48 pages • 1 hour read
Fiona DavisA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
As The Lions of Fifth Avenue is a book about books, books are an important symbol. In general, books represent not only the transmission of knowledge and creativity but a link between past and present. Sadie’s obsession with books reflects her desire to connect with her own past, with a mysterious grandmother who exists only in terms of historians and feminists, but has yet to take on personal significance. Through Laura’s writings, Sadie hopes to establish a more personal relationship with a woman she never knew. Specific books—Jack’s manuscript, the first edition of Edgar Allan Poe’s Tamerlane, Kate Chopin’s The Awakening—all have symbolic importance to individual characters. Jack’s manuscript represents his admittance to the world of letters, an exclusive club whose members surround him every day at work. Poe’s Tamerlane is not only one of the rarest first editions in history (and is thus symbolic of Sadie’s rarified world of old books), but Poe himself is considered one of the fathers of mystery fiction, a genre in which The Lions of Fifth Avenue belongs. Lastly, Chopin’s The Awakening represents Laura’s initiation into the world of radical feminist politics. Not only is the content relevant to Laura’s personal transformation, but Amelia uses it as a way to send Laura a note, to communicate her love and forgiveness.
By Fiona Davis
Books & Literature
View Collection
Books on Justice & Injustice
View Collection
Canadian Literature
View Collection
Family
View Collection
Historical Fiction
View Collection
Mystery & Crime
View Collection
The Best of "Best Book" Lists
View Collection
Valentine's Day Reads: The Theme of Love
View Collection