Joy in the Morning

by Betty Smith

In Brooklyn, New York, in 1927, Carl Brown and Annie McGairy meet and fall in love. Though only eighteen, Annie travels alone to the Midwestern university where Carl is studying law to marry him. Little did they know how difficult their first year of marriage would be, in a faraway place with little money and few friends. But Carl and Annie come to realize that the struggles and uncertainty of poverty and hardship can be overcome by the strength of a loving, loyal relationship. An unsentimental yet uplifting story, Joy in the Morning is a timeless and radiant novel of marriage and young love.

Genres: Fiction, Classics, Historical Fiction, Romance, Historical, Young Adult, Book Club

296 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1963

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Betty Smith (AKA Sophina Elisabeth Wehner): Born- December 15, 1896; Died- January 17, 1972

Born in Brooklyn, New York to German immigrants, she grew up poor in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. These experiences served as the framework to her first novel, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1943).

After marrying George H. E. Smith, a fellow Brooklynite, she moved with him to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he pursued a law degree at the University of Michigan. At this time, she gave birth to two girls and waited until they were in school so she could complete her higher education. Although Smith had not finished high school, the university allowed her to enroll in classes. There she honed her skills in journalism, literature, writing, and drama, winning a prestigious Hopwood Award. She was a student in the classes of Professor Kenneth Thorpe Rowe.

In 1938 she divorced her husband and moved to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. There she married Joseph Jones in 1943, the same year in which A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was published. She teamed with George Abbott to write the book for the 1951 musical adaptation of the same name. Throughout her life, Smith worked as a dramatist, receiving many awards and fellowships including the Rockefeller Fellowship and the Dramatists Guild Fellowship for her work in drama. Her other novels include Tomorrow Will Be Better (1947), Maggie-Now (1958) and Joy in the Morning (1963).

Reviews

[Nika · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 rounded down

I wanted to like this story more but I did not. It just was not for me. It felt slow and uneventful. It was like some boring day when almost nothing happened. I am, of course, talking about a perception. Certain things kept happening in the lives of the protagonists, Annie and her husband Carl.
Annie was a nice character overall, but I was not able to connect with her.

To sum up, this book falls into the category of "not for me but for someone else." It ends on an upbeat note. However, given the historical context, we cannot be sure of the future that awaits the couple.

[Sarah Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the loveliest, sweetest books I've ever read. It takes a mental adjustment to appreciate the time period, so don't get thrown off by the relationship in the early pages of the book. The reward of watching the young couple's first year of marriage unfold makes the early awkwardness, and, frankly, shocking first bits worth it and actually understandable. This is not a plot driven book, but really a sweet story of young love at a "middle western" college.

[Майя Ставитская · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Betty Smith, the one we love for "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn." This book may seem too blissful, in comparison with the story of a little girl from a troubled family in a poor neighborhood, whom we empathized with with her debut novel. In fact, everything is much more logical. It's always harder for a lonely unhappy child than for a young woman who is married to a nice guy. Even if they are as poor as church mice.

So, little Annie. originally from Brooklyn, New York, she comes to her betrothed, who is studying at one of the universities in the Midwest. It's September 1927, she just turned eighteen, Karl. with whom they have known for four years - twenty, and they are going to get married. No white dress, no veil, no orange blossom, they will be registered by a judge at the town hall, to whom the groom will pay two dollars for the inconvenience caused.

Parents, on either side, do not approve of this marriage, the young will have to wallow in the sea of life on their own, and at first their hopes for happiness seem utopian. However, these guys have a strong core. Karl's family is not rich, he studies on a scholarship and works part-time in two places. His mother sends him five dollars every week (which she will not only refuse when she finds out about the marriage, but will also oblige him to return the 400 bucks already spent on his education). Annie has been working full-time since the age of fourteen and is ready to contribute to the family budget the $78 selflessly accumulated in the bank account (with interest!)

"And in the morning joy" (the title is a line from psalm 26) describes the first year of living together, in which there is nothing but love and mutual respect, but there is a common desire to work for the sake of a decent existence, the ability to rejoice in any little thing, an ineradicable love of life, deep decency of both, interest in studying, the desire to become better.

When I said I was interested in studying, I meant Annie, too. Because she loves to read insanely, and on the very first day she admired the students (remember, this is a university campus?) And I tried to dress the same. like them. And once, having plucked up the courage, I reached the audience with a group of students and listened to a whole lecture on literature, standing in the corridor. After that, I took the books recommended by the professor from the library. And it was happiness, I don't know. Like you, I understand her.

