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Mary Jane: a Novel
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
7 posts | 13 read | 17 to read
"I LOVED this novel....If you have ever sung along to a hit on the radio, in any decade, then you will devour Mary Jane at 45 rpm." -Nick Hornby Almost Famous meets Daisy Jones and the Six in this funny, wise, and tender novel about a fourteen-year-old girl's coming of age in 1970s Baltimore, caught between her straight-laced family and the progressive family she nannies for-who happen to be secretly hiding a famous rock star and his movie star wife for the summer. In 1970s Baltimore, fourteen-year-old Mary Jane loves cooking with her mother, singing in her church choir, and enjoying her family's subscription to the Broadway Showtunes of the Month record club. Shy, quiet, and bookish, she's glad when she lands a summer job as a nanny for the daughter of a local doctor. A respectable job, Mary Jane's mother says. In a respectable house. The house may look respectable on the outside, but inside it's a literal and figurative mess: clutter on every surface, Impeachment: Now More Than Ever bumper stickers on the doors, cereal and takeout for dinner. And even more troublesome (were Mary Jane's mother to know, which she does not): the doctor is a psychiatrist who has cleared his summer for one important job-helping a famous rock star dry out. A week after Mary Jane starts, the rock star and his movie star wife move in. Over the course of the summer, Mary Jane introduces her new household to crisply ironed clothes and a family dinner schedule, and has a front-row seat to a liberal world of sex, drugs, and rock and roll (not to mention group therapy). Caught between the lifestyle she's always known and the future she's only just realized is possible, Mary Jane will arrive at September with a new idea about what she wants out of life, and what kind of person she's going to be.
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blurb
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
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Eggs Love albums 🎼🩷🎶 11mo
62 likes1 stack add1 comment
review
Kboltz
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
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Pickpick

Read this book especially if you gre up in the 70s. I loved this read. Mary Jane is all of us girls growing up in this time. Just read it…NOW!:)

Bklover Sounds good! I was a teenager in the 70‘s 14mo
Kboltz @Bklover you will love it! 14mo
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blurb
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
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#TBR

Thrift store finds!

Anyone read this one?

CBee Yes! It‘s great! 1y
Deblovestoread Love this book! 1y
KathyWheeler I really liked this book. 1y
aperfectmjk Definitely a good read. 1y
60 likes4 stack adds4 comments
review
jspoelker
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
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Pickpick

Lovely coming of age book

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readswellwithothers
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I am so happy that I did not read the blurbs about this - the ones I see are misleading and that cover does nothing to help!

It‘s a splendid coming-of-age story taking place over just one hot, life-changing summer in the 70‘s and I am HERE FOR IT. So much humanity and humor and the unique discomfort of being a teen comes through in these pages. I tried the audio and didn‘t like it, but print was fantastic. Not too deep, not too light!

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review
KristiAhlers
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
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Pickpick

This is now available on the KU plan. This was a fun and easy read that was HIGHLY entertaining. First time I‘ve read this author but it won‘t be the last.

CBee Loved this one!! 2y
43 likes2 stack adds1 comment
review
Sully1
Mary Jane: a Novel | Jessica Anya Blau
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Pickpick

A quick, fun and light read about a young girl finding her voice.

LoverOfLearning Ugh I love this cover!! 3y
3 likes1 stack add1 comment