5/5 stars
“Let me tell you something 'bout these rich Uptown folk," said Cokie. "They got everything that money can buy, their bank accounts are fat, but they ain't happy. They ain't ever gone be happy. You know why? They soul broke. And money can't fix that, no sir.”
There needs to be way more historical fiction books set in the fifties!! I feel like every YA historical fiction book is from WWII era and not that it’s not cool or anything, but the 1950s are so interesting! And add in New Orleans, and this book has one of the greatest settings ever. I hadn’t even read the summary when I picked this up after seeing the words ‘1950 New Orleans’.
Josie is our main character, and her mother is a prostitute who has lived in a brothel for most of her life. Josie on the other hand has lived in a little apartment above a bookstore since she was 12, the owner giving her the room in exchange for working at the store. Josie is close friends with the owner’s son, Patrick. Josie is 17 now and all she wants is to get out of New Orleans - the big easy - away from her mother and go to college, so she can become more than her mother ever was. But not all goes as planned and Josie is drawn into the mysterious death of a stranger that tests how far she is willing to go.
Josie was a wonderfully complex and likable main character. She was a unique heroine, a complete badass carrying a pistol under her skirt, but also vulnerable and real.
“The only reason I’d lift my skirt is to pull out my pistol and plug you in the head.”
I completely admired her passion and appreciation of knowledge and literature and education.
The cast of characters was colorful and captivating. Willie - the brothel madam that took Josie under her wing while her mother neglected her - described Josie as ‘salted peanuts’, spice and temper and more interesting than normal people. All of the characters in Out of the Easy were salted peanuts, and I had very strong feelings about all of them, whether it be love or hate.
“There was no ‘Miss Woodley.’ There was Willie. Willie was about life, and she grabbed it by the balls. Y’all know that. She loved a stiff drink, a stiff hundred, and she loved her business. And she didn’t judge nobody. She loved everyone equal—accountants, queers, musicians, she welcomed us all, said we were all idiots just the same.”
I loved Willie - she was funny and tough and didn’t take any crap. Cokie was a driver who worked with Willie, and wow I love that man. He made me cry. He was so sweet and wise and loved Josie so much. The other girls at the brothel all had their own character and I actually loved them so much.
I HATED Josie’s mother, who was abusive and neglectful towards her and in love with a guy named Cincinnati (what kind of name even is that) who beat her and was involved with the mob. She had a lot of problems going on and I just wanted her to get OUT of Josie’s life.
There are a lot of other characters that I am not going to list out, but know they are all beautiful and wonderful except for the mean ones.
The writing was absolutely gorgeous. The sleaziness of the brothel, the comfort of the bookstore, the falseness of Uptown, it all seeped off the page. The writing was lush and descriptive and made me so happy to read.
Out of the Easy was like a combination of historical fiction and mystery and coming of age. There were a lot of twists and layers in the plot, and I couldn’t put this down. All I wanted to do for two days was read what happens to Josie. The pacing is a little bit slower than most books, but it completely worked for this story, and there was never a single second when I was bored.
This book at its core is about people and the relationships between them. It’s about strength and fight - Josie’s fight to be seen as more than the prostitute’s daughter, and to get out of New Orleans so she can be more. Her struggle really resonates and you will truly fall in love with her and the other characters.
If you’ve read Ruta Sepetys’s other books - Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Grey - you will almost certainly love this book. However, if you didn’t like one of those books, still read this one! It is set in 1950 rather than WWII like the other two, and the writing style is more descriptive and the tone is completely different so give it a chance! And if you haven’t read any of her books, then read this one! I guess what I’m trying to say is that Out of the Easy is a beautiful amazing book and everyone should read it!
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