That is. yes, all this sounds and looks somewhat utopian, but why not assume that in addition to ambitious egoists like Clyde Griffiths, there are normal guys in the world? Why, in the end, can it not be that a talented girl, to whom reading and writing texts gives comfort in all everyday sorrows - that such a girl does not really exist? The fate of Betty Smith is a living proof of that.

A charming life-affirming glorious story about normal people. About good people.

…вечером водворяется плач, а наутро радость
Ей повезло, что у нее есть такая отдушина. Ничто не сломит ее, если она сможет изложить это на бумаге.
Это Бетти Смит, та, кого мы любим за "Дерево растет в Бруклине". Эта книга может показаться чересчур благостной, в сравнении с историей маленькой девочки из проблемной семьи бедного района, которой мы сопереживали с ее дебютным романом. На самом деле все куда как логично. Одинокому несчастному ребенку всегда тяжелее, чем молодой женщине, которая замужем за хорошим парнем. Пусть даже они бедны, как церковные мыши.

Итак, малышка Анни. родом из нью-йоркского Бруклина приезжает к своему суженому, который учится в одном из университетов на Среднем Западе. На дворе сентябрь 1927, ей только что исполнилось восемнадцать, Карлу. с которым они знакомы уже четыре года - двадцать, и они собираются пожениться. Ни белого платья, ни фаты, ни флердоранжа, их зарегистрирует судья в ратуше, которому жених заплатит два доллара за причиненные неудобства.

Родители, ни с той, ни с другой стороны не одобряют этого брака, молодым придется барахтаться в житейском море самостоятельно, и поначалу их надежды на счастье кажутся утопией. Однако у этих ребят крепкий стержень. Семья Карла небогата, он учится на стипендию и подрабатывает в двух местах. Мать каждую неделю присылает ему по пять долларов (в которых не только откажет, узнав о женитьбе, но и обяжет вернуть 400 баксов, уже истраченные на его обучение). Анни с четырнадцати лет работала полный день и готова внести в семейный бюджет самоотверженно скопленные на банковском счету 78 долларов (с процентами!)

"А наутро радость" (название - строчка из 26 псалма) описывает первый год совместной жизни, в которой нет ничего, кроме любви и взаимного уважения, но есть общее желание трудиться ради устройства достойного бытия, умение радоваться любой малости, неистребимое жизнелюбие, глубокая порядочность обоих, интерес к учебе, желание стать лучше.

Когда я сказала про интерес к учебе, то имела в виду и Анни тоже. Потому что она безумно любит читать, и в первый же день залюбовалась студентками (помните, это университетский городок?) И постаралась одеться так же. как они. А раз, набравшись смелости, дошла с группой студентов до аудитории и прослушала целую лекцию по литературе, стоя в коридоре. После взяла в библиотеке книги, рекомендованные профессором. И это было счастьем, не знаю. как вы, я ее понимаю.

То есть. да, все это звучит и выглядит несколько утопически, но почему не предположить, что кроме амбициозных эгоистов, вроде Клайда Гриффитса есть на свете нормальные парни? Почему, в конце концов, не может быть, чтобы талантливая девочка, которой чтение и писание текстов дает утешение во всех житейских скорбях - чтобы такая девушка не существовала на самом деле? Судьба Бетти Смит живое тому подтверждение.

Обаятельная жизнеутверждающая славная история о нормальных людях. О хороших людях.

[Loretta · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't believe the same author, who penned one of my favorite books, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, wrote this rubbish. While I quite enjoy Historical Fiction, this book was just so dated that the storyline, if that's what you'd call it, was laughable. The book started out sweetly enough, with the main characters, Carl and Annie, just getting married, struggling to "live" on the meager paycheck that Carl brings home. Then Carl starts becoming way too domineering, Annie pouts and cries, Carl apologizes, they make nice...yuck!!! It was making my skin crawl. Dated. No question about it! In the end they have a baby, Carl gets this great job, they live happily ever after!

