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Chasing Carole
A remarkable and historically authentic look inside Hollywood's Golden Age and the legendary romance between Clark Gable and Carole Lombard. This novel explores Lombard's life and how the twin burdens of illegitimacy and silence shaped her daughter. When Cass McGowan, Lombard's grand-daughter and professor of film history, discovers her famous grandmother's diaries and edits them for publication the reader is plunged into a world twisted between the present and the past where time and space lose their hold. Cass chases her grandmother through her story, seeking her own answers as she explores the subtle complexities of love told through the stories of three generations of women--an interwoven strand of blood and love. Cass's search moves as swiftly as the trains Carole knew so well until it reaches its own spellbinding conclusion. This book is authentic Lombard, as close as anyone can get to knowing her now.
290 pages, Paperback
Published April 28, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 20, 2008
Chasing Carole is a meticulously researched novel focused primarily on Carole Lombard, but it encompasses the Golden Age of Hollywood as a context. Its title derives from Cass McGowan's search for her grandmother, after discovering at a vulnerable age that she was indeed Carole Lombard's granddaughter and not who she'd thought she was. The novel's theme is the subtle complexities of love, of its eternal bonds, and when Lombard herself reaches out from the beyond to help her granddaughter deal with these intensely personal struggles, the chase truly begins. Confused and somewhat frightened by the appearance of her grandmother, Cass makes a leap of faith to believe, to cling to the idea that sometimes the thing a person must most believe may or may not be true, despite the doubt and disapproval of her lover, Cameron, regardless of the merry chase Carole leads Cass on. This novel makes the concept of the afterlife all too real, its characters are distinctive and alive, and Lombard's voice emerges in all its raucous good humor and geniune love after sixty-six years of silence.
August 18, 2008
An amazing work of genius that simply cannot be put down. Ms. Washburn so brilliantly captures the spirit and soul of Carole Lombard in a voice that is authentic, enthralling, and provides a real, unadorned take on the Golden Age of Hollywood from the perspective of its reigning Screwball Queen.
It is a stylistic masterpiece that fluidly weaves a tale in two time frames that feed into one another until they ultimately become one entity in a smart, appropriate, authentic climax that marries Carole's screwball wit with her intelligence and tragic fate.
Simply fantastic book that is a must read!
It is a stylistic masterpiece that fluidly weaves a tale in two time frames that feed into one another until they ultimately become one entity in a smart, appropriate, authentic climax that marries Carole's screwball wit with her intelligence and tragic fate.
Simply fantastic book that is a must read!
April 27, 2018
Clearly, this book was written by someone who adores the Carole Lombard story and sought to blend with it--which I can understand.
Interesting premise--Carole had a daughter before her Hollywood days, who had a daughter and it is that granddaughter who is telling this story.
A couple of take aways--though the author seems to have tracked down all the info out there about Carole, the fact is there are lots of missing pieces which is sort of sad. We see Carole so dimensionally on screen, one wants to feel that way about her entire life.
Also, this book reinforces thoughts I've had before, that Carole was sort of trapped when it came to romance to the actors in her world. As a glamorous top star, she could only romance a handsome, romantic guy. She'd already married William Powell, Russ Colombo dies on her--leaving Gable.
And then he is really a jerk, not the kind of loving husband she needs. But, where do you go after Gable? And, of course, she has a nice life set up around him with the ranch in Encino and his availability to father a child.
One gets the strong feeling, almost, that Carole is killed in the plane crash to get away from Clark. It seems she probably didn't lose much in that even if she had a child, he was not going to
be the loving, supportive partner she deserved. Kind of sad in that the situation she has with Carey Grant in the movie that resembled her life--mean wife won't let husband go--is the ideal she deserved but did not have with Clark.
A bit unfair the way the present life character blames her mother for hiding the truth about Carole. The problem was the times and the inability of women to have children out of wedlock without serious social stigma.
Also, the loving mothers presented in this book--to someone who did not have a loving mother--as much as a fantasy as Carole Lombard having a child.
A reference is made to the MGM prop department helping her with a gag for Clark, but it is not specified. Could be the weird mannequin she sets up in his bed that I'd read about before.
Feels like the book was written in the 1990's--mentions of VHS tapes, the musical references and no mentions of cellphones--though not published until 2008.
Lots of cola drinking and Percocet taking.
Interesting premise--Carole had a daughter before her Hollywood days, who had a daughter and it is that granddaughter who is telling this story.
A couple of take aways--though the author seems to have tracked down all the info out there about Carole, the fact is there are lots of missing pieces which is sort of sad. We see Carole so dimensionally on screen, one wants to feel that way about her entire life.
Also, this book reinforces thoughts I've had before, that Carole was sort of trapped when it came to romance to the actors in her world. As a glamorous top star, she could only romance a handsome, romantic guy. She'd already married William Powell, Russ Colombo dies on her--leaving Gable.
And then he is really a jerk, not the kind of loving husband she needs. But, where do you go after Gable? And, of course, she has a nice life set up around him with the ranch in Encino and his availability to father a child.
One gets the strong feeling, almost, that Carole is killed in the plane crash to get away from Clark. It seems she probably didn't lose much in that even if she had a child, he was not going to
be the loving, supportive partner she deserved. Kind of sad in that the situation she has with Carey Grant in the movie that resembled her life--mean wife won't let husband go--is the ideal she deserved but did not have with Clark.
A bit unfair the way the present life character blames her mother for hiding the truth about Carole. The problem was the times and the inability of women to have children out of wedlock without serious social stigma.
Also, the loving mothers presented in this book--to someone who did not have a loving mother--as much as a fantasy as Carole Lombard having a child.
A reference is made to the MGM prop department helping her with a gag for Clark, but it is not specified. Could be the weird mannequin she sets up in his bed that I'd read about before.
Feels like the book was written in the 1990's--mentions of VHS tapes, the musical references and no mentions of cellphones--though not published until 2008.
Lots of cola drinking and Percocet taking.
August 30, 2013
I must say that Ms. Washburn certainly took the time and effort for the history of Ms. Lombard and the Golden Age - but the story fell flat. A woman finds out that her mother is really Carole's child and not her cousin - goes on an adventure into the life of Carole through her journals and papers that she has received (quite easily) from John Clark Gable. From seeing ghosts, to listening to her mother's tales, and through the headaches - Cassandra makes it through.
Filled with great believable conversations but with the author's stretching to take Hollywood fact and fiction and turn it into the truth of the book leaves me ambivalent.
Storyline - ok
Description and detail - great
Truth - some (I am amazed by people thinking this is a biography like that one Loretta Young's daughter panned out)
I did enjoy losing myself in the time and into Carole. Just for that fact you will enjoy it.
Filled with great believable conversations but with the author's stretching to take Hollywood fact and fiction and turn it into the truth of the book leaves me ambivalent.
Storyline - ok
Description and detail - great
Truth - some (I am amazed by people thinking this is a biography like that one Loretta Young's daughter panned out)
I did enjoy losing myself in the time and into Carole. Just for that fact you will enjoy it.
July 8, 2013
If you're considering this book because you're a fan of the golden age of hollywood, please read the description of it carefully.
June 17, 2015
A wonderful book about Lombard and Gable and a riveting, blissful look into my favorite era. The author relates Carole's life to the present tense. I couldn't put it down.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews