As someone with bipolar disorder, when I recognized that the first half was written in a manic episode and the second in a depressive one, I was drawn in by the novel portayal of mental illness. Often in books where characters have mental illness that part is used for the plot or to singularly explain bad behaior, but this is so much more than a study of mental illness and writing. I really appreciated reading the character’s experiences of mental illness that were pleasurable. she was mostly threatened by men and the medical establishment. just a fascinating book, wonderful to read.

Oh wow I’m so glad this is being rereleased as I have never heard of Elaine Kraf and she deserves all the accolades that this cult classic evokes.

There are so many things to say about this book but I think more importantly, there are so many questions. And not in the way of trying to figure out any plot holes (there are none), but in a way that elicits conversation. This is a book you read within a book club or buddy read so you can talk about it with a myriad of people.

The stylistic choices in this book are everything and essential to the books inherent purpose. It is written completely in “train of thought” and wouldn’t be as well done without it, but may be hard to digest for certain readers. It is short though and that helps to getting through it quickly even if it is difficult for some people to stay with.

The train of thought writing and having to try to decipher what was actually happening the entire time, lended a lot to the story. It was disconcerting, discombobulating, and entirely intentional to put you directly into Ellen/Esmereldas point of view. It was difficult to watch the ways in which our society took advantage of her and painful to see her realizations once her Radiance was gone. I went through so many emotions from confused to frustrated and righteously pissed to questioning the choices that were being made and then feeling bad I was having certain reactions. This is a wild ride to say the least and I wish it was part of schools curriculums. It gives us so much to discuss when it comes to how our society treats women and people with mental health issues and how the culmination of all these factors leads to the breakdown of our society and humanity.

3.5 ⭐️
I can absolutely see why the reprinting of Elaine Kraf’s The Princess of 72nd Street is essential. Provocative for its original publishing in 1979, this novel speaks on women’s mental illness in a way that is beyond ahead of its time, almost like an underrated predecessor of the “unhinged women / women vs. the void” genre. While the writing felt a bit dense at times, I did enjoy it and know that many people will love this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the e-ARC!

This had a great cover and thought it worked well in what was going on with the story. I enjoyed how everything worked with this genre, I enjoyed getting to know the characters and thought the plotline had a great overall feel to this. I thought it was provocative and enjoyed how strong everything was. Elaine Kraf has a great writing style and left me wanting more but was glad I got to read this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the read!

Publishing Date: August 6, 2024

I could not get into this book. It was a good read, but it did not make sense a lot of the time. Which is what I think the author was trying to do, but I just didn’t have the brain capacity to keep up with it all.

Ellen is having issues with knowing who she is all of the time and goes into episodes of impulse, and believing she is the princess (she refers to herself as Esmeralda) of W 72nd Street NYC.

It was definitely a short read, but took me a second to get through because I was not understanding all of it right away.