The Girl from the Papers

Author: Jennifer L. Wright

Publisher: Tyndale House

Release Date: August 8, 2023

Parallel story of Bonnie and Clyde!

Beatrice Carraway grew up in the small dusty town of Wingate, Texas with big aspirations after winning a couple of beauty queen competitions.  But as she gets older, the winnings get less and eventually her mother makes the decision that to save the family, she can no longer rely on Beatrice and gets married to a local well-respected church elder.  Beatrice soon learns that this man is all for show and has a cruel nature and gives her mom an ultimatum: stay or leave with her and her sister to head to Dallas. 

Living in West Dallas has its own challenges.  Everyone is poor and no one will hire someone from West Dallas for a show.  When Beatrice meets Jack Turner, they quickly hit it off and learn that they both want more from a world that doesn’t seem to want them.  Eventually, they turn to crime to get money.  Small things at first, but then comes the first bank robbery.  And then another.  Before long, the papers are picking up their names and everyone knows who they are.  But this type of fame also brings misfortune.  Can they keep up the spree forever?  Or will they eventually make their final stand in the papers?

This was a different take on the old story of Bonnie and Clyde from the 1920s and how they got their start to the bitter end.  I love how it was told from Beatrice’s perspective and how her view of life was tainted from an early start.  The pace was fast throughout the book and readers will want to see what happens next with each chapter and see how the story parallels that of Bonnie with Beatrice and Clyde with Jack.  Very similar instances in both, but the ending is quite different, but you’ll have to read it to figure that out. 

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher.  The views and opinions expressed within are my own.