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The Story of Chicago May
A portrait of the legendary woman outlaw describes her childhood in post-famine Ireland, work as a confidence trickster and grifter in America, love affair with a big-league criminal, successful robbery of Paris's American Express, imprisonment, and later years. By the author of Are You Somebody? 75,000 first printing.
320 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2005
18 people are currently reading
446 people want to read
About the author
Nuala O'Faolain
27 books133 followersNuala O'Faolain was an Irish journalist, columnist and writer who attended a convent school in the north of Ireland, studied English at University College, Dublin, and medieval English literature at the University of Hull before earning a postgraduate degree in English from Oxford.
She returned to University College as a lecturer in the English department, and later was journalist, TV producer, book reviewer, teacher and author.
She became internationally well-known for her two volumes of memoir: Are You Somebody? & Almost There, a her her novel, My Dream of You, and a history with commentary, the Story of Chicago May. The first three were all featured on the New York Times Best Seller list. Her novel Best Love Rosie was published posthumously in 2008.
She returned to University College as a lecturer in the English department, and later was journalist, TV producer, book reviewer, teacher and author.
She became internationally well-known for her two volumes of memoir: Are You Somebody? & Almost There, a her her novel, My Dream of You, and a history with commentary, the Story of Chicago May. The first three were all featured on the New York Times Best Seller list. Her novel Best Love Rosie was published posthumously in 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
April 16, 2019
When the author's name is larger than the subject's in the title, beware. As dynamic Chicago May was I would have easily given this book 4 stars if it hadn't been for O’Faolin constant reminisces about her brother. Wth does he have to do with my thieving, fighting, conniving, hard drinking street walker???? I do not want personal family dynamics in my bios. They do not belong. Plus they completely blow first person perspective, especially in an audiobook. Don't' authors, just don't. If I were to remove this massive obstacle from my reading pleasure the book is very well written. O'Faolin was a thorough researcher traveling through several countries for various resources. Chicago May certainly meets my requirements of a notorious woman.
August 13, 2013
Here we have the notorious Chicago May, criminal mastermind, prostitute, con artist, pickpocket, et cetera, etc., &c. She left Ireland in 1890 for America, taking with her all of her family's assets and entered into a life on the edges of society. She romped around the World's Fair in Chicago. She married and divorced a lieutenant, taking much of his money with her. She ran off with lover Eddie Guerin in a Bonnie & Clyde-style spree, stealing several thousand dollars from an American Express office, for which she spent her longest stay in prison.
Chicago May's life has the makings for a great story. The problem is that the facts are incredibly minimal. Nuala O'Faolain does the best to spice up the story by making it a meta-biography. She parallels May's emigration to America with her own. But most of the book is speculation. Nearly every sentence began "I imagine May..." or "May might have..." Being a fiction person, this doesn't bother me, but this must be a nightmare for someone looking for a tightly written, fact-based biography.
Overall, this is a "meh".
May 11, 2016
I really feel like I should've just read the autobiography of Chicago May, as this book is either quoting it or ruminating on it. Felt like reading a book report.
May 31, 2011
I loved this book about Chicago May and the research is excellent as this is a true story, I had also read another book about the same Woman and again an amazing story about an Irish woman.
February 4, 2015
I first heard of Irish writer Nuala O'Faolain when I picked up one of her books in the WH Smith at Heathrow as I ran to catch a flight back to the States. Sometimes we are drawn to certain authors in mysterious ways, as if the moments were meant to be. Thereafter, I was led to her two memoirs, breathtaking in their candor about moving through stages of life as a young Irish girl, a writer, and mature woman coming to terms with her past.
Knowing this writer's work, I didn't expect "The Story of Chicago May" to be a traditional biography, and it most certainly was not. May Duignan, born in post-famine Ireland, nicked her family's savings and ran away to America. There, she achieved legendary status as "Chicago May," working as a thief, outlaw, showgirl and prostitute.
What I find remarkable is how the writer weaves in her own process of discovery and personal experience in researching and writing the book. This approach won't work for all readers. Some prefer the conventional biography, but others will find this book refreshing. No matter how a writer strives for objectivity, biography writing will never truly elude the subjectivity of the writer's own experience. O'Faolain did it her way, though she painstakingly researched her elusive subject. She literally traced the steps of May through city after city on two different continents.
Years of May's life were spent in prisons on both sides of the Atlantic, but she managed to survive a life on the edge. Exhausted and sick at heart, she later met police reformer August Vollmer, who convinced her to write her autobiography as a way toward the light. O'Faolain refuses to sugarcoat the "Queen of Crook's" struggle to make ends meet, her experiences in and out of prison, or her poor choices in men, several notorious crooks in their own right.
"Hope kept me up," May wrote in her last, desperate note to Vollner before her death as "a tired old prostitute" in an unmarked grave in Philadelphia. But the book is not about a character who tried to save her own soul, whatever that may be interpreted to be. It ends with just as many questions about the seeming lack of meaning in May's life, yet assures us that even such a life as hers is worth examining: "Out there, people are waiting in the dark. Shine the beam of attention out there. The dark recoils."
Knowing this writer's work, I didn't expect "The Story of Chicago May" to be a traditional biography, and it most certainly was not. May Duignan, born in post-famine Ireland, nicked her family's savings and ran away to America. There, she achieved legendary status as "Chicago May," working as a thief, outlaw, showgirl and prostitute.
