Loving Frank Audiobook By Nancy Horan cover art

Loving Frank

A Novel

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Loving Frank

By: Nancy Horan
Narrated by: Joyce Bean
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NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of The House of Lincoln, an “enthralling” novel that brings “the buried truths of the ill-starred relationship of Mamah Borthwick Cheney and Frank Lloyd Wright to light” (The New York Times Book Review).

“Masterful.”—People
“A fascinating love story.”—San Francisco Chronicle
“Truly artful fiction.”—The New York Times

“I have been standing on the side of life, watching it float by. I want to swim in the river. I want to feel the current.”

So writes Mamah Borthwick Cheney in her diary as she struggles to justify her clandestine love affair with Frank Lloyd Wright. Four years earlier, in 1903, Mamah and her husband, Edwin, had commissioned the renowned architect to design a new home for them. During the construction of the house, a powerful attraction developed between Mamah and Frank, and in time the lovers, each married with children, embarked on a course that would shock Chicago society and forever change their lives.

Drawing on years of research, Horan weaves little-known facts into a compelling narrative, vividly portraying the conflicts and struggles of a woman forced to choose between the roles of mother, wife, lover, and intellectual. Mamah’s is an unforgettable journey marked by choices that reshape her notions of love and responsibility, leading inexorably to this novel’s stunning conclusion.

Elegantly written and remarkably rich in detail, Loving Frank is a fitting tribute to a courageous woman, a national icon, and their timeless love story.

Winner of the James Fenimore Cooper Prize for Best Historical Fiction • One of the Best Books of the Year: The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Minneapolis Star Tribune, The Christian Science Monitor Biographical Fiction Literary Fiction Genre Fiction
Captivating Historical Fiction • Compelling Characterizations • Emotionally Resonant Story • Well-researched Account

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I enjoyed the story and had no idea of the tragedy in Wright’s life. I have admired his since my drafting class in my junior year of High School. I have books of homes as well as buildings he helped design. I wrote a paper about him for my staging class.
I have been to Taliesin East and West as well as his home and studio in Oak Park. I have enjoyed touring buildings in both CA (San Rafael Civic Center) as well as Arizona.
I was able to get my junior high teaching job in 1970 because I could teach drafting, math, and art. I taught many other subjects in my 37 year career at the same junior high school in Fremont!

How life was for women in the early 1900’s. The tragedy that Frank Lloyd Wright endured.

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I loved hearing her side of this story. The author really brought the character to life.

A beautiful story of love and strength

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I really struggled with the author’s attempt to make the reader have pity on the main characters. Sorry. I couldn’t. They were both selfish people who made self absorbed decisions. They thought so highly of themselves they really didn’t care about the consequences of their actions. I would have stopped reading several times, but I was told the ending was quite unexpected. They were right. Wow!

Struggled at times but the ending, wow!

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I loved everything about this story except the actor’s delivery. She does the voice of FLW a disservice by relying on children’s book-level impersonations of the man, lowering her voice and sounding suspicious the entire time.

Airtight storytelling, respectful and compelling characterizations—with a little dose of first wave feminist history.

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The story brought the life of these two star crossed lovers in bright focus. It was inspirational and tragic. It should give any reader pause before harshly judging the two for choosing love over family and tradition. The writer does an excellent job in keeping Frank and Mayma real. Excellent story and narration. Any yet, how incredibly sad.

It was deeply insightful

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