[Karina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Their marriage was perfect as far as sex was concerned. She was a warm, talkative, even naive child during the day and a warm, passionate woman in bed at night. No, he'd made no mistake about marrying Annie and would not giver her up-even for a year. He'd give up the law first. (PGS 59-60)

Joy in the Morning was not my favorite title by Betty Smith but I did enjoy the simplicity of the story, first published in 1963. The year is 1927 set in the Midwest. Annie, 18, marries Carl, 20 I think, and moves in with him on campus, while he studies law. The story is how it should be for all young couples just starting out, I know for me this story reminded me of when I first got married at 19 years old. Moving away to be with your new husband, struggling financially, arguing as you get to really know the person, and figuring out how to make up. Being married is the most unselfish thing to happen to a person, now you have responsibility and it goes both ways in order for it to work. Add in babies and financial struggles and it should all fall apart right? No, it should not if you have the right partner willing to do whatever it takes for his family and vice versa.

This is a timeless story full of young love and hope for a better future. I know this story was fictional but I hope Carl and Annie made it to their elderly years together with lots of kids and grandkids, minus the dementia and Alzheimer's.

I enjoyed this book and I highly recommend it. It's a feel good no politics involved kind of read.

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, this is just the sweetest, most realistic story of two young adults who are in love and naively believe that being together forever will solve all their problems. Annie and Carl quickly realize that getting married against their families' wishes will be the least of their worries. Annie is a dreamer, a reader, a warm and personable girl that everyone can't help but love. Carl is smart, passionate, funny and diligent, a hardworking guy who earns respect and kindness from all the superiors in his life. Together, they prove to be an unstoppable pair and achieve a happiness beyond what they could have imagined.

If you loved A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, you'll enjoy Joy in the Morning. Betty Smith has created yet another cast of memorable characters and the setting is reminiscent of her own early days of marriage and auditing university classes. Overall, this story is authentic and heartwarming.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My mom passed this along to me a few years ago, and I finally picked it up this week after reading something about it on someone's blog. It's hard not to love Betty Smith after "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn," so I was optimistic about this one. It was very similar in style and pace to the aforementioned... unsentimental but leaving you cheering for the characters, hoping for them. I really wanted their lives to get easier, really wanted them to keep loving each other and not give up in spite of their fairly obvious flaws. And, remarkably, they do. There is much accounting of their meager finances and scraping by - to the point that you begin to feel tired with them. It reminded me of all I have to be grateful for - even the leaner years and struggles that seemed to last too long.

I think it is always interesting to read other works by an author who has received acclaim focused on mainly one work. Looking at them collectively broadens the view of them individually.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was always confused by this book because of the title. Our neighbor when I was a kid wrote several steamy romances (Kathy Myers! Winter Flame! Dark Soldier!) and one clean Christian romance called . . . Joy in the Morning.

But I loved A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, and that's the one of her books you always hear about. So I didn't dwell on it too much, until this popped up as a Kindle deal and I thought, Well, why not?

Okay. For real. This was so good. Of course it was. It's not like A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was a fluke!

This story about the first year of marriage for two very young Brooklynites, transplanted to the midwest so that he can go to college was just fantastic. It reminded me of Stegner's Crossing to Safety, in the way it just clearly and simply laid out a marriage. Sometimes you want to knock both their heads together. Sometimes you think they're just the cutest, and this is true love. I'm not even slightly surprised to find that it's based on her own experience with her first marriage, just as parts of ATGIB was loosely based on her childhood. (I had a feeling that this one was more autobiographical than her first book, actually.)

Added to how great the actual book is, this addition has a lovely updated afterward, an essay by Smith called "I Want to Write!", and two essays by granddaughters about her, especially in regards to this book and how it was turned into a movie with a grand celebration and premiere in her home town.

How swell is that?

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I decided to read this novel while in a book hangover after reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. It has some of the same themes such as poverty and going back to simpler times of the 1920s but it does not have the same depth, breadth nor realism. It is simpler and sweeter and a bit unrealistic but a light and uplifting read.

The main characters are a young couple from Brooklyn, Carl and Annie, living in the Midwest where Carl is in law school. They marry despite the protests of both sets of parents who cut them off financially. They are poor and struggle to make ends meet while Carl finishes law school and Annie, who has little formal education, works and finds ways to educate herself.

What I liked most about this novel was the endearing character of Annie who was a joy to “live with” and not just in the morning. She found joy in everything, especially the small things in life. She made friends with all the people she met, particularly her landlord and the local tradesmen. She loved books and was always reading, and was in raptures of joy when she was able to buy and own her first book. She found the most joy in being able to audit a literature class at the university, first sitting in the hallway and then later being invited in and to participate with all the “regular” students. She spent all her spare time joyfully reading the book and then writing the assigned paper.