What I find remarkable is how the writer weaves in her own process of discovery and personal experience in researching and writing the book. This approach won't work for all readers. Some prefer the conventional biography, but others will find this book refreshing. No matter how a writer strives for objectivity, biography writing will never truly elude the subjectivity of the writer's own experience. O'Faolain did it her way, though she painstakingly researched her elusive subject. She literally traced the steps of May through city after city on two different continents.
Years of May's life were spent in prisons on both sides of the Atlantic, but she managed to survive a life on the edge. Exhausted and sick at heart, she later met police reformer August Vollmer, who convinced her to write her autobiography as a way toward the light. O'Faolain refuses to sugarcoat the "Queen of Crook's" struggle to make ends meet, her experiences in and out of prison, or her poor choices in men, several notorious crooks in their own right.
"Hope kept me up," May wrote in her last, desperate note to Vollner before her death as "a tired old prostitute" in an unmarked grave in Philadelphia. But the book is not about a character who tried to save her own soul, whatever that may be interpreted to be. It ends with just as many questions about the seeming lack of meaning in May's life, yet assures us that even such a life as hers is worth examining: "Out there, people are waiting in the dark. Shine the beam of attention out there. The dark recoils."
March 20, 2008
This story is interesting and has a lot of potential. I think it was just too much good material that went by the wayside caused by an author who infused her own life story into that of "Chicago May's." I love a good turn-of-the-century underworld story (e.g. "Devil in the White City) but this was somewhat of a disappointment. It was great learning a bit about Chicago May but, her history (or lack thereof) would be best framed by a semi-non-fiction novel, not a non-fiction meets memoir. It reminds me of an essay/thesis I wrote about "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" in CAP English the night before it was due. Sure, I did an okay job and it was entertaining to the professor (who gave me an A-) but, it was a half-assed, nonsensical comparison to my life and full of ideology I stole from the lyrics of Depeche Mode songs.
August 30, 2019
Edenmore 1890, Irlanda.
May Duignan abbandona la casa paterna a 19 anni per inseguire il sogno americano. Non dà mai segno di cercare una vita onesta. Diventa adescatrice, prostituta, ladra e truffatrice.
Mai un segno di rimorso o costrizione nelle sue parole, una vita scelta più che imposta dalle circostanze.
Dopo Chicago, da cui prenderà il nome d'arte, è la volta dell'Egitto, un viaggio che la riporta poi in America, a New York, in Inghilterra e di nuovo in America. Si lega ad un uomo, Eddie Guerin, autore di un'autobiografia intitolata "I was a bandit". In seguito ad una rapina all'American Express i due vengono errestati e incarcerati. Guerin fuggirà mentre May verrà graziata e rispedita in patria dopo alcuni anni.
Rancore, vendetta e altro carcere per entrambi. Le grandi somme ottenute illecitamente vengono con leggerezza sperperate e alla fine si ritroverà a vivere negli stenti alternando il carcere alla vita per strada dove unica fonte di guadagno è il corpo.
Una biografia che non nasconde mai ipotesi e congetture dell'autrice. Fondamentali per la stesura di questo libro sono l'autobiografia "Her Story" della stessa May Duignan e quella del suo amante a cui vanno aggiunte lettere e articoli di giornale.
Stralci delle parole originali di May, rigorosamente in corsivo, vengono arricchiti da approfondimenti storici e culturali creando così un quadro più ampio del periodo storico in cui visse, forse l'unico vero valore del libro.
La stessa autrice ammette che tutti i memorialisti moderni scrivono per scoprire se stessi, e lei ci mette davvero molto della sua storia, forse troppo, come se raccontare di Chicago May fosse solo una scusa per poter parlare di se stessa.
È la prima volta che mi capita di leggere una biografia con una scrittrice così invadente, il solo fatto di essere lei stessa irlandese non la deve per forza incastrare in un rapporto simbiotico con la protagonista.
Il suo volerla continuamente giustificare, se non addirittura redimere ipotizzando situazioni meno losche di quanto potessero sembrare, rende vagamente ridicolo quanto si sta leggendo.
Ridicolo e noioso.
Il suo ripercorrere fisicamente il cammino di Chicago May nelle città in cui è vissuta la spinge a scrivere continuamente "me la immagino camminare, suppongo che, avranno tenuto il vaso da notte in camera" e altre banalità simili, ma chi se ne fraga, dico io. Non mi sembra questo il modo di scrivere una biografia, e se ci sono poche fonti attendibili allora che sia una biografia romanzata, ma mi rendo conto che questa scelta avrebbe impedito all'autrice di ammorbarci con i parallelismi fra lei e la May e soprattutto di raccontarci la storia della sua vita.
May Duignan abbandona la casa paterna a 19 anni per inseguire il sogno americano. Non dà mai segno di cercare una vita onesta. Diventa adescatrice, prostituta, ladra e truffatrice.
Mai un segno di rimorso o costrizione nelle sue parole, una vita scelta più che imposta dalle circostanze.
Dopo Chicago, da cui prenderà il nome d'arte, è la volta dell'Egitto, un viaggio che la riporta poi in America, a New York, in Inghilterra e di nuovo in America. Si lega ad un uomo, Eddie Guerin, autore di un'autobiografia intitolata "I was a bandit". In seguito ad una rapina all'American Express i due vengono errestati e incarcerati. Guerin fuggirà mentre May verrà graziata e rispedita in patria dopo alcuni anni.
