This book was on my list primarily because it's up there with Lolita for one of the most controversial books of all time; after reading it, it's very easy to see why. Most of the subjects tackled in Peyton Place are subjects that are considered taboo today, back in 1956 when it was first published I can only imagine.
With sexual repression, teenage pregnancy, rape, incest, and murder, we have every ingredient needed to make a nice soapy, guilty pleasure, at times mellow dramatic, and wildly entertaining novel.
Return to Peyton Place was less electric than it's successor. The story that takes place in the actual Peyton Place, NH (in the sequel) feels a little like the awkward bastard child of the first book. However, when one of the characters ends up successful and jetting off to New York and Hollywood that's when the story gets interesting.
Once again, we're in the minds of countless townspeople in both books. I feel like as a writer, I'm learning a lot of new techniques on how to make use of this point of view considering how many of these books make use of it.
I wouldn't call this a literary masterpiece of any kind, but it's easy to see why it made such a stir. Anyone who enjoys stories with a soap operatic quality will love this book.
In researching the origins of these books, I found the life story of Grace Metalious to be even more interesting than that of Peyton Place. True there are many overlapping themes with Grace and Peyton Place, but I found it interesting that despite critisism, alcoholism, and a downward spiral from her success that took less than ten years - she was a ground-breaking feminist. When someone writes a creative non-fiction style book of Grace's life, that will be one of my new favorites.
Grade: C+
*SIDENOTE: If you want to experience this story please read Peyton Place and ignore it's inexcusable, horribly watered down film version.
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