Local Brunswick, Maine TV host, radio broadcaster, and author LC Van Savage debuts a new young adult romance with a princess to pauper theme.
Queenie
by LC Van Savage
BeachHouse Books
Paperback
388 pp
Description:
Queenie ( Science and Humanities Press/ Beach House Books) is a compelling semi-autobiographical page-turner about first love, heartbreak, betrayal and personal growth – all subjects central to a high school reader. Additionally, the novel addresses the social issues of bullying, and class and racial discrimination. Hence, it is educative as well as entertaining.
Protagonist Courtenay Walcott was born into money – lots of it. In her early teens, her wealthy lifestyle is torn from her. Suddenly forced to spend her days among the “lower classes”, she is continually disdained and mocked. Now out of her social element, she strains to maintain a balance between two very different worlds, survives a severe beating, endless harassment and constant humiliation. Perhaps most searing is watching her ethical and emotional battle to fit in with elements of society she has been trained to scorn. A shocking, vicious family scandal finally opens her eyes to the true goodness of the “Not of our Kind, Dear” people. This is a cogent story of awakening, realization and maturing.
Praise:
“I don’t have a lot of time to read other people’s books, but this is a great book. I never stopped reading until the last page. The story brought me back to my own high school years. You nailed it. This is one terrific book and is very well written, and you know perfectly well it should be a movie! GET IT DONE!”
– Charlie Wing, author of over 20 books and Physical Oceanographer
“… beautifully detailed. I could not put it down and cannot recommend it more highly… it’s a great read for all ages. Queenie is a great story and a great book!”
Dr. John Cook,
88 FM Public Radio for the Rio Grande Valley“…you brought the era alive for me. I was there. Your attention to detail is remarkable. You have a great gift. Get Queenie’s story out there; she wants it told.
– Luthera Dawson, prolific Maine author, speaker & raconteur
About the Author
Author LC van Savage hosted a local TV show on Maine Public Broadcasting Network for 15 years called “Incredible MAINE” where she traveled with her crew all over the state to film unique shows about Maine, her people and the things they do; she never ran out of show ideas! These shows appeared every Saturday morning at 10:30 AM on MPBN. She also had a weekly radio show for three years called “Senior Moment” broadcast from Bowdoin College and in total hosted four different radio interview shows over the years.
Her column “LC’s Take” appeared in the Times Record in Brunswick, Maine for over 30 years, and was also featured weekly in The Coastal Journal out of Bath, Maine for ten years. Her stories and essays also appear in the Maine Seniors Magazine.
A collaborative writer as well, van Savage wrote a book with Marilyn Monroe’s first husband (Jim Dougherty ) entitled, To Norma Jean with Love, Jimmie, featured on E!, TV Guide, The Larry King Show and Bill Green’s Maine. Other collaborative books include Dancing for Poppy, about a woman who overcame an abusive father and went on to survive a long and dangerous life, and Jan of Cleveland, a time-travel book about the 1300s and the intense horrors and humors of that era. Van Savage also wrote the biography of Virginia Mayo, a movie star famous from the l930s through the ’70s entitled The Best Years of My Life, as well as the biography of John Agar, Shirley Temple’s first husband and also a famous star from the 40s and on, entitled On The Good Ship Hollywood.
LC has had articles and short stories published in magazines, small press magazines, anthologies and books. She writes rhymed and rhythmed poetry, and has included these in a book called LC‘s Take – Poetry- I. She still does readings around Maine from her poetry, columns and books.
A how-to book called How to Paint People’s Life Stories is being updated, and includes some of LC’s murals, rugs, bowls and other folk art she has done as well as instructions on how others can do the same. She currently does smaller, one-subject personal bio paintings as well as paintings in that genre on many of the wonderful songs of the Great American Songbook (the Gershwins, Cole Porter, Irving Berlin etc.) and will happily be painting these fabulous songs for the rest of her life.
Queenie, her latest novel, is semi-autobiographical. Next in queue, Frances, a suspenseful murder novel, is written and awaits editing.
Born on Staten Island, New York, she has lived in Brunswick, Maine since 1974 with her husband Stephen. They’ve been very happily married for 60 years, have three sons, and six grandchildren.