Rancore, vendetta e altro carcere per entrambi. Le grandi somme ottenute illecitamente vengono con leggerezza sperperate e alla fine si ritroverà a vivere negli stenti alternando il carcere alla vita per strada dove unica fonte di guadagno è il corpo.
Una biografia che non nasconde mai ipotesi e congetture dell'autrice. Fondamentali per la stesura di questo libro sono l'autobiografia "Her Story" della stessa May Duignan e quella del suo amante a cui vanno aggiunte lettere e articoli di giornale.
Stralci delle parole originali di May, rigorosamente in corsivo, vengono arricchiti da approfondimenti storici e culturali creando così un quadro più ampio del periodo storico in cui visse, forse l'unico vero valore del libro.
La stessa autrice ammette che tutti i memorialisti moderni scrivono per scoprire se stessi, e lei ci mette davvero molto della sua storia, forse troppo, come se raccontare di Chicago May fosse solo una scusa per poter parlare di se stessa.
È la prima volta che mi capita di leggere una biografia con una scrittrice così invadente, il solo fatto di essere lei stessa irlandese non la deve per forza incastrare in un rapporto simbiotico con la protagonista.
Il suo volerla continuamente giustificare, se non addirittura redimere ipotizzando situazioni meno losche di quanto potessero sembrare, rende vagamente ridicolo quanto si sta leggendo.
Ridicolo e noioso.
Il suo ripercorrere fisicamente il cammino di Chicago May nelle città in cui è vissuta la spinge a scrivere continuamente "me la immagino camminare, suppongo che, avranno tenuto il vaso da notte in camera" e altre banalità simili, ma chi se ne fraga, dico io. Non mi sembra questo il modo di scrivere una biografia, e se ci sono poche fonti attendibili allora che sia una biografia romanzata, ma mi rendo conto che questa scelta avrebbe impedito all'autrice di ammorbarci con i parallelismi fra lei e la May e soprattutto di raccontarci la storia della sua vita.
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January 14, 2023I've found Nuala O'Faolain about 15 years after her death and grown to feel about her as though she were one of my many wonderful aunts, someone I'd like to just visit with now and listen to. Sadly, all the wonderful aunts are gone (save one) but at least O'Faolain left her half-dozen or so books. I've read her being a memoirist, novelist, and journalist; in Chicago May she's a biographer. In all these roles, O'Faolain is consistent, with an eye for subtle telling details that reveal some deep truths or evoke even deeper mysteries. My only regret about this book is that I think it's the last of hers that I can come to for the first time.
July 19, 2010
A biography in only the most liberal interpretation of the word, Ms. O'Faolain has instead created a documentary of her life as she sees it intersecting Chicago May's. Since May passed away in 1929, this amounts to Ms. O'Faolain documenting her own thoughts about May's experience as she reads about May's life, follows the scant trail of information still in existence about her, and actually travels through the States to some of the same cities May passed through. The author certainly is not shy about telling her readers about how little info there is on May (this despite May's having actually written her own autobiography), and proceeds to fluff out her tome with side stories on figures both authentically in May's life (Eddie Guerin) to some truly tenuous connections (Countess Markievicz--who truly ends up seeming a more worthy historical figure in comparison). Add to this the author attempting to fill out the tome with her own imaginings of scenes from May's life, as well as many sidelines into 'The Irishwoman's experience' (despite May herself leaving Ireland at nineteen), and some truly interesting parts of May's life which pass by nearly uncommented on (what about May's life in Egypt?), and what is left feels sadly thin. I can appreciate that there may not be that much left about May, most of the sources used by Ms. O'Faolain are the Pinkerton files and May's own autobiography--but I cannot help but feel that this author has robbed an interesting and tough female figure of her own voice by her interpretation--indeed, there is very little in May's own words recorded here--perhaps due to the authors self-proclaimed disappointment at the quality of the writing in May's memoir. So she just does not include much of that, and silences a voice from the past that many of her readers will never get to hear, as they may never get the luxury to travel to New York to read it. The biggest disappointment, though was seeing first-hand how much the author decided to leave out of the information that WAS available to her--in perusing the photocopied articles on the endpapers, as well as the few that appear in the text, it becomes painfully obvious that the quotes used in the body of this work are not only severely edited, but there is not even a note to the reader that the text HAS been so edited. The personal-commentary style does have a few moments where it seems to enhance the reader's understanding of May's experience, most notably when she is remanded to prison for 10 years, and at her death, but overall, does little for this genre. I would recommend skipping this biography, however, since there is little in existence on Chicago May, this is not practical for anyone interested in her, the time period, or the lives of notorious female criminals of the past. Whatever its flaws, this book must remain a must-read until better options exist.
February 22, 2015
2005
Having read other books [memoirs] of O'Faolain's helps you 'get into' this book.
What it relates is the PROCESS of O'Faolain trying to write about the life of this Irishwoman who ended up in the U.S. [though she did not actually spend much time in Chicago].
