07/18/2022
Elizabeth Miller, the 24-year-old Ph.D. candidate who narrates this subtle psychological thriller from Pall (Among the Ginzburgs), lacks one crucial interview for her dissertation about female novelists who have advanced the cause of women. Unfortunately, ill 89-year-old Anne Taussig Weil, whose 1965 blockbuster became a linchpin for feminists, has refused all interview requests. Elizabeth sees enough clues in an anonymous Craigslist ad seeking a “quiet female” to “read aloud to purblind landlady. . . . Must read well” to know it is Anne. The job comes with a private room and bathroom for $160 a month in Anne’s Greenwich Village apartment, but also a nondisclosure agreement. Anne wants Elizabeth to read from her many journals that are locked away, but only the passages detailing a passionate extramarital affair she had with a world-famous pianist. As Anne wrestles with her secrets, Elizabeth becomes judgmental of the author’s past while trying to figure out how to sneak out those journals. The emotional reading sessions skillfully reveal both women’s personalities. This story of ambition, love, generational differences, and the power of words will resonate with many. (Sept.)
"A slow-burn drumbeat of acute psychological suspense ... They say a great ending must be both surprising and inevitable, and Must Read Well delivers - twice." —LEE CHILD, BESTSELLING AUTHOR AND 2020 BOOKER PRIZE JUDGE
“Ellen Pall creates an intriguing dance between discovery, literary wellsprings of influence and reflection, and the connections between two powerful, literate women who find their worlds intersecting at a critical junction in their lives…The result is a story that excels in suspense, revelation, and unexpected, changing relationships. Its special psychological tension and evocative explorations of lies, truth, and intention will especially attract libraries and readers interested in women's literary works … The story is gripping on many levels, and is highly recommended reading for women who enjoy exposés steeped in interpersonal relationships, growth, and surprising revelations.”―Midwest Book Review
"Beautifully crafted, suspenseful, and timely."—GERALDINE BROOKS, PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR OF HORSE, MARCH, CALEB'S CROSSING, AND YEAR OF WONDERS: A NOVEL OF THE PLAGUE
“Gorgeous, assured writing, a captivating plot, and a delicious, totally unexpected ending make for a seriously entertaining novel. Sit back and enjoy the read.” —JEANNE WINER, AUTHOR OF THE TRIPLE-STARRED MYSTERY HER KIND OF CASE
“Reading and writing are normally solitary and anonymous endeavors. Not so in Ellen Pall’s bewitching Must Read Well, an examination of love, lust, and literature told via secret diaries read aloud—think Les Liaisons Dangereuses meets The Sorrows of Young Werther. Pall’s gift for elegant prose belies a powerful tale spiced with romantic and professional duplicity. By turns sensuous and sensitive, Must Read Well is an irresistible narrative fueled by ambition and admiration.” —BARBARA BASBANES RICHTER, MEMBER, NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE
"From its suspenseful unfolding straight through to its gratifying ending, MUST READ WELL reads so well that I couldn’t put it down.” —ALIX KATES SHULMAN, AUTHOR OF THE MILLION-SELLING MEMOIRS OF AN EX-PROM QUEEN
"Ellen Pall's enthralling and elegant tale of the complex relationship between a young ambitious scholar and a once famous older writer will keep readers sitting up late into the night. The suspense and tension never let up, the two women are so vivid that they almost leap off the page, and the conclusion is a stunner. For lovers of fine writing and gripping mysteries." —LYNNE SHARON SCHWARTZ, AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF DISTURBANCES IN THE FIELD
"Ellen Pall's enthralling and elegant tale of the complex relationship between a young ambitious scholar and a once famous older writer will keep readers sitting up late into the night. The suspense and tension never let up, the two women are so vivid that they almost leap off the page, and the conclusion is a stunner. For lovers of fine writing and gripping mysteries."
"Beautifully crafted, suspenseful, and timely."
Reading and writing are normally solitary and anonymous endeavors. Not so in Ellen Pall’s bewitching Must Read Well, an examination of love, lust, and literature told via secret diaries read aloud—think Les Liaisons Dangereuses meets The Sorrows of Young Werther. Pall’s gift for elegant prose belies a powerful tale spiced with romantic and professional duplicity. By turns sensuous and sensitive, Must Read Well is an irresistible narrative fueled by ambition and admiration.
Gorgeous, assured writing, a captivating plot, and a delicious, totally unexpected ending make for a seriously entertaining novel. Sit back and enjoy the read.
"From its suspenseful unfolding straight through to its gratifying ending, MUST READ WELL reads so well that I couldn’t put it down.
"A slow-burn drumbeat of acute psychological suspense ... They say a great ending must be both surprising and inevitable, and Must Read Well delivers - twice."
An enterprising young woman must use her wiles to steal the secret history of an aging, reluctant recluse. In the skillful hands of Ellen Pall, their stories wrap around each other, one in the present, the other from the long-dead past. Spiraling towards a light that may turn out to be blinding, Must Read Well is a captivating novel. Slip into its coiling corridors and read well.”
★ 2022-09-14
A New York City graduate student seeks out an elderly author as a primary source for her dissertation about women writers in this novel by Pall, author of Among the Ginzburgs(1996).
Liz Miller has spent nine years at Columbia University and is heavily in debt. Her incomplete dissertation, about mid-20th-century women writers, is in desperate need of more information about Anne Taussig Weil, author of the 1960s bestseller The Vengeance of Catherine Clark. The novelist has rebuffed Liz’s attempts at contact, but then a miracle happens: Liz sees a Craigslist ad for a room for rent in Greenwich Village that requires the applicant to be able to “read well.” She figures out that it was placed by Anne, so she replies, hoping that it’s her chance to finally interview the author. Liz, using the false name Beth, is offered the room and, to her delight, finds that her cheap rent comes with an obligation to read Anne’s old diaries to her. The writer is frail and visually impaired but still “looked commanding enough to have been the notorious author of a book that galvanized a generation,” according to Liz. The diaries recount a brief but massively consequential affair between Anne and a concert pianist. It’s a stroke of luck for Liz and her research, but her deceptive game leads toward a very uncertain future. Pall’s novel takes a deep dive into the personal lives of New York writers and musicians, and it has a premise that many readers are sure to find irresistible. Liz is revealed as hardworking and intelligent and crafty enough to get what she wants but also sympathetic. She is, however, no match for Anne, who’s portrayed as a grande dame who knows exactly how to handle a budding scholar such as Liz. The novel’s unpretentious sophistication and smart, savvy characters make it an enjoyable read—one that’s heightened by the unexpected and satisfying conclusion.
A thought-provoking novel about the mysterious ways that creative people use others for inspiration.
