Book Review 18 of 24 (Scrapbooks Are Paper Blogs)

The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt
By Caroline Preston
Barnes & Noble link

(Fun fact: I just found out about this book earlier yesterday at my job. Read it in two sittings and decided that it was an appropriate last review.)


When given the tools, anyone can become the person they were meant to become. The influences could come from anywhere, but usually you can discern the usual suspects. For the narrator of The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt, this was an easy one: her own parents. But it takes more than that to get this girl going. Adventures await her as she leaves the farming countryside of New Hampshire for the wide-eyed wonder of New York State in this uniquely-presented tale.



Frankie Pratt is a country girl living with her mother (a nurse) and her two younger brothers. One day, she happens upon her late father's old Corona typewriter and begins a love affair with writing. Upon graduating high school, her mother presents her with a scrapbook. It all begins with simple biography (physical stats of herself, brief biography of the family situation, etc.), but it later kicks off when she meets the handsome grandson of a woman Frankie is taking care of. One thing leads to another and she finds herself in college, talking with big-name poets, and dreaming big. Her whirlwind escapades will lead her to Europe and back, all in search for the answer to the question "what to do next?"

The idea of the novel as a literal scrapbook for the character is the main attraction here. It is brilliantly executed with items used that are true to the times: political campaign buttons, cut-outs from magazines, ticket stubs, photographs, postcards, fabric pieces, and other little treasures. It is easy to read just the text, but take the time to really explore and become immersed in the ephemera. It plays with the reader, giving off the illusion that the character really did exist. This had to have been a major gamble, given that the pages are full-color and detailed. The result is a gorgeous work of fiction with big ideas.

Frankie is a delightful narrator with many interests: feminism, postmodern literature, writing, and learning about her new worlds. She isn't eager to get married, but does want to settle down at some point. First, she just want to live her life. Her voice is relaxed, even for someone who is always in a state of wonder. She wanders into new places with a sense of wanting to understand, taking what she can get and accepting her limitations. Yet, she knows when it's time for big changes. Yet, I never get a sense of her feelings about writing and being a writer in general, just the basics. Though, she remains fascinating.

Even with all the beauty of nostalgia and vintage postcards, the book suffers from several major problems. Despite the souvenirs and typed writing, I never got a complete sense of Frankie's character. It is hinted somewhat that she was for the suffragette movement and makes at least two references to being a feminist. I wanted to see more of this, like her feelings on getting the right to vote and other political issues of the time. Frankie does shine as a young woman sure of certain things in herself (e.g. her writing talent) yet acknowledges the stumbles she made (e.g. falling out of friendships, didn't make stellar grades). I also noticed that the book had a rushed ending. It could've gone on for much longer, probably another twenty or so pages. This other one seems like a bugaboo, but for a writer, Frankie doesn't strike as an interesting one. The few samples she does put in come off as naive and even out-of-character. I expected her to be playing with form and language, given her erudition and eagerness to read the big names of the time.

Minor historical inaccuracy: Edith Wharton was the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize, not Edna St. Vincent Millay. This was surprising, given that the character claims to be a big Wharton fan.

The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt shows much promise, like its lady writer narrator, of having potential to be brilliant. It hits some bumps in the road with some major mistakes, but still manages to balance itself up and still impress the skeptics. Like with many new ideas, I hope this inspires someone to give this scrapbook-as-a-novel idea a go for themselves. It is risky, but just take a deep breath and be like Frankie. Just go for it.