Given the paucity of sources about May, born around 1875 deep in the Irish countryside to a quite poor family, O'Faolain talks a lot about how she went about her research, what was going on in her own life, what she found out about the places and times May lived in and people she met or worked with. May mostly worked as what I think is called a confidence trickster, and she ended up doing prison sentences in a variety of places in the UK and the US.
O'Faolain does not hesitate to conjecture or to give her own opinions and value judgments but this is all acknowledged. If you want a conventional 'factual' 'neutral' biography, don't read this one.
Although I will probably not read this book a second time, I was happy to read it through to the end. O'Faolain helps us put ourselves in the place of a not highly educated young woman with no family or network supporting her, putting to use her wits and her attractiveness to men to survive.
p 214:
"We can hardly feel today how original it must have been, in the days when the territory of individualism had not been well mapped, for Irish people in as humble a social position as May to reject the pieties of the tribe....she had no fatherland, no home..."
p 215:
"She's impervious to remorse and coolly astonished at the notion of turning to religion late in life....The only aspect of the Irish Catholic tradition that survived in her was a robust anticlericalism [from her grandfather]"
p 221:
"She'd have had no leverage, no hope of exercising power. She'd have been broken, at last."
O'Faolain says at the end that she came to respect May but not to love her. She notes with amazement that through all her suffering, esp. in the later years when she seems usually to have been completely alone and impoverished and also ill, May [according to her own memoirs] continued to 'enjoy living'...'Hope kept me up'.
And O'Faolain on her experience of writing her own memoirs, and how slippery the past is:
p. 297:
"I can feel the unsaid and the unsayable pressing from behind all I said, though I never consciously kept anything back."
Some readers are bothered by all O'Faolain's references to her mentally ill brother, but I found these an enrichment; her pain regarding her brother is palpable.
Having read other books [memoirs] of O'Faolain's helps you 'get into' this book.
What it relates is the PROCESS of O'Faolain trying to write about the life of this Irishwoman who ended up in the U.S. [though she did not actually spend much time in Chicago].
Given the paucity of sources about May, born around 1875 deep in the Irish countryside to a quite poor family, O'Faolain talks a lot about how she went about her research, what was going on in her own life, what she found out about the places and times May lived in and people she met or worked with. May mostly worked as what I think is called a confidence trickster, and she ended up doing prison sentences in a variety of places in the UK and the US.
O'Faolain does not hesitate to conjecture or to give her own opinions and value judgments but this is all acknowledged. If you want a conventional 'factual' 'neutral' biography, don't read this one.
Although I will probably not read this book a second time, I was happy to read it through to the end. O'Faolain helps us put ourselves in the place of a not highly educated young woman with no family or network supporting her, putting to use her wits and her attractiveness to men to survive.
p 214:
"We can hardly feel today how original it must have been, in the days when the territory of individualism had not been well mapped, for Irish people in as humble a social position as May to reject the pieties of the tribe....she had no fatherland, no home..."
p 215:
"She's impervious to remorse and coolly astonished at the notion of turning to religion late in life....The only aspect of the Irish Catholic tradition that survived in her was a robust anticlericalism [from her grandfather]"
p 221:
"She'd have had no leverage, no hope of exercising power. She'd have been broken, at last."
O'Faolain says at the end that she came to respect May but not to love her. She notes with amazement that through all her suffering, esp. in the later years when she seems usually to have been completely alone and impoverished and also ill, May [according to her own memoirs] continued to 'enjoy living'...'Hope kept me up'.
And O'Faolain on her experience of writing her own memoirs, and how slippery the past is:
p. 297:
"I can feel the unsaid and the unsayable pressing from behind all I said, though I never consciously kept anything back."
Some readers are bothered by all O'Faolain's references to her mentally ill brother, but I found these an enrichment; her pain regarding her brother is palpable.
April 8, 2011
p 182 et je suis enchantée :)
qui plus est très belle édition, agréable à lire :)
_________________________
Beau livre (malgré deux fautes d'orthographe flagrantes), par contre la lecture a été un peu laborieuse, je n'ai pas lu vite et j'ai dû faire un petit effort pour continuer chaque jour la lecture. Je n'ai pas dévoré donc. En fin de volume l'auteur dit qu'elle ne ressent pas d'amour pour Chicago May alors qu'elle pensait qu'elle serait proche d'elle. Elle ressent juste une certaine forme de respect car Chicago May s'est révoltée contre toutes les normes et contraintes de son époque et a eu une vie très difficile et peu heureuse. Je pense que j'ai ressenti ce non amour de la part de l'auteur pour son héroïne, voilà pourquoi je ne mets pas plus de trois étoiles.
Malgré cela il s'agit d'une histoire intéressante tant au niveau de la biographie de May (histoire vraie Irlandaise belle et pauvre qui s'enfuit en Amérique mener une vie de débauchée) qu'au niveau socio-historico-culturel étant donné que je n'avais jamais entendu parler ou presque de l'Histoire irlandaise. C'est aussi intéressant au niveau de la vie féminine de l'époque (1870 - 1930 env.).
qui plus est très belle édition, agréable à lire :)
_________________________
Beau livre (malgré deux fautes d'orthographe flagrantes), par contre la lecture a été un peu laborieuse, je n'ai pas lu vite et j'ai dû faire un petit effort pour continuer chaque jour la lecture. Je n'ai pas dévoré donc. En fin de volume l'auteur dit qu'elle ne ressent pas d'amour pour Chicago May alors qu'elle pensait qu'elle serait proche d'elle. Elle ressent juste une certaine forme de respect car Chicago May s'est révoltée contre toutes les normes et contraintes de son époque et a eu une vie très difficile et peu heureuse. Je pense que j'ai ressenti ce non amour de la part de l'auteur pour son héroïne, voilà pourquoi je ne mets pas plus de trois étoiles.
Malgré cela il s'agit d'une histoire intéressante tant au niveau de la biographie de May (histoire vraie Irlandaise belle et pauvre qui s'enfuit en Amérique mener une vie de débauchée) qu'au niveau socio-historico-culturel étant donné que je n'avais jamais entendu parler ou presque de l'Histoire irlandaise. C'est aussi intéressant au niveau de la vie féminine de l'époque (1870 - 1930 env.).
February 9, 2008
Interesting biography of the colorful criminal known as Chicago May. The author does a great job pointing out that the purpose of this biography is to give a voice to women of that period that had no voice.
Chicago May was born in Ireland and stole her parents life savings to get to America. She had no desire to get back. She, like so many immigrants of the day, looked to America as a place of transformation. Much of the book is about the immigrant experience and the lengths May would go to acheive some measure of success (mainly through prostitution and crime).
One aspect I certainly enjoyed in the book was the focus on the lives of prostitutes in turn of the century America. Your heart breaks when you learn that some women serviced an average of 25 customers a day!
An aspect I did not like about the book included the degree of speculation from the author, something referenced in other reviews of the biography.
All in all, a colorful biography and well worth the time.
Chicago May was born in Ireland and stole her parents life savings to get to America. She had no desire to get back. She, like so many immigrants of the day, looked to America as a place of transformation. Much of the book is about the immigrant experience and the lengths May would go to acheive some measure of success (mainly through prostitution and crime).
One aspect I certainly enjoyed in the book was the focus on the lives of prostitutes in turn of the century America. Your heart breaks when you learn that some women serviced an average of 25 customers a day!
An aspect I did not like about the book included the degree of speculation from the author, something referenced in other reviews of the biography.
All in all, a colorful biography and well worth the time.
February 10, 2012
I feel this book was a waste of my time. I didn't come away with any sort of clear picture about who Chicago May really was. The author spent too much of the book speculating about May's life and providing the reader with her interpretation of the autobiography written by Chicago May, which begs the question — why did O'Faolain even bother to write this story? Every other sentence begins with, "I imagine..." or "Perhaps..." or "Maybe..." The book makes me feel like there really wasn't anything special about Chicago May. She definitely wasn't a woman anyone could look up to, not that that's what I was expecting prior to reading this book. Most of the time, I mostly felt sorry for her and her pathetic life choices. I think the author wants to make Chicago May into an empowered, tough rebel woman, but May's actions, I believe, tell a whole different story.
The author also, every so often, writes herself and her family and some of their background into the story, which to me seems inappropriate and unnecessary.
The author also, every so often, writes herself and her family and some of their background into the story, which to me seems inappropriate and unnecessary.
December 2, 2011
Chicago May was a infamous crook/prostitute during the first three decades of the 20th century. Nuala O’Faolain discovered her story and became increasingly interested in the life of her fellow Irish countrywoman. O’Faolain takes the story of May from May’s own memoir and adds a bit of history and insight. For the most part, the author’s presence is welcome, she provides us with facts about the places and the culture that May lived in, and she has researched what others who knew May, or knew of her, had to say about her. At times, however, the author’s presence is intrusive. This is especially so when she makes attempts to parallel May’s life with her own brother’s life. Some might see this as an attempt to bring May’s story into the modern world, but it is distracting when the reader wants to know more about May and not at all about the author’s brother.
May 22, 2011
A biography yes, but different than any I've read. O'Faolain follows the life of famed fellow-Irish woman and criminal Chicago May. It is well researched and written. The material and interesting life of May make it very readable, but it was the personal interjections of O'Faolain that made it quite interesting. I can't think of another biography where you frequently hear the voice of the biographer with her opinions and personal reflections. She also draws parallels between the struggles of May and her own challenges or those of her family. Would recommend!
December 9, 2022
Primer libro de la autora que leí, poquito a poco, que el inglés me cuesta. Chicago May, una mujer fuerte, irlandesa, que huye al Nuevo y se dedica a la “mala vida”. Antiheroína, emparejada con delincuentes, luchadora, presa, mil vidas en una.
April 9, 2010
I have been wanting to read this book for a long time, as I am a fan of O'Faolain's writing, and I also find the lives of infamous people fascinating - where did they come from, how did they end up doing whatever it is that made them famous, etc. This book was a nice combination of the two. In addition to that, it was my first choice for the "What's in a Name" reading challenge, serving as a book with a place name in the title.
The story begins as May Duignan, 19 years old, is running away from her family home in Edenmore, County Longford, Ireland. Edenmore was a small town and many of its inhabitants, including May's family, were barely eaking out an existence. She has sixty sovereigns in her pocket, and a desire to "get out of town." The year is 1890.
By the time May arrives in America, she has already to make do and be quick-witted; when she is asked who will be responsible for her here, she names an uncle that she doesn't really remember, but that she knows emigrated to America years ago, and is living in Nebraska. O'Faolain's research showed no one with May's family name living in Nebraska at the time - however, throughout her life, she gave different names at different times, depending on the situation, so there is the chance that she didn't use her real name upon entry to the country.