Despite their poverty, I never worried about this struggling couple because the tone of the novel was so upbeat. Though sometimes they did not have enough food to eat and Carl had to work 2 or 3 jobs while in school, something always eventually appeared to help both Carl and Annie along the way.

I listened to this in audio format and the narrator does a wonderful job especially with Annie’s character and Irish accent.

An end note says that this book is based on the author’s life.

[Annie Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is endearing from the very first page. I read it in middle school, after a friend (Leah!) recommended it to me, and immediately fell in love with Annie (it helps that we share the same name!). I had already read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but this wasn't anything like I expected. Annie is completely charming, and will sweep you off your feet with her wholesome and winsome ways. The book follows Annie and Carl's lives as a poor but earnest newlywed couple in the 1920's. Their dialogue is simple, and there are no larger themes or pressing issues underlying the story. It is simply a book about a truly loving couple trying to make it together. It's about taking pleasure in the small things, like joy in the morning. Such a good book!

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Betty Smith. If I could be a writer, I would hope my work would be similar to her style. She grew up in Brooklyn, and is most known for her book "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn," which still ranks as my #1 book.

I appreciate the way Betty Smith can make you attach to characters. You feel like you are peeking into their windows and watching it first hand.

This story is based around a young, married couple in the 1920s, trying desperately to stay afloat. It is a struggle without feeling like a struggle. I felt so grateful for my education and the opportunities available to me as a woman in the 21st centure, but the main character never made you feel sorry for her. Empathy, but not sorrow.

I loved how she connected with the sales people, landlord, and everyone in her small world. It made me want to reach out more.

[Susann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved every page of this sweet and honest look at the first year and a half of marriage for young Annie and Carl. It's impossible to not love Annie from the moment she babbles - in her thick Brooklyn accent - to the Town Hall marriage clerk about all the Middle West books she's read. The love between Carl & Annie is true and, yes, uplifting. But Smith never descends into schmaltz or sentimentality.

Because this is such a seemingly simple story, I wavered between giving this 4 or 5 stars. But then I thought about how only a writer as gifted as Smith could make this kind of story work. Not to mention how I twice came dangerously close to missing my subway stop, because I was so caught up in the book. That alone is a testament to Smith's talents.

[Kitty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Had high hopes for this after "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" and was surprised to be so annoyed by the constant cost breakdown of these character's everyday life, even though this element was present in "Brooklyn."

Also couldn't stand the jerky controlling husband, though I'm guessing his behavior and attitude towards his wife would have been normal and expected during the time the book was written.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Funny how 44 years of growth knocks a beloved read off the shelf 😔

[Grayson Layshock · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have the very specific curse of reading an author’s best book first and then being haunted by disappointing mimicry ever after.

See: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

[Julia · Rating 2 out of 5]

The 1945 film version of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn just became available from Netflix, and after watching it and loving it, I was in the mood to read the book again. It's one of my favorites, but the kind of favorite I like to savor; I only want to read it every few years, in case I get sick of it. So I had the brilliant idea to finally read the rest of Betty Smith's books and put them all on hold through the Boston Public Library.

From other reviews, it sounded like Maggie-Now and Tomorrow Will Be Better were kind of downers, and I've been in a foul mood lately, so I started with Joy in the Morning. Maybe it is the aforementioned foul mood, but I was disappointed by this book. Joy in the Morning tells the story of newlyweds Carl and Annie's first year together at Carl's college in the 1920s. Carl is 20 and Annie is 18 going on 5. Not much happens in terms of a plot, and the majority of the book describes everyday life in their precious marriage.

The story was very cutesy, and there were a few times I found myself smiling at the couple's banter. However, Annie's naïveté grated on me. She travels from Brooklyn to the "Middle West" to be with Carl while he studies law, but somehow this girl seems to know less about the world than any of the small-town folks she encounters. And Carl's a know-it-all who is always correcting Annie's grammar and asking how she learned to use words that have multiple syllables. There's no real conflict in the story: Annie and Carl have their share of money problems and minor tiffs (e.g., Annie, stop reading War and Peace and make me my dinner!), but every disagreement is followed by a mushy make-up 3 sentences later. The lack of plot might also describe A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but there was charm in that coming-of-age story; these characters are already adults. Nobody matures, nobody changes, and not a whole lot happens. In the end, they ride off into the sunset to an even happier future.

