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The Last Queen of the Gypsies
William Cobb's first novel in nine years is a brilliant, quirky, highly readable story as compelling as it is original. Its main characters journey on parallel Lester Ray, a fourteen-year-old boy who was deserted by his mother when he was a baby and has now escaped his abusive alcoholic father, and Minnie, a woman who was abandoned by her Gypsy family of migrant fruit pickers when she was eleven.
The novel interweaves their searches for families they never really knew. It ranges from the Great Depression to the mid-1960s, and from the panhandle of Florida, where much of the novel is set, to New York City during World War II, to the Georgia and Carolina coasts, to Fort Myers and south Florida.
Lester Ray finds work with a carnival as he looks for his mother, accompanied by all the odd and strange and wonderful people who make up that world. Minnie moves from the dry sandy heat of central Florida in 1933, to a brothel in Cedar Key, to New York, to the little town of Piper, to the winter camps of the Gypsies near Fort Myers. She is―first as a girl, then as a woman―a person of immense fortitude and strength, as engaging and unforgettable as Scarlett O'Hara.
The novel interweaves their searches for families they never really knew. It ranges from the Great Depression to the mid-1960s, and from the panhandle of Florida, where much of the novel is set, to New York City during World War II, to the Georgia and Carolina coasts, to Fort Myers and south Florida.
Lester Ray finds work with a carnival as he looks for his mother, accompanied by all the odd and strange and wonderful people who make up that world. Minnie moves from the dry sandy heat of central Florida in 1933, to a brothel in Cedar Key, to New York, to the little town of Piper, to the winter camps of the Gypsies near Fort Myers. She is―first as a girl, then as a woman―a person of immense fortitude and strength, as engaging and unforgettable as Scarlett O'Hara.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published September 29, 2010
1 person is currently reading
30 people want to read
About the author
William Cobb
32 books2 followersWilliam Cobb is the author of seven critically acclaimed novels, Coming of Age at the Y, The Hermit King, A Walk Through Fire, Harry Reunited, A Spring of Souls, Wings of Morning, and The Last Queen of the Gypsies. His collection of short fiction is Somewhere in All This Green. He is currently working on a novel about the Creek Indian War in Alabama in 1813-1814. He is married to the short story writer Loretta Cobb and lives in Montevallo, Alabama.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 15, 2023
This book bounces back and forth between the stories of two main characters: Minnie (1930s) and Lester Ray (1960s). Both were abandoned as children and only a desire to find out what happened to them kept me reading, as this book is full of profanity and explicit sex scenes (not my usual fare.)
Minnie is a Gypsy who is left on the side of a Florida road at age 11 because her mother declares Minnie's mismatched eyes signify that she is a devil. When she stops to ask for food at a nearby shack, she is nearly raped by a filthy, toothless old man. After killing him in self defense, Minnie is taken in by an elderly black couple who treat her as their own. However, she is filled with wanderlust and runs away at age 15. She then works in a brothel for several years before embarking on the first of many journeys characterized by short-term jobs and questionable men.
Lester Ray's mother left when he was a toddler. His father was a drunk who beat him regularly and often left the child alone for weeks at a time. His only friend was an elderly neighbor, Mrs. Mack, who gave him food and a place to sleep. Over the years, Mrs. Mack's dementia becomes more pronounced and her uncaring son decides to put her in a nursing home and sell her possessions. Lester Ray, now 14, pays someone to fix up her old car and they escape, armed only with a picture of a woman he believes is his mother and the notion that she is a Gypsy.
Since Gypsies often travel with carnivals, Lester Ray lies about his age and signs on with a traveling show. His quest to find her -- and to keep Mrs. Mack safe -- is both sad and sweet. We learn a lot about carnival life, Gypsy culture, and prejudice.
In addition to the excessive profanity and sex, I was very disappointed in the ending of this book. There were MANY ends left dangling. It was as if there were another chapter but they ran out of pages and just stopped it there. I would not recommend this book to others.
Minnie is a Gypsy who is left on the side of a Florida road at age 11 because her mother declares Minnie's mismatched eyes signify that she is a devil. When she stops to ask for food at a nearby shack, she is nearly raped by a filthy, toothless old man. After killing him in self defense, Minnie is taken in by an elderly black couple who treat her as their own. However, she is filled with wanderlust and runs away at age 15. She then works in a brothel for several years before embarking on the first of many journeys characterized by short-term jobs and questionable men.
Lester Ray's mother left when he was a toddler. His father was a drunk who beat him regularly and often left the child alone for weeks at a time. His only friend was an elderly neighbor, Mrs. Mack, who gave him food and a place to sleep. Over the years, Mrs. Mack's dementia becomes more pronounced and her uncaring son decides to put her in a nursing home and sell her possessions. Lester Ray, now 14, pays someone to fix up her old car and they escape, armed only with a picture of a woman he believes is his mother and the notion that she is a Gypsy.
