Two women, one in 1949 the other in 2018.  Both ambitious, Charlotte in 1949 trying to desperately get a position as a typist in an advertising agency, Olivia in 2018 working in a boutique advertising agency pitching an ad campaign for the New York subway system.  In 1949 Charlotte surprisingly becomes a finalist as Miss Subway for the month of July, while Olivia in her research comes upon the Miss Subway campaign set up by J. Walter Thompson one of New York's largest advertising agency.



The story is told in alternating chapters the women in alternating lives, yet similar in their ambitions.  This novel brings me back to my childhood years as I remember these posters. For me this book was nostalgic as I could see the New York of my youth.  This novel was an easy read, enjoyable and one I would highly recommend.  My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this story! I never knew about Miss Subways but was thrilled to learn about them. The story neatly wove together the 1940s and current times.  It was a joy to see how Charlotte's life turned out. This book made me smile throughout and I would gladly recommend it to others.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a free copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review.  The story revolves around an historical Subway Girls campaign, a NYC campaign roughly 70+ years ago that promoted attractive and interesting young women in advertising posters on the subway.  Each poster included a blurb that described the woman's interests and what her plans were.  The story alternates between Charlotte, a young woman in the late 40's that is selected as a Subway Girl -- and Olivia, a young woman that now works in advertising in 2018. 

In the end, I felt like I missed the book's arc -- were Charlotte and Olivia meant to be comparisons of progress in the past 70 years?  If so, it was hard to draw them - Charlotte wrestled greatly with family expectations, while Olivia didn't really think about tension between career and family.  Ben was sort of a Prince Charming with money and plane tickets and his busy career didn't present any conflict with hers. 

Another comparison was autonomy.  With the Subway Girls campaign, the girls had a short bio with their picture, but they didn't control their own narrative.  Does Olivia control her narrative any better?  She's bolder, and maybe allowed to be more competitive, but I'm not sure she was really in charge of her narrative, either.  

However, the topic is interesting and the book is an easy read.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this novel for my honest and unbiased review. 

I love a good dual narrative timeline, and this novel was no exception. One story is of Charlotte, a woman ahead of her time whose dream is to be an advertising executive, and to live the Manhattan style. The other similar narrator is Olivia, a modern-day advertising executive. The problems Charlotte faced in business were obviously more monumental, given the time, but it wasn't shocking as a woman to read all about the bias that existed then and now. They fortuitously come together via an ad campaign called The Subways Girls (a real thing, worth the wiki search). Charlotte was a Subways Girl in 1949, and Olivia is pitching a new campaign to the MTA, and they just happen to be neighbors. 

The only story line that I found to be unbelievable, and made me a little angry, is how quickly Charlotte was willing to forgive and forget how awful her parents treated her. That was sort of glossed over to get a happy ending.

Although written around an interesting premise, with two seemingly different women separated by time learning from each other's mistakes and memories, I found Subway Girls lacking. It tried too hard to be a Fiona Davis novel, and had trouble finding its own voice.

The premise of The Subway Girls drew me in immediately. Told in alternating perspectives, Charlotte and Olivia are generations apart but both trying to follow their dreams in advertising (through the curveballs life throws at them along the way). I wanted to love this book so much, but it ended up just being OK for me. I thought a lot of the story was unlikely, yet still predictable. Overall it was a fast read, and I will probably wrap up my afternoon by researching more on Miss Subways.

A light read of two women from different time periods whose stories entwine. The interesting history about subway girls in the mid-1900s was its main appeal. The plot was based on a rather unlikely coincidence but the alternate chapters each from the point of view of one of the two women worked quite well. Mostly enjoyable if not riveting...

This was my first book by this author. Susie Orman Schall intertwines contemporary and historical settings/stories in such a flawless way. She writes a very interesting novel.  The first character of our story is  21 year old Charlotte Friedman. The time period is 1949. The place New York and the plot is about the Miss Subways beauty contest. 
Seventy years later, our second heroine is Olivia. The time period is 2018, and our character is a head strong advertising executive.
I found it interesting that these two strong determined women, although so far apart in time periods, faced a lot of the same issues. They were two women pursuing their dreams and looking for true happiness.
This was a story that kept me guessing until the end. Then left me wanting more.
 I received a copy of this book from St. Martin's Griffin Publishers through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

3.5 Stars
The Subway Girls is an enjoyable read. The book is about empowerment, and what women have had to do, to be successful, in a male-dominated corporate world. The story alternates between1949 and 2018. And, although, things have changed for women, for the better, there are still men who are unwilling to let go of their chauvinistic beliefs and behaviors. 

It was 1949, and although Charlotte was college educated, her chances of being successful in the advertising world were slim. Everyone seemed to hold the cards in her life, but her. She was determined to change that, even if it meant disappointing the people closest to her.

Olivia loved her job in NYC. Advertising was what she was good at. And, even though it was 2018, she was being played and held back, because of her gender. She secretly loved her boss, and he used that powerful tidbit of information to his advantage. 

 Although I liked the premise of this novel, and several characters, especially, Ben, Olivia and Charlotte, the book did not keep my attention as I had hoped. I think if the characters were developed more, I would have been more emotionally invested. All and all, though, I enjoyed it.

Thank you, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley, for my advanced review copy.

Read The Subway Girls. I cannot say much more than this: It is really really well done with great character and setting descriptions. So so good...

