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The Broken Statue
Buried in the red soil of the Oklahoma prairie is a secret only Charlie McDonagh can fully reveal. Charlie is an ordinary man who is witness to extraordinary events and people. A stone statue of a striking young woman, broken into a hundred pieces is uncovered from the dirt of a remote location-a broken statue representing shattered lives and shattered dreams.
The story of the statues is one of love, greed, betrayal, power, and crushed aspirations. The statue symbolizes what was and what could have been. A tale of a great oil empire betrayed, destroying the lives of the family who built it. An intriguing story based on the real-life legacy of the Marland Mansion and the statue still located within its walls.
The story of the statues is one of love, greed, betrayal, power, and crushed aspirations. The statue symbolizes what was and what could have been. A tale of a great oil empire betrayed, destroying the lives of the family who built it. An intriguing story based on the real-life legacy of the Marland Mansion and the statue still located within its walls.
274 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 12, 2017
Excellent work of historical fiction. The facts and fiction are so beautifully and intricately weaved together. Through fiction, history is revealed. We must know our history, because it always repeats itself.
April 7, 2018
This book isn’t the most well written book by Bob Perry; however, it’s worth the read. Once you read the book you go to Ponca City and take a tour of the Grand home in town and then out to the country and tour the Mansion. This is a great book for book clubs and then add a road trip to it. Our book club did this a few years ago. Even some of the husbands have read the books and are interested in going up for the tour.
March 26, 2014
First, let me say that Oklahoma readers, particularly those of us in northern and north central Oklahoma, should read this book. The historical references to E.W. Marland, Ponca City, and the Marland Mansion send the reader off into further reading for the real story. That being said, this isn't a stellar book.
E.W. Marland, an Oklahoma governor (fact), adopted his wife's neice and nephew (fact)and, after his wife's death, annulled the adoption of Lydie, the neice, and married her. (fact) In compliance with a demand from Lydie Marland, her statue was smashed after E.W.'s death, but buried in defiance of her direct order. It has recently been unearthed and reconstructed and is on display again at the mansion in Ponca City.(fact) After Marland's death, Lydie disappeared for over 20 years and then returned to Ponca City to live out the rest of her life in the converted garage at the mansion where she had been queen of Oklahoma society. (sad fact)
Bob Perry softens the incestual relationship into "true love," adds a younger romantic interest for Lydie, and generally tones down the more lurid aspects of Oklahoma's Great Gatsby tale. Grammatical errors and strange gymnastics of vocabulary mar what is otherwise acceptable older Middle School to lower Young Adult writing. E.W. is glorified to the point of nausea.
But this is an important read because of the historicity of its origins, the play adapted from it, and the movie planned. Everything is there for a first-class cinema treatment: unimaginable wealth and privilege, girl raised in poverty to become Ponca City's Oil Princess, incest, corruption, Roaring 20's booze and wild parties, the Oil Boom/Bust of early Oklahoma, the 101 Ranch--it goes on. Read the book. It isn't boring and it will present interesting historical questions. It just doesn't do what it could do to be as memorable as the characters it portrays.
E.W. Marland, an Oklahoma governor (fact), adopted his wife's neice and nephew (fact)and, after his wife's death, annulled the adoption of Lydie, the neice, and married her. (fact) In compliance with a demand from Lydie Marland, her statue was smashed after E.W.'s death, but buried in defiance of her direct order. It has recently been unearthed and reconstructed and is on display again at the mansion in Ponca City.(fact) After Marland's death, Lydie disappeared for over 20 years and then returned to Ponca City to live out the rest of her life in the converted garage at the mansion where she had been queen of Oklahoma society. (sad fact)
Bob Perry softens the incestual relationship into "true love," adds a younger romantic interest for Lydie, and generally tones down the more lurid aspects of Oklahoma's Great Gatsby tale. Grammatical errors and strange gymnastics of vocabulary mar what is otherwise acceptable older Middle School to lower Young Adult writing. E.W. is glorified to the point of nausea.
But this is an important read because of the historicity of its origins, the play adapted from it, and the movie planned. Everything is there for a first-class cinema treatment: unimaginable wealth and privilege, girl raised in poverty to become Ponca City's Oil Princess, incest, corruption, Roaring 20's booze and wild parties, the Oil Boom/Bust of early Oklahoma, the 101 Ranch--it goes on. Read the book. It isn't boring and it will present interesting historical questions. It just doesn't do what it could do to be as memorable as the characters it portrays.
March 6, 2014
I am from Ponca City and I was in the 2013 cast of "The Broken Statue" at the Ponca Playhouse. So I have read this play several times over. It is not the best play ever written but it is a great story of some of the most exceptional people in Oklahoma history. Bob Perry did a great job reseaching E.W. Marland finding that he was very well liked in Ponca City and Oklahoma. E.W. Marland did have scandal when he married his adoptive daughter Lydie but he did win the Govenor of Oklahoma after his marrage to Lydie. Perry handled this issue with great respect for E.W. and Lydie something that many authors would have made more scandalous.
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June 18, 2013I am from Ponca City and picked up this book at the Marland Mansion on a recent trip there. I thought it was nonfiction and was disappointed to learn it is a novelization. The author unconvincingly softened the relationship between Lydie and Marland from incest to "falling in love" after the slow cancer death of the girl's aunt and adoptive mother. Lydie's life was tragic, as she later vanished for years, possibly being homeless for a while, but of course the author wasn't willing to explore her tragedy. Sad that he chose to write as if her relationship with Marland were healthy.
September 22, 2015
Historical fiction is my absolute favorite - add the fact that this about my home state in the 20s and it's a perfect match for me. It was hard to believe that all of this actually happened in my fair state of Oklahoma and that I had never heard of this before - maybe way too scandalous to talk about when it happened I am sure. The book drags a bit in the middle, but if you enjoy historical fiction (and from what I've researched, this is more history than fiction), than you might want to give this a try. If you live in OK, you can still visit the mansion!
May 29, 2012
This is based on a true story that took place in my hometown so I found it to be very interesting.
June 26, 2012
didn't finish this book. was just OK.
August 20, 2012
Saw the play and then had to read the book. Loved it. The story spanned a long period of time, but I thought it was a good read-mixed a lot of history into the story but kept my attention.
August 11, 2015
Pretty good book about The Marland Family of Ponca City, Ok. E.W. Marland oil tycoon. Lots of local history and haunting story of ew Marland and adopted daughter/wife Lydie.
September 9, 2015
Fictional story about factual events and people. Makes me want to go to Ponca City to tour the Marland Mansion. Enjoyed reading this Oklahoma story.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews