Ever since she was a child, Eleanor O'Hanlon has always been passionate about musical theater, listening to the greats such as Gershwin, and Rodgers and Hammerstein and paying attention to the players who dominated the field. Feeling stifled by her upbringing on a farm in Wisconsin, Eleanor learns that her favorite creator, Don Mannheim, has a new musical opening in New York and is looking for new girls to try out, she is encouraged to leave home and pursue her dreams. Eleanor soon discovers that getting a part in a musical is only half of the battle, and she has much more to learn about life to enhance her acting and singing skills.
From the outset, A TENDER THING by Emily Neuberger may sound like a typical coming of age story of a young girl coming face to face with unfamiliarity in her life. But from the minute Eleanor arrives in New York to the end of the book, A TENDER THING is anything but predictable.
Combining the ins and outs of musical theater as well as the backdrop of the 1950s, A TENDER THING is not afraid of exploring controversial topics of racism, stereotypes, and the glass ceiling that forbid women from achieving the successes of their male counterparts. Emily Neuberger truly weaves a masterful tale that touches on how much, as well as how little, life has changed for people since 1950s. A TENDER THING tells the story of a young woman breaking all conventions, daring to do the unthinkable, and try to make it on Broadway.
Growing up in rural Wisconsin, Eleanor O'Hanlon always felt different. In love with musical theater from a young age, she memorized every show album she could get her hands on. So when she discovers an open call for one of her favorite productions, she leaves behind everything she knows to run off to New York City and audition. Raw and untrained, she catches the eye of famed composer Don Mannheim, who catapults her into the leading role of his new work, "A Tender Thing," a provacative love story between a white woman and black man, one never before seen on a Broadway stage.
As word of the production gets out, an outpouring of protest whips into a fury. Between the intensity of rehearsals, her growing friendship with her co-star Charles, and her increasingly muddled creative--and personal--relationship with Don, Eleanor begins to question her own naïve beliefs about the world. When explosive secrets threaten to shatter the delicate balance of the company, and the possibility of the show itself, Eleanor must face a new reality and ultimately decide what it is she truly wants.
Pulsing with the vitality and drive of 1950s New York, Emily Neuberger's enthralling debut immerses readers right into the heart of Broadway's Golden Age, a time in which the music soared and the world was on the brink of change.
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