Since Gypsies often travel with carnivals, Lester Ray lies about his age and signs on with a traveling show. His quest to find her -- and to keep Mrs. Mack safe -- is both sad and sweet. We learn a lot about carnival life, Gypsy culture, and prejudice.
In addition to the excessive profanity and sex, I was very disappointed in the ending of this book. There were MANY ends left dangling. It was as if there were another chapter but they ran out of pages and just stopped it there. I would not recommend this book to others.
May 29, 2020
I loved the story tragic as it was. I liked the ending also. I felt there were too many unfortunate sexual encounters that weren't entirely necessary.
April 12, 2011
Anna Marie Spiroski, or Minnie as she is known outside of her gypsy familia, is left by the side of a Florida road to fend for herself at age eleven. Her superstitious mother has never liked that her eyes were two different colors, suspecting the child is of the devil, and when another baby means there are too many mouths to feed, Anna Marie is the first to go. As you might expect, this leads her to a pretty hard life, but she's tough, and she's a gypsy, and she perseveres...but she never lets anyone get too close to her.
Lester Ray Holsomback is a boy already grown into the shape of a man. He has one friend in this world, an elderly woman (now with dementia) who has taken care of him when his drunk of a father wouldn't or couldn't throughout most of his life. Lester Ray has never known his mother; his father says she ran off with a gypsy when he was just a baby. But life with his father is certainly no good life for him, and of course he's curious about who his mother is and where she went and why she left. When Mrs. McCrory's son threatens to put her in a nursing home, she and Lester Ray devise a plan to fix her late husband's extremely old car and run away. She doesn't always remember the plan, or even remember exactly who Lester Ray is, but she knows he's a good boy who's kind to her and who she trusts, and most of the time that's good enough for her. They join up with a traveling carnival (run by gypsies) both to hide themselves from the law and Mrs. McCrory's son and to try and find a lead on Lester Ray's mother.
I saw William Cobb do a reading from this book, and that's when I decided I wanted to buy it. I even got him to sign it for me. He's funny, and he read his snippet from the book in a humorous manner, so I anticipated there would be a little humor and light-heartedness from the book...but really, it just made me sad. There is so much brokenness in all of the characters that their journeys hurt me. Even the scene that was funny when Mr. Cobb read it aloud, with no context, made me sad when I read it for myself within the story. So that's it for me, the reason for four stars - I didn't find much hope in the story. A little bit, at the end, but not enough to make me love it. I liked the story, I liked the characters, and I think Mr. Cobb is a great author - I'll definitely seek out some of his other books - but there wasn't enough laughter there for me in a story where I genuinely wanted and expected laughter.
Lester Ray Holsomback is a boy already grown into the shape of a man. He has one friend in this world, an elderly woman (now with dementia) who has taken care of him when his drunk of a father wouldn't or couldn't throughout most of his life. Lester Ray has never known his mother; his father says she ran off with a gypsy when he was just a baby. But life with his father is certainly no good life for him, and of course he's curious about who his mother is and where she went and why she left. When Mrs. McCrory's son threatens to put her in a nursing home, she and Lester Ray devise a plan to fix her late husband's extremely old car and run away. She doesn't always remember the plan, or even remember exactly who Lester Ray is, but she knows he's a good boy who's kind to her and who she trusts, and most of the time that's good enough for her. They join up with a traveling carnival (run by gypsies) both to hide themselves from the law and Mrs. McCrory's son and to try and find a lead on Lester Ray's mother.
I saw William Cobb do a reading from this book, and that's when I decided I wanted to buy it. I even got him to sign it for me. He's funny, and he read his snippet from the book in a humorous manner, so I anticipated there would be a little humor and light-heartedness from the book...but really, it just made me sad. There is so much brokenness in all of the characters that their journeys hurt me. Even the scene that was funny when Mr. Cobb read it aloud, with no context, made me sad when I read it for myself within the story. So that's it for me, the reason for four stars - I didn't find much hope in the story. A little bit, at the end, but not enough to make me love it. I liked the story, I liked the characters, and I think Mr. Cobb is a great author - I'll definitely seek out some of his other books - but there wasn't enough laughter there for me in a story where I genuinely wanted and expected laughter.
January 9, 2013
The first thing that drew me to this book was my long-time fascination with Gypsies. As long as I can remember I have been intrigued by their culture. Cobb did his research on this one. The novel portrays Gypsies in the south from the Great Depression through the early 1960's. Minnie, an 11-year-old gypsy girl, is abandoned by her family on a lonely Florida road for no other reason than having one blue eye and one green eye. Her mother believes this to be bad luck, and so Minnie is dropped off like unwanted baggage to fend for herself in rural Florida. Minnie quickly learns to take care of herself as she travels from Florida to New York City, and back to Florida again on a journey to nowhere in particular. She only knows that she has to keep moving.