I had heard this book described as a sequel to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, as it takes place only a few years after, Annie would be approximately the same as a Francie, and both seem heavily autobiographical, but I am grateful it's not a true sequel; I want Francie to achieve so much more than following a boy halfway across the country and putting his needs above her own.

[Jasmine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joy in the Morning is Betty Smith's fourth and final novel. While nowhere near as good as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, I enjoyed it much more than Maggie-Now. Taking place in 1927, Joy in the Morning is about newlyweds 18 year old Annie and 20 year old Carl surviving their first year of marriage while struggling to make ends meet as Carl tries to balance married life, work, and university.

Despite taking place nearly 100 years ago, I could relate to Annie and Carl's frustrations at having to live in a small quarters, struggling to pay the bills, and Carl trying to study and pass his exams. Because the book is somewhat relatable, 3.5 stars.

Additional thoughts: in Smith's four novels, there are many similarities (ex. going for "chop suey" appears to be a popular activity in 1920s Brooklyn, if her novels are accurate), and from what I have read, there are autobiographical elements in her novels. In Joy in the Morning, Carl is attending law school and Annie, who did not graduate from high school, is able to attend writing classes at the university as a non-credit student. Betty Smith's husband also attended law school, and Smith also took university courses, although she was not able to earn a degree due to not graduating high school.

In Joy in the Morning it is mentioned that Annie hates her stepfather, and it is implied that he sexually abused her. According to Wikipedia, Smith may have been sexually abused by her stepfather. This leads me to believe that Joy in the Morning is likely reflective of Smith's life.

[Spider the Doof Warrior · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here I am reading this book again. I love this book, but, it's interesting to learn so much about 1928. The money, for one thing gets a bit confusing as you could get so much more with 1 dollar back then than now.
The frustrating thing is how few choices a woman had back then. Annie's main purpose was to get married and have babies even though she was somewhat smarter than her husband who would become a lawyer. Sometimes Carl would get so mad at her when she just wanted to do her own thing and so dependent. More later.

7/17
Read this book again, it's rather delightful in parts. I like Annie better than Carl. She's kinder, more dynamic and interesting and should be in law school herself or at least writing but she is regulated to the role of wife and mother and is aware of this.
The casual racism and sexism of the time makes me wince. It gets frustrating, but I guess that is the late 20s for you. It will be interesting to live in a later time and wince at all the isms of this time and how they aren't the norm anymore.

It's just a very good book if you already like A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.

[Bailey Marissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cute story about a young married couple's first year/year and a half of marriage.

Also, it has something that I feel most people writing romance should pay attention to. You ready?

It's a little thing called COMMUNICATION. THEY TALK THEIR PROBLEMS OUT AND IT IS BEAUTIFUL. Seriously, no more miscommunication in relationships. It's not necessary and also very annoying. *Gets off soapbox*

15+ for marital discussions that are blunt (but not graphic) and language

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes even a reader such as myself needs a heartwarming book. The good thing about Betty Smith is that her version of heartwarming is always peppered with enough realism about the way life goes that she, narrowly, avoids sentimentality.

I have read her most famous novel, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, several times. I will probably read it again someday. Joy in the Morning was her last novel. After reading it I learned that she devoted much of her writing life to plays. In fact Annie, the heroine of this novel, is a budding playwright and overcomes anything in her way to become one.

It is 1927 when Annie leaves her Brooklyn home at the age of eighteen, against her mother's advice, to marry Carl. They had met in Brooklyn but Carl went off to a mid-western university to study law. Soon Annie followed. Carl's mother also opposed the marriage.

The early years of any marriage always involve adjustments, especially in the days when couples did not live together beforehand and had rarely had sex. Often a young couple is not financially secure. All of this is the case for Annie and Carl and this story is full of hardship. Then comes the Depression and the first pregnancy.

If there is one thing Betty Smith knows about life it is how women in those days provided the stability that makes a family, both emotionally and in the day to day practical matters. Annie is as dreamy as any young woman but she also has grit, a huge heart and a good sense of humor.

So she uses her imagination to outwit adversity and her stubbornness to keep writing those plays. Add to that her wisdom in how to keep Carl somewhat settled down when he (as we say in our house) "gets like he gets," and you can't deny she is a wonder.

I must say that all of Annie's lovely and admirable qualities do strain a reader's credulity but somehow I never care when reading Betty Smith. She just gives me hope and makes me feel happy. We all need that sometimes, right?

[Cindy Rollins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a 3.5 book for me by the author of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn one of my childhood favorites. Enjoyable. Easy to read. I just think I missed the ideal time of my life to read it.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

There was something so very special about this book to me. I wanted to read this one by Betty Smith because I liked "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" so much and I was also looking for a little nostalgia.

Boy did I get nostalgia with this book. I love stories from the early 20th Century. We tend to romanticize that period of American History. I do anyway. There's something about the struggles and the ethics of those times that we refer to as "simpler".

I guess they were simple, yet I don't think people who live in America today could handle the poverty and the hard times as easily.

I had to smile when Annie was thrilled to have a banana split for her Christmas gift....that was so sweet. It made me think of how we buy so much bull shit for the holidays that people just don't need. A simpler time it certainly was.

This is a sweet sweet story that I will probably read again someday.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading and finishing "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn," also by Betty Smith, I wanted to read something else that she wrote, so I picked up "Joy in the Morning," which she wrote 20 years later. It held my interest and was a quick read. Like "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn," "Joy in the Morning" is a novel with an auto-biographical theme. It provides a fictionalized account of Betty Smith's first year of marriage to a law student attending a mid-western university (the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor) in the late 1920's. Annie, the main character, is only 18 years old when she marries Carl Brown, who is all of 20 years of age.

It wasn't nearly as good as "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn." But if you want to see what happens to Francie Nolan a few years after the end of "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn," you can pick up the story of Annie Brown in "Joy in the Morning" and not be disappointed.

[Michelle Stockard Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mom told me many years ago I needed to read this. Can't believe I waited so long. Wonderful book. Annie was such a great character. A lot of her traits reminded me of myself. The way her mind worked; her sense of optimism, and she was a book lover and writer. This book was just a comfort to read, and though it wasn't a "can't put down" thriller type of book, I still found myself wanting to keep reading each time I picked it up.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I could, this would be 3.5 stars. I felt like I was falling in love again for the first time with my husband. This story was a sweet love story and really had me reminising about courtship and being a newlywed. Anyone who has been poor and struggling as a newlywed, but so in love that it doesn't matter, will love relating to this book. It is an easy read and lighthearted.

[wanderer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where have you been all my life?

[Maddalena ☆]

dnf- 9% through
I can't describe to you the pain it causes me that the author of my favorite book of all time wrote a book so bad I couldn't even reach page 30. Betty Smith, did an alien kidnap you and write this weird, creepy, dated book?

[Bodie Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know, I know. 5 stars. It won’t be going on my “favorites list”, but this book was subtly fantastic. It felt like a loose sequel to A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.

[Torrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This definitely wasn't A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but I decided that Betty Smith had such a gift for capturing certain times of life so accurately that you feel as if she has written about YOUR life, even if the circumstances of your life and the circumstances of the characters in her book hardly match up at all. This novel about a newly married young couple details the ups and the downs and the steep learning curve of marriage so acutely that it's almost painful to read at times.

Plot-wise, there isn't much here, but that's how Tree Grows in Brooklyn is, too---for me, her books are memorable not for what happens, but for how they make you feel, and even though this doesn't hit some of the points that my 4-star books often hit, I found the characters and the mood of the book so memorable that I felt it had earned the four stars fair and square.

(Also, I love how both books I've read by her have such a delightful way of talking about the reading life since her main characters always seem to be obsessed with books and learning and writing, and those are also often the very things that bring them up in the world, too.)

[Peyton · Rating 2 out of 5]

I waited several years after reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn before I finally got my hands on a copy of the book with the clock on the cover advertised at the back. Joy in the Morning is a difficult book to rate. On one hand, I love Betty Smith’s writing style and I admire her for speaking her truth - the main character is a female aspiring playwright and the story was apparently partly based on her marriage to her ex-husband. On the other hand, the book lacked the depth and perspective of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and is not very sweet or romantic by modern day standards. A lot of the conflict driving the plot comes from Carl’s bad attitude towards Annie and Annie’s bad attitude towards herself, as opposed to external circumstances. And the New Years Eve ending, where the couple celebrates thinking their financial worries will be over in 1929, is happy for them in context but worrying for the reader. Overall, the book is an authentic portrayal of the late 1920s, the good along with the bad. I didn't enjoy it as a romance but I did enjoy it as a piece of American history.