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the switching timeline from present day to the 40's. I am a former New Yorker who grew up in Brooklyn and never heard of The Subway Girls before. I plan on doing some research for the years that the subway system had this campaign. This was my first book by this author and I would highly recommend it everyone. It's nice to see how far women have come in the advertising field. Thank for Net Galley for allowing me to read this great book.

I love books that go back and forth in time. That's one reason I enjoyed The Subway Girls, by Susie Orman Schnall.  Charlotte wanted a career but her father wanted her to help in the family paint store for financial reasons. Charlotte had no choice but to obey her father although her heart was broken. She never lost her dream to work in an advertising agency, and then to marry Sam, her childhood sweetheart.  But things don't always work out the way we expect, and Charlotte winds up involved with the "Miss Subways" contest, which changes her life.. I don't want to give too much away, but I really liked the way the author created the characters, the good and the not-so-good, and brought them all together for a grand finish. Note:  I received a copy of this book from  NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm sorry to say that the style of this book just didn't grab me.  I made it partway through and didn't finish it.  I'm disappointed because this type of story usually interests me very much.

Olivia is a successful advertising executive who is at a crossroads in her career, relationships, and life. She brings her small firm the opportunity to pitch the MTA account which could potentially save her job and the company. Complicated feelings for her boss Matt make her job, and the pitch process a lot more complicated. 

Her elderly neighbor has an interesting story of her own, which happens to have been heavily influenced by a campaign the MTA ran in her youth. Along with her handsome grandson Ben, she helps Olivia with her pitch and changes her life forever. 

This was a very enjoyable book. Something that would work well as a beach or vacation read. Predictable in the way that romances are, but not in a bad way. Really interesting to learn about the Miss Subways competitions that were actually held in NYC beginning in the 40's.

Loved loved LOVED this book!!! Life sure has a funny way of coming full circle, and this book is on point with it. The story is so engaging and thought out.

Very interesting characters and well developed story.  The author was able to skillfully move back and forth between the two main characters and the different decades.  Enjoyed all aspects of the juxtaposition of post World War II New York with New York in 2018.  Eminently readable as the characters are so well drawn and remain true throughout the novel.

I love these type of stories,, the book was enjoyable , I hope  to get to read more books like this one,

If you are looking forward to warmer days and summer reading lists, keep Subway Girls on your beach read watchlist. The book is scheduled to debut in early July, and is sure to become a summer hit. Eager to get in the summer mood, I was able to snag an advanced copy of the book and infuse some summer vides into my days. 

Set in New York City a generation apart, Susan Orman Schnall crafts a story that is heartfelt and spunky. Schnall’s dual protagonists, Charlotte and Olivia, live roughly seventy years apart; yet, struggle to find the same personal and professional success in the grueling world of New York City advertising. Both timely and relevant, Schnall’s Subway Girls paints an all too realistic portrait of young women, struggling to succeed in a male dominated world. As the novel moves back-and-forth between the 1940s and present day, the parallels between Charlotte and Olivia’s lives are unmistakable. 

Infused with wonderful historical trivia, Subway Girls not only offers a thoughtful look at two women’s lives, but brings to light a long forgotten New York City pastime. It is no mistake that while both characters struggle to make it in the world of advertising, Charlotte is accepted into the Miss Subway Pageant, the winner of which would her picture printed on posters and hung up on various New York City subway trains. A commentary on women’s equality in the workplace and women’s roles within present society, Subway Girls explores sexism and gender profiling within its two stories; illustrating the advances women have made, and the struggles they still face.  

If you are a fan Schall’s previous novels, The Balance Project and On Grace, Subway Girls will not disappoint. Schanll’s newest work continues to build meaningful relationships between characters, while exploring thoughtful personal exploration. The book is a page turner, as you are increasingly drawn into the lives of Schnall’s two protagonists. While the book is simply constructed, Schnall’s story is engaging; light at times, but with serious issues at its heart.

This book flipped between two characters and times and made the transitions well.  I enjoyed the historical basis for this novel and time period.

This is the story of two girls in two different eras. In 1949, Charlotte Friedman, is trying to establish a career, in a very male oriented world.  She enters The Subway Girls contest, in which a girl was chosen every month to become poster girl, publicizing the subway.  This was one good way girls could catapult their careers into overdrive, which Charlotte’s life does after the contest. Seventy years later, Olive, living her dream job in advertising, seizes upon the Subway Girls contest history to pitch an advertising campaign idea to the New York Subway Authority, entwining her 2018 story with Charlotte’s 1949 story.

There are definite parallels in the two stories. Charlotte is struggling to assert herself as a woman in a world where women were expected to be content to remain stay-at-home housewives and mothers.  Olive is also struggling to establish herself in a male dominated advertising career field, while attempting to make her life more than just her career. Both characters are full of good old- fashioned wit and are bold enough to use it to their advantage. I enjoyed seeing the parallel of two strong-willed women, striving to make the best of their seemingly hopeless situations. I found the story a bit predictable, but nevertheless still immensely entertaining and enjoyable. I have not read anything else by the author but will look out for her books, after reading this one.  This one will appeal to a reader who enjoys a solid, strong female character who is not afraid to face the many, often seemingly unsurmountable obstacles she faces on a daily basis, as she ploughs ahead with her life. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.