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by Kate Alcott
3.5 Stars
A Touch of Stardust is a fictional retelling of behind the scenes of the filming of Gone With the Wind. Julie Crawford lands a job working with notoriously intense movie producer David O. Selznic. She soon becomes an assistant to Carole Lombard but her true desire is to be a Hollywood screenwriter. However, she must rise above the rules of society and the misogyny of Hollywood to chase this dream.
The backdrop of the Gone With the Wind filming is fascinating and I am curious how accurate the events are. This book made me want to read the original Margaret Mitchell classic and watch the movie again. A great book club event would be to read the two books and watch the movie and discuss all the parallels, connections, and players involved. Penguin Random House has a great book club discussion guide here.
A Touch of Stardust deals with themes of chauvinism and prejudice but also has a lighter side with romance and Hollywood drama. There is a charming insta-love romance between Julie and a Jewish assistant producer Andy Weinstein. There is also the side story of the relationship between Carole Lombard and Clark Gable. Unfortunately, I think that is the drawback of this book. There are too many side plots and storylines. All of them are loosely connected to the protagonist but with so much going on, each plot line only gets touched on lightly and nothing is fully developed. You have the drama of the movie filming, the love life of Carole Lombard and Clark Gable, Julie fighting to become a screenwriter in a male-dominated industry, Julie and Andy’s budding romance, and Andy dealing with being Jewish during the rise of Hitler. All of these events were engaging but I never felt fully invested in any of the characters.
I recommend this book for fans of Gone With the Wind or old Hollywood storylines.Â