May makes her way to Nebraska, and there her life as part of the criminal element begins. She falls in love with a man named Dal Churchill, who is a known thief, highway robber, etc., in the rough and tumble area which was then thought of as the American West. From here to the end of the book, we follow May to several cities in several countries as she does what it takes to survive. O'Faolain theorizes that, because she has no formal education or skills, her choices are limited. She looks around, and realizes that being a con artist, or a prostitute, or simply a petty thief is more financially lucrative than many of the jobs open to the Irish during that time period. She does have a brief period of marriage and respectable domesticity, but the lure of her other life wins out in the end.
This book was a fascinating read. O'Faolain manages to make May a real person, though not necessarily a likable one. You feel for her, but at a certain point you also realize that she is making decisions for herself, and realizes what the consequences are of being caught. The people who surround her are interesting in and of themselves, and their place in her story and her orbit add to the sense of dangerous adventure that is May's story.
In addition, I enjoyed the aspect of the book which talked about the law enforcement practices of the time, as well as society's changing attitudes towards criminals. There is plenty of corruption to go around, as well as attempts to reform the criminal justice system. There are stories of various members of a family who work for the Pinkerton Detective Agency. There is a description of the "job" in Paris at the American Express Building, which was one of the biggest heists of its time. Basically, there's a little something for everyone here, if social history interests you.
O'Faolain's journey up to the time she writes the book, and once it is written, is also of interest. Her fascination with May Duignan sends her on not just a physical journey from place to place, but a personal one as she comes to grips with some of her own demons related to her late younger brother.
There are ways I think that this book could have been better. There are parts that drag, at least as far as I am concerned. But I found it to be a good read, and a fascinating look at a life that was not necessarily atypical for its time and place.
The story begins as May Duignan, 19 years old, is running away from her family home in Edenmore, County Longford, Ireland. Edenmore was a small town and many of its inhabitants, including May's family, were barely eaking out an existence. She has sixty sovereigns in her pocket, and a desire to "get out of town." The year is 1890.
By the time May arrives in America, she has already to make do and be quick-witted; when she is asked who will be responsible for her here, she names an uncle that she doesn't really remember, but that she knows emigrated to America years ago, and is living in Nebraska. O'Faolain's research showed no one with May's family name living in Nebraska at the time - however, throughout her life, she gave different names at different times, depending on the situation, so there is the chance that she didn't use her real name upon entry to the country.
May makes her way to Nebraska, and there her life as part of the criminal element begins. She falls in love with a man named Dal Churchill, who is a known thief, highway robber, etc., in the rough and tumble area which was then thought of as the American West. From here to the end of the book, we follow May to several cities in several countries as she does what it takes to survive. O'Faolain theorizes that, because she has no formal education or skills, her choices are limited. She looks around, and realizes that being a con artist, or a prostitute, or simply a petty thief is more financially lucrative than many of the jobs open to the Irish during that time period. She does have a brief period of marriage and respectable domesticity, but the lure of her other life wins out in the end.
This book was a fascinating read. O'Faolain manages to make May a real person, though not necessarily a likable one. You feel for her, but at a certain point you also realize that she is making decisions for herself, and realizes what the consequences are of being caught. The people who surround her are interesting in and of themselves, and their place in her story and her orbit add to the sense of dangerous adventure that is May's story.
In addition, I enjoyed the aspect of the book which talked about the law enforcement practices of the time, as well as society's changing attitudes towards criminals. There is plenty of corruption to go around, as well as attempts to reform the criminal justice system. There are stories of various members of a family who work for the Pinkerton Detective Agency. There is a description of the "job" in Paris at the American Express Building, which was one of the biggest heists of its time. Basically, there's a little something for everyone here, if social history interests you.
O'Faolain's journey up to the time she writes the book, and once it is written, is also of interest. Her fascination with May Duignan sends her on not just a physical journey from place to place, but a personal one as she comes to grips with some of her own demons related to her late younger brother.
There are ways I think that this book could have been better. There are parts that drag, at least as far as I am concerned. But I found it to be a good read, and a fascinating look at a life that was not necessarily atypical for its time and place.
October 29, 2010
I had stumbled across this book in the bargain section of chapters and it sounded very interesting from the description on the back. I had never heard of Chicago May before and I was intrigued to find out what would make a young girl from Ireland run away from home to become a notorious crook and prostitute in The United States. Granted she traveled abroad for quite a while and was not just causing mischief in the states.
May seemed to have a real adventurous side to her and I’m still left wondering if things were different would she have lead a more domesticated life, or was she just one of those women you could never hold down. The reason I can’t entirely come to a conclusion on this is because the book has a lot of the authors interpretations in it as to what she thinks happened (she does states this very clearly so your never fooled) as there really isn’t a lot of documentation left on Chicago May. She did however write her own biography after her 10 year prison stay in England. However according to the author of this biography May skims across quite a few parts of her life and keeps things very factual without getting into too much detail. So you’re always left wanting more of May’s personal feelings and what was going through her head at the time.
I did enjoy reading this even though their where a lot of the authors own interpretations in it. I liked it because she was honest about it and she did her research well and it shows in the story. Also the author approaches the story from a very neutral point, she’s not in love with the idea of May nor did she sully her name more than May manage to do herself.
