talk to me about Fledgling, though). There’s some fantastic exploration of identity and disguises and healing. I loved the prose, found the characters intriguing, and kept turning the pages to discover the next twist. A great read, in my opinion.
    • 1/5
      I wanted to like this book, but alas, I didn't. There were characters that were well defined, but the writing style was way to rambling, switching back and forth, back and forth until my head was spinning. Too often, I had to go back and re-read to try to find the thread.The setting is New York, NY at the turn of the century. This is not the New York of fashion, museums, stores with glitz, and jaw dropping architecture. This is lower East side gritty, urine in the street, begging to find food, hard scramble, knock down drag out of the gutter, only to be shoved back down again New York. A baby is found by a young man who cleans toilets. The baby, is covered with excrement.The man who found the baby takes us through the back alleys of opium and prostitution.A woman is institutionalized and wants to find her baby. Her surroundings are tattered, dirty and filled with women guards who tie hands and feet and spit at faces. A carney whose mother owned the operation seeks to find what happened to her twin sister. Aware of a fire that destroyed the Church of Marvels, she knows her mother died in the ashes. Endlessly roaming with memories of the Coney Island seashore, she strives to find the other half of her soul.All three eventually come together, but it takes a long, long time to get to the conclusion.One little star for a debut book written by an author who might try describing a tad of sunshine now and again.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. The characters came to life on the page. They were young people who had been rejected by society; some worked in a circus and others at lowly jobs where they could earn enough to survive. The story is cleverly woven and reveals how their lives intersect. The detail was wonderful and I truly cared about the outcome. There were a couple of surprises and all is eventually explained.
    • 4/5
      A pretty deft story with intertwining threads (starting so disparately that I was quite confused) set in one of my favorite historical periods. One of the twists (not too gimmicky) actually left me open-mouthed for a bit.
    • 3/5
      This book had very vivid descriptions, in that I felt like I was on the streets with the characters. The smells and imagery gave a full picture of the setting. I would have liked to have seen a bit more development of the characters, they felt a bit 2-D at times. That being said, I read this book fairly quickly, and it kept me interested the whole time. It was a unique story with some surprises along the way. The overall story was reminiscent of "Water for Elephants" by Sarah Gruen.
    • 4/5
      An ok read, circus performers, an undertaker, a night-soiler, a baby broker, stumble around the seedier parts of turn of the century (19th to 20th) New York. Full of strange people, weird coincidences, and grim locals; it didn't really work for me. Library book.
    • 4/5
      The Church of Marvels by author Leslie Parry in set in New York in the late 1890s. This is a world of dirt, disease, noise and squalor, opium dens, brothels, and fight clubs, and where children are often commodities. The tale is told from several different perspectives:-Sylvan, a night-soiler, someone who cleans out the privies in Manhattan. The only thing that makes the job bearable is the many treasures he has found on the job but he has never found anything like he has found this night – a live baby girl. Although he is told by the boss to abandon the baby, he cannot – up until now he has felt lonely and isolated but finding the girl’s family gives him purpose.-Odile who was raised in a circus called the Church of Marvels on Coney Island. Thanks to a physical handicap, she has always lived in the shadow of her twin sister Belle who is a sword-swallower and a shapeshifter. But when the circus is burned down, killing her mother and several of the performers, Belle disappears and Odile follows the only clue she has to the slums of Manhattan.-Alphie who was thrown out by her strict religious father at the age of twelve for kissing a boy. She was forced into prostitution but found a job doing concealing makeup for men on the way home after a night of drinking, drugging, and brawling. She met Anthony, an opium smoker and undertaker, who, despite his mother’s protests, marries her. But Alphie has secrets that, when discovered, will have devastating effects for her.These may be the main characters but Parry has created a huge cast of characters who are often outcasts due to no fault of their own living lives at the edge of proper society but who are all complex, diverse, and fascinating – even the villain of the piece has shades of grey that make the reader, if not empathize, at least understand. Parry’s Church of Marvels is a beautifully written novel, haunting and memorable. It is both very colourful and exceedingly dark, full of wonders and tragedies but in the end, a very satisfying read.
    • 4/5
      When I first started reading this I found it hard to follow, four different story-lines and I was confused, couldn't figure out what was going on nor who was who. My advice is to just enjoy the story let it lead where it takes you, don't try to figure out where it is going. Eventually that is what I did and soon found myself feeling like I was in the dark underbelly of New York at the turn of the century. The atmosphere of this novel is very dark, a part of the city that is inhabited by baby sellers, children for hire, dog boys who clean out privies, opium dens, freaks of all kinds and a journey to the insane asylum. Not a pretty, clean spruced up city. The characters though are amazing, full of depth, flawed and anguished, searching for a better life. Capable of great kindness and a great capacity for love. The twists, seriously did not expect most of them, couldn't have guessed for all the money. They kept coming, especially in the last third of the book, and I was amazed at the author who put this all together. Totally different from any other book I have read. A very good read, though dark, be warned and some of the things are not easy to hear or read, though not horribly graphic. Found it memorable and am very glad to have read it.
