Clio Rising by Paula Martinac

Ah, excellent. It is a thing of beauty to get properly engaged in a story the way I did with this book. Random library find (they are huge on diversity these days) that reminded me of Beebo Brinker in all the best ways, it is so much like in, but set in a publishing world and a few decades later. New York is still very much the place to be for all the gays from their small constricting towns. And so the tall and boyish and very much closeted back in North Carolina, deliciously named Olive (Livvie) Bliss comes to New York, where she can finally be herself. And as herself she makes friends and love connections. She even, very practically, makes job connections and through being a lowly assistant in publishing, she gets an opportunity to meet and spent time with the legendary Modernist lesbian icon of a writer, the eponymous Clio.
Fast approaching 90, Clio is a grumpy shut in, living in her small studio apartment with too many book and memories, especially of her one and only love, the torrid affair well known and documented, since both of the women at one time mixed in the most prestigious literati circles. But Clio is also a southern gal underneath all the acclaim and sophistication and Livvie’s fresh off the bus caroliniasm appeals to her immensely so she agrees to have her come and assist her in various ways. The relationship they strike up is somewhere between working and friendship and, although brief, it ends up having a profound meaning for both.
So what did I like about it? Well, all of it, really. It’s a terrific character driven story with properly engaging characters and interesting dynamics. It does an excellent job of bringing both the NYC (a great place that works oh so nicely…on paper) of the 1980s and the gay Paris of the 1920s to life, the latter utilizing so many famous people and seamlessly weaving them into the narrative. In fact. Clio’s character was inspired by Djuna Barnes, an author I personally didn’t care for, but who had a similar life trajectory, romantically, creatively and geographically, and lived in NYC at the same time as the author once upon a…
Clio’s something of a tragic figure, her legacy is just one great novel and one great love, but that’s still pretty epic when done right and so it’s easy to forgive her mood swings and gruffness. And Livvie’s just a nice kid through and though. Most of her friends are too. You’ll really enjoy spending time with them all. So much so, I didn’t even mind all the country friend Southerness of it all. After all, sometimes you just need a great biscuit.
Really, really enjoyed this one. Great read. So glad to have found it. Recommended.