I loved reading about the States, England and France in the early 1900’s. The clothes and how people conducted themselves. It almost felt like I was there watching it happen before my eyes.
May seemed to have a real adventurous side to her and I’m still left wondering if things were different would she have lead a more domesticated life, or was she just one of those women you could never hold down. The reason I can’t entirely come to a conclusion on this is because the book has a lot of the authors interpretations in it as to what she thinks happened (she does states this very clearly so your never fooled) as there really isn’t a lot of documentation left on Chicago May. She did however write her own biography after her 10 year prison stay in England. However according to the author of this biography May skims across quite a few parts of her life and keeps things very factual without getting into too much detail. So you’re always left wanting more of May’s personal feelings and what was going through her head at the time.
I did enjoy reading this even though their where a lot of the authors own interpretations in it. I liked it because she was honest about it and she did her research well and it shows in the story. Also the author approaches the story from a very neutral point, she’s not in love with the idea of May nor did she sully her name more than May manage to do herself.
I loved reading about the States, England and France in the early 1900’s. The clothes and how people conducted themselves. It almost felt like I was there watching it happen before my eyes.
December 19, 2014
Non sono molto pratico di biografie, anzi a dirla tutta questa �� la prima che mi ricordi di aver letto, per cui le caratteristiche del genere non mi sono molto familiari.
La persona attorno alla quale ruota tutta la storia �� Chicago May, un'esule Irlandese fuggita in America alla fine del 1800 in cerca di riscatto, e poi dedicatasi al crimine e alla prostituzione.
La storia in se non �� particolarmente avvincente (pi�� volte mi sono sorpreso a leggere "sorvolando" sulle righe), ma alcune caratteristiche hanno reso questo libro interessante: la biografa ha il preciso intento di andare oltre alla figura "storica", e cerca di dare uno spessore psicologico al personaggio, nonostante per sua ammissione non ci siano molti riscontri che chiariscano come la protagonista deve avere vissuto gli avvenimenti, e quindi, pur essendo molto onesta nel farlo, "riempie" i vuoti con l'idea che si �� fatta di lei, pi�� che con i fatti nudi e crudi, e le storie di chi narra e di chi viene narrata si intrecciano e si sovrappongono.
La seconda caratteristica �� che attraverso la vita di May si pu�� dare un'occhiata, con un punto di vista insolito (perlomeno rispetto alla letteratura pi�� diffusa) ad alcune realt��, come l'ambiente di degrado e prostituzione delle grandi citt�� USA del 1900, ed alcuni spaccati dell'Irlanda rivoluzionaria dell'insurrezione di Pasqua.
Non il mio libro preferito in assoluto, ma una buone esperienza.
La persona attorno alla quale ruota tutta la storia �� Chicago May, un'esule Irlandese fuggita in America alla fine del 1800 in cerca di riscatto, e poi dedicatasi al crimine e alla prostituzione.
La storia in se non �� particolarmente avvincente (pi�� volte mi sono sorpreso a leggere "sorvolando" sulle righe), ma alcune caratteristiche hanno reso questo libro interessante: la biografa ha il preciso intento di andare oltre alla figura "storica", e cerca di dare uno spessore psicologico al personaggio, nonostante per sua ammissione non ci siano molti riscontri che chiariscano come la protagonista deve avere vissuto gli avvenimenti, e quindi, pur essendo molto onesta nel farlo, "riempie" i vuoti con l'idea che si �� fatta di lei, pi�� che con i fatti nudi e crudi, e le storie di chi narra e di chi viene narrata si intrecciano e si sovrappongono.
La seconda caratteristica �� che attraverso la vita di May si pu�� dare un'occhiata, con un punto di vista insolito (perlomeno rispetto alla letteratura pi�� diffusa) ad alcune realt��, come l'ambiente di degrado e prostituzione delle grandi citt�� USA del 1900, ed alcuni spaccati dell'Irlanda rivoluzionaria dell'insurrezione di Pasqua.
Non il mio libro preferito in assoluto, ma una buone esperienza.
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July 26, 2011An interesting yet highly speculative account of the life of 'Chicago' May Duignan, a young Irish girl who ran away from home in the late 19th century, away from her rural life. Crossing the Atlantic, she soon became a notorious figure in America. This notoriety was clearlyl deserved - May was a well-known confidence trickster, thief, prostitute and sometime showgirl. She spent a considerable amount of time behind bars as a result of her career choices, but she was a strong, intelliegent and determined woman (although, like many intelligent women, she seems to have had a weakness for dangerous and manipulative men), and appears to have been a thoroughly fascinating, feisty character. O'Faolain neatly puts May's life and exploits in their historical context, but the sheer amount of speculation and what can only be called fantasising about May's life on the part of the author becomes rather wearing for the reader, and leaves it as a volume somewhat slight in its content. Not as good as it could have been.
October 30, 2013
My interpretation of the forward of this book is the author didn't see herself as a true fiction writer, or at least lacked the confidence to write historical fiction, so decided to write a book with as much fact as she could find (including adding in contemporary details from other primary research, such as the Pinkerton files) and then add in her own musings about May's attitudes, thoughts and motivations. Or maybe she really doesn't value historical fiction at all. Regardless, the author seems to be trying really hard to compare her own life to that of May, and though early on recognizes that there is little to reconcile, and that most of it is a contrast, she plows forward anyway. I skipped to the end and still, no dice, it was fairly incoherent, as if the author had used so much time, resources, and energy she felt that a poorly written work was better than abandoning it. I honestly can't think of anyone to recommend read this, which is highly unusual for me.
