THE STEELE DIARIES

Narrator Katherine Tonkin enchants listeners with her soft, melodic voice in this story of artistic melancholy and identity search. Born to two artists, Zelda is adopted by her parents' patrons as a baby. She writes about her upbringing and later her artistic aspirations in her diary. Overall, she feels threatened by the high expectations that come from being born of artistic geniuses as well as the generally high cultural expectations of wives and mothers. When her daughter, Ruth, finds the diaries after Zelda's death, she finally understands her mother. Tonkin alternates between the diary entries and the present at a thoughtful pace. Her Aussie accent is sweet and sassy as the novel's two women express emotions. It's details like a subtle throat clearing during a difficult conversation that enhance this beautifully somber story. A.L.C. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2020]