    • 5/5
      I picked this up at Prairie Lights after reading some intriguing early reviews of it, and I was not disappointed. Set in 1895 in New York, Church of Marvels tells the story of Belle, a contortionist and knife swallower in her family's show at the Church of Marvels on Coney Island. But after the Church of Marvels burns down, she disappears, leaving her sister Odile behind. Meanwhile, a man cleaning privies behind tenements in New York City rescues an abandoned baby, and a woman wakes up disoriented in Blackwell's Lunatic Asylum. These stories are told in alternating fashion until their paths begin to cross. Secrets are gradually, but steadily revealed, and that was one thing that I liked about this book. Just when I thought that all was resolved, another twist was revealed, right up through the epilogue. This is a well-crafted story. Although it is Parry's debut, I felt as though I was in the hands of a pro. Perhaps because of the subject matter, it reminded me a bit of [The Night Circus], but it also has elements of a good mystery. I'm glad I read this one!
    • 2/5
      Church of Marvels by Leslie Parry is set in New York in 1895. Sylvan Threadgill, a night soil cleaner (cleaned out the outdoor toilets), finds a baby girl. He takes it home to care for it and find out who the baby belongs to. Isabelle “Belle” Church has fled from her home on Coney Island after the Church of Marvels burned down. Her mother, Friendship Church, and another performer died in the fire. Belle was the main attraction in the show. She is a contortionist and can swallow a number of objects. Her twin sister, Odile, wants to find her sister. She misses her and takes off to Manhattan to find her.Alphie was married to Anthony until one morning she wakes up in an insane asylum. Alphie keeps waiting for Anthony to show up and rescue her. When he does not show up, Alphie sets out to escape and gets help from Belle. Belle ended up in the asylum the same night as Alphie. At first Alphie does not remember how she ended up there and her story (along with Belle’s) is slowly revealed throughout the book.Odile starts looking for her sister and runs into Sylvan Threadgill. Sylvan helps Odile look for Belle. The Church of Marvels is a very strange book. I do not want to give anything away (spoilers), so I have tried to keep my summary brief (for me at least). We get to find out about life for the people that are different in 1895 New York (people born with deformities, work as actors, work in circus acts, girls that end up unwed and pregnant). I give Church of Marvels 2.5 out of 5 stars. I just did not enjoy this book. It lacks a nice flow. It is disjointed and confusing. Everything makes sense at the end of the book, but it is a long trip to get to that point.I received a complimentary copy of Church of Marvels from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are my own.
    • 4/5
      Church of Marvels is an atmospheric and haunting tale set in New York during the late 1800's that unfolds from the perspectives of four compelling characters, whose lives eventually converge.Leaving behind her twin sister, Isabelle Church fled to Manhattan in the wake of the Coney Island fire that killed her mother and destroyed the Church of Marvels, the carny show in which Isabelle starred. No one knows why she left, where she is, or what secrets she keeps."I haven’t been able to speak since I was seventeen years old. Some people believed that because of this I’d be able to keep a secret. They believed I could hear all manners of tales and confessions and repeat nothing. Perhaps they believe that if I cannot speak, I cannot listen or remember or even think for myself – that I am, in essence, invisible. That I will stay silent forever. I’m afraid they are mistaken."With her mother dead, and her twin sister gone, only Odile Church remains at Coney Island, the spinning girl on the Wheel of Death. When a letter from her sister finally arrives she heads to Manhattan, determined to find her."At first glance the twins looked alike - they were both freckled and hazel eyed, with thick blonde hair and the snub nose of a second-rate chorus girl. But that was where the similarities ended, Unlike Belle, with her lithe and pliant acrobat's body, Odile had a permanent crook in her neck and a slight curve to her spine."Sylvan Threadgill is nineteen, abandoned as a young child, he makes his living as a night-soiler, and boxes for a few extra pennies. One night he finds a baby girl half drowned in the effluent and rescues her."Under their breaths they called him Dogboy. He'd been puzzled over and picked apart all of his life - the skin of a Gypsy, the hair of a Negro, the build of a German, the nose of a Jew. he didn't belong to anyone. They started at him with a kind of terrified wonder, as though he was a curiosity in a dime museum. One of his eyes was brown, so dark it nearly swallowed the pupil, and the other pale, aqueous blue."When Alphie Leonetti, once a 'penny rembrandt', is first introduced she is waiting for her husband, Anthony, to rescue her from the notorious Blackwell's Asylum in the East River, the last thing she remembers is an argument with her disapproving mother in law. Desperate to escape she befriends a mute inmate with startling skills."Alphie curled up and covered her face with her hair, then cried her voice away. She couldn't bear it; she'd come so far from her days a s a girl on the street, a bony runaway with shoes made from paper, waiting there on the corner with her paint stand and jars. And here she was, through some cruel reversal, sent back to the anonymous hive, trapped in a room full of women who were not missed and not wanted, who would wear the same dress every day until it disintegrated on their hungry frames-a dress she too wore, formless and smelling of some previous disease..."With evocative phrasing Parry creates memorable characters and vivid settings, from the seedy shores of Coney Island to the dark, narrow streets of inner Manhattan, and the bleak horror of the asylum marooned in the middle of the East River.A novel that demands attention, the lyrical prose of Church of Marvels tells a complex, suspenseful mystery that sometimes appears scattered, but is eventually brought to a stunning resolution."We can be a weary, cynical lot – we grow old and see only what suits us, and what is marvelous can often pass us by. A kitchen knife. A bulb of glass. A human body. That something so common should be so surprising – why, we forget it. We take it for granted. We assume that our sight is reliable, that our deeds are straightforward, that our words have one meaning. But life is uncommon and strange; it is full of intricacies and odd, confounding turns."