February 28, 2016
An unusual and personal biography as O'Faoiain draws the story of her brother, the black sheep of her family and his end together in a loose weave with the story of May...
I'd never heard of this lady before: and all women are ladies, just different types. she is a cousin of cousins of ours and I stumbled on her story by accident.
My verse on her is here: http://www.writingsinrhyme.com/index....
Most poignant was the story how her nephew never knowing of her lost his mind on learning everyone knew bar him. such is the effect of secrets in an Irish town.
I think it's better we have no secrets and don't hold each other to account for another's life as no one is their brothers keeper...
I'd never heard of this lady before: and all women are ladies, just different types. she is a cousin of cousins of ours and I stumbled on her story by accident.
My verse on her is here: http://www.writingsinrhyme.com/index....
Most poignant was the story how her nephew never knowing of her lost his mind on learning everyone knew bar him. such is the effect of secrets in an Irish town.
I think it's better we have no secrets and don't hold each other to account for another's life as no one is their brothers keeper...
March 21, 2007
In this book, she writes about a woman of a certain distinction who went by the name of Chicago May. She tries to understand something about her by the little information she comes across in her research. If you like reading social history through the exploration of a certain character, I recommend this book. I am a sucker for stories about strong women who do things that go against the grain. May does whatever she can to escape her difficult life in Ireland. She comes to the United States and, well, I don't want to give too much away, but things don't get that much easier. If there was enough of a narrative thread, it would make a great Untouchables-era film, let's just say that.
March 11, 2008
Overall the book was interesting, spanning many decades and countries. I understand that it was difficult to find records of this individual and the author fills the gaps with her conclusions based on their common home and her knowledge of historical circumstances.
One thing I found very distracting were the tangents that O'Faoloin followed. At one point, rather than simply give a brief overview of a new character's background and significance she gives an abbreviated history of the Irish struggle for independence. I'll admit that it was fascinating but it took about 30 pages for her to return to the main subject and why all of this mattered.
One thing I found very distracting were the tangents that O'Faoloin followed. At one point, rather than simply give a brief overview of a new character's background and significance she gives an abbreviated history of the Irish struggle for independence. I'll admit that it was fascinating but it took about 30 pages for her to return to the main subject and why all of this mattered.
February 20, 2008
Nuala O'Faolain knows how to give good memoir, but she seriously did a number with this one. There are a lot of stories about Irish immigrants in the 19th century, but Chicago May has got to be one of the more interesting cases. What makes O'Faolain's take so interesting is that she spends far more time focusing on the themes of May's life than on the events, which are mostly lost to time. She really gets into May's head, insomuch as it is possible to do so, and makes the real person come to life. You get the sense that May must have been such an interesting person to know, but not someone you really would have wanted to be around.
August 31, 2009
I agree with another reader's review, Selena Higgins. I had just got through reading Devil in the White City, so this seemed extremely interesting to me. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed. The writer, in my opinion, puts too much of her own life and her critique into the book. I would just start to be really immersed in the story and then be ripped back to the 21st century to hear what the author thought of May. It also seemed to me that the author was very harsh in her judgment of this very poor and unfortunate woman of the 19th century. I would love to see what some other author could do with this story. As Selena said, it has a lot of potential.
November 25, 2013
Fascinating. Nuala did it again. She "talks" to her reader when she wrote. Nuala read about Chicago May when she lived in Ireland and couldn't find enough info about her. May was born in Co. Longford, left her family home with all their savings. She went to Chicago and became a prostitute and a wanted criminal. She was married about four times and imprisoned in France and jailed in the States. She did return home once but her family was ashamed of her. Nuala followed May's footsteps to see what May saw and researched all the records and wrote May's story to add to the story that May had written about herself (which Nuala noted was poorly written).
May 31, 2008
i don't see myself finishing this one. i bought it because i love reading stories of vice in that era, especially in chicago. when i'm reading a biography, i like to learn something along with being entertained. but i can't help but feel that what i'm reading is bullshit when a lot of the sentences start with, "now, i imagine that...". also, the author brings way too much of herself into the book. i'm not very interested in your journey from library to library looking for crap about chicago may. i don't know, maybe i'll try reading it again when i'm in a better mood.
April 12, 2011
When am I going to learn? I have made a point in the last few years, to stop reading when I don't care for a book. There are just too many good ones. But I continued to read and waited for this book to get good. It was a waste of time, though. I don't wish to speak ill of the dead (Chicago May or Nuala O'Faolain) the book was like reading a really long email...information on Chicago May with interjections of Ms.O'Faolain's life experience. It turns out May was just a bad girl who came to a bad end.
January 1, 2008
After watching quite a few old gangster movies recently, it was intriguing to read this biography of a woman, originally from Ireland, who lived the gangster life for real. It certainly doesn't paint a glamorous picture. O'Faolain writes beautifully, but had problems in finding out enough information, so the book is partly about the difficulty of writing a biography - and also about her own life while writing it.
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