Lester Ray was abandoned by his Gypsy mother when he was a small child. Left behind with a drunken father, Earl, he mainly takes care of himself. His only ally is Mrs. Mack, an elderly neighbor who feeds him and often gives him a place to sleep. At fourteen, Lester Ray decides to search for his missing mother. He takes Mrs. Mack with him, to protect her from her greedy son, Orville. Orville wants nothing more than to place his mother in a nursing home and forget about her. The two are joined at the last minute by Virgin Mary Duck, a fifteen-year-old dwarf girl who wants to escape her abusive father. The three set out together on an adventure- two are running away from family and one is running toward family.
With colorful characters and settings, Cobb weaves a tale of Gypsy life from migrant farm workers to traveling carnivals in the American south. Although I wasn't all that pleased with the ending (no spoilers) I will say that I found this book to be an OK read. It made me think. What made Minnie keep moving, and why was she so afraid of standing still? Would she ever settle down? What would make a mother walk away and leave her child, especially with someone like Earl? I still don't completely understand her choices, but the story was believable. Although she left her old life and started a new one many times, her actions still had lasting consequences. One day she would have to face up to her past.
Read this book if....
*you are interested in Gyspy culture
*you like stories that take place in the south
*you like stories that take place "on the road"
Lester Ray was abandoned by his Gypsy mother when he was a small child. Left behind with a drunken father, Earl, he mainly takes care of himself. His only ally is Mrs. Mack, an elderly neighbor who feeds him and often gives him a place to sleep. At fourteen, Lester Ray decides to search for his missing mother. He takes Mrs. Mack with him, to protect her from her greedy son, Orville. Orville wants nothing more than to place his mother in a nursing home and forget about her. The two are joined at the last minute by Virgin Mary Duck, a fifteen-year-old dwarf girl who wants to escape her abusive father. The three set out together on an adventure- two are running away from family and one is running toward family.
With colorful characters and settings, Cobb weaves a tale of Gypsy life from migrant farm workers to traveling carnivals in the American south. Although I wasn't all that pleased with the ending (no spoilers) I will say that I found this book to be an OK read. It made me think. What made Minnie keep moving, and why was she so afraid of standing still? Would she ever settle down? What would make a mother walk away and leave her child, especially with someone like Earl? I still don't completely understand her choices, but the story was believable. Although she left her old life and started a new one many times, her actions still had lasting consequences. One day she would have to face up to her past.
Read this book if....
*you are interested in Gyspy culture
*you like stories that take place in the south
*you like stories that take place "on the road"
July 21, 2012
My review on The Crimson Review of Children's & YA Literature:
Alternating between the lives of Minnie, a young gypsy in 1930’s Florida, and Lester Ray, a teenager in 1960’s Florida, violent confrontations, poverty and cruelty are the name of the game throughout this book. Cobb takes his time interlacing characters as the stories and characters build upon each other, using his words to the utmost effect describing rural Florida; the treatment of America’s Gypsy population is nuanced and thorough, though is only prominent during Minnie’s chapters. By the middle of the book the reader is almost certain of the two main characters connection, but it is not until the end that the puzzle is put together. As with real life, the ending isn’t neatly resolved and adult readers are left with a vague sense of dissolution. Unsurprisingly, the theme and feeling of dissolution runs throughout the whole novel and actually helps to ease the reader towards the unsettling ending. Recommended with reservations.
Alternating between the lives of Minnie, a young gypsy in 1930’s Florida, and Lester Ray, a teenager in 1960’s Florida, violent confrontations, poverty and cruelty are the name of the game throughout this book. Cobb takes his time interlacing characters as the stories and characters build upon each other, using his words to the utmost effect describing rural Florida; the treatment of America’s Gypsy population is nuanced and thorough, though is only prominent during Minnie’s chapters. By the middle of the book the reader is almost certain of the two main characters connection, but it is not until the end that the puzzle is put together. As with real life, the ending isn’t neatly resolved and adult readers are left with a vague sense of dissolution. Unsurprisingly, the theme and feeling of dissolution runs throughout the whole novel and actually helps to ease the reader towards the unsettling ending. Recommended with reservations.
September 20, 2011
Almost gave this one a 4-star rating. Interesting story and well developed characters, but a few of glaring (at least, to me) inconsistencies throughout. Too many sex scenes that generally do not further the plot, and a symbolic, but ambiguous ending.
July 11, 2012
It took awhile to get into this one, but really enjoyed it once I did. The end wasn't quite what my curiosity was expecting, but overall it was a good read.
February 20, 2016
Not at all what I expected. Awful book. See reading progress notes for why. Ugh!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews