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    Lilli de Jong: A Novel
    Lilli de Jong: A Novel
    Lilli de Jong: A Novel
    Audiobook12 hours

    Lilli de Jong: A Novel

    Written by Janet Benton

    Narrated by Erin Moon

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Pregnant, abandoned by her lover, and banished from her Quaker home and teaching position, Lilli de Jong enters a charity for wronged women to deliver her child. She is stunned at how much her infant needs her and at how quickly their bond overpowers her heart. Mothers in her position have no sensible alternative to giving up their children, but Lilli can't bear such an outcome. Determined to chart a path toward an independent life, Lilli braves moral condemnation and financial ruin in a quest to keep herself and her baby alive.

    Confiding their story to her diary as it unfolds, Lilli takes readers from an impoverished charity to a wealthy family's home to the perilous streets of a burgeoning American city. Lilli de Jong is at once a historical saga, an intimate romance, and a lasting testament to the work of mothers. "So little is permissible for a woman," writes Lilli, "yet on her back every human climbs to adulthood."
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHighbridge Company
    Release dateMay 16, 2017
    ISBN9781681685113
    Lilli de Jong: A Novel

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    Reviews for Lilli de Jong

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    • 5/5
      "Does all beauty end in rot?"Lilli de Jong is an amazing woman, inspiring and flawed; a thought-provoking superhero of a mother. Even if she is fictional.None of Janet Benton's novel reads like fiction, although it is, of course, historical fiction. She writes in such a poetic, captivating way, yet her story is so incredibly detailed, it almost felt like I was reading a thesis of a Ph.D. student. Ms. Benton writes in this seamless fashion, caught between poetry and fact, but at no point does her writing feel bogged down by the details. It is not dry university textbook reading, but is written so beautifully and appears so factually true that I thought this must be non-fiction. If this doesn't sound like a compliment, that's my fault. I am complimenting the author highly for this brilliant feat of work.I am deeply impressed by this novel. I was more than pleased to realize this was not a flip-flopping time period novel, like most historical fiction I've read in the past few weeks and I am grateful! There is no cheesy melodrama, no get-the-guy-in-the-end-or-bust romance that makes me queasy. (view spoiler)We follow Lilli throughout her hardships as an unwed mother in late 19th century Philadelphia. Shunned by just about everybody but for a temporary home for women who fall pregnant due to multitudes of circumstances, Lilli struggles for her survival and the survival of her child. From day one, this is no easy feat. She must degrade herself to levels she never thought she'd have to sink to, against her morals and her beliefs as a good Quaker woman. She struggles to find kindness in strangers and every new battle gives her one more reason to stop continuing on, to stop fighting. Even the strongest, most hardy women have a breaking point.If you want to read a gorgeous novel about strong women, this one is for you.Lilli de Jong is the epitome of a fierce, bad ass, nasty woman.Thank you to Netgalley, Janet Benton and the publishers for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
    • 3/5
      Lilli is an educated young Quaker woman who bears a child out-of-wedlock in Pennsylvania in 1883. This book shows the obstacles faced in those days by any woman without a husband. Lilli is an ex-teacher and she keeps journals of her travails. These diaries serve as the device to relate her story. As her situation deteriorates, her plight eventually turns into one of survival.

      This story is centered around a mother’s love for her child. It effectively portrays the amount of work involved in caring for an infant. Benton vividly articulates the widespread unsanitary conditions, negligence, corruption, social stigma, biased laws, and lack of options of the time period, where women were ostracized for their status as unwed mothers. Overall, I liked this book, but at times the author’s hand is too visible, and it is burdened by repetition and extraneous details.

      In the Author’s Note, Benton provides the reason she wrote this book, which may help in deciding whether or not to read it: “My larger aim was to create belief in lives that could have been lived and to bring the meaning of their struggles into the light of our day. I wanted to give voice to a deserted woman in 1883 who asserts the value of her bond with her infant – and to show obstacles of prejudice and inequality littered their way…I wanted to tell a story in which women’s strength was crucial to the world’s surviving and thriving – as it truly is and always has been.”
    • 4/5
      This novel is set in the late 19th century in Philadelphia. Lilli de Jong lives with her mother, father, brother and her father's apprentice in a modest home where Quaker values prevail. When her beloved mother dies suddenly, the family is upended. Within a few months, the father marries his surly, conniving cousin, her brother and the apprentice leave to work in the Pittsburgh steel mills, the Quakers shun the family and Lilli finds herself pregnant with nowhere to turn. Thus begins Lili's journey, and the challenges she encounters to keep her child safe rival those of she compares with the biblical Job.There are some interesting glimpses into life in the Victorian age from the downtrodden to those with means and material possessions. Janet Benton has done remarkable research into the culture of the time for unwed mothers, children and the downtrodden, while giving an overview of Philadelphia. Her notes at the end of the book are of particular interest.
    • 5/5
      Lllli de Jong succumbs to her bethrothed's advances just once and gets pregnant. Her step mother throws her out of the house. It is the 1880s. She is a Quaker. There is shame in this.She goes to a hospital for unwed mothers with the idea of giving her baby up for adoption. But when Charlotte is born, the mother-daughter bond is too strong. She can't do it. Opportunities for unwed mothers are scarce, especially if they want to bring their babies with them.Lilly gets a job as a wet nurse for an affluent family but must board her daughter with someone. Unfortunately, there is no oversight as to who can accept children and Lilly's worst fears are borne out. Charlotte's care giver gives little care.Lilli de Jong is a well written, sometimes heart rending account of what it was like in the 1880s to be an unwed mother. At times like the Book of Job, bad things just keep on happening but Lilli is a strong soul and we have the feeling she can overcome whatever is thrown her way.I highly recommend the book. In an Author visit, Janet Benton proved to be a charming author and read a passage from the book wonderfully.
    • 5/5
      Kudos to Janet Benton , Author of “Lilli de Jong” for writing such a captivating, emotional, intriguing and compassionate novel. The Genres for this novel are Historical Fiction and Fiction. The timeline for this story is around 1883, and the location is mostly Philadelphia. I appreciate the historical research and the resources that the author has used to create this novel. The author discusses that during this time in history, one of the worst crimes that a woman can do, is to conceive a child out-of-wedlock. Often these young women were forced to leave their homes and disowned by their families, and were outcasts. They were encouraged to give up their babies. The survival of these “bastards'” as the children were called was very slim.The author describes her characters as complex and complicated. There is a difference shown between wealth and poverty. Lilli de Jong , a Quaker who grew up in Germantown believes that her lover will marry her. She winds up pregnant, and abandoned. In 1883 a single, unwed mother to be had very few choices. Lilli does find an institution for unwed mothers, and lives and works there. Like most of the young women there, it is expected that Lilli will give up her baby. These women feel shame , guilt and are frightened.Lilli notices that after the women give birth, they often have to nurse more than one child. Their babies are taken away, and their prospects are very slim. When Lilli gives birth, she finds herself in love with her little girl, and can’t give her away. In order to survive, Lilly has to find work. She works for a wealthy family nursing their little boy, and cleaning their home. While Lilli works, she has to find someone to nurse and take care of her baby. Often these wet-nurses would feed several babies in terrible conditions.I love that the author discusses that women have to work hard to survive, despite prejudice and being ostracized from their homes and community. These women have no rights, are discriminated against, and yet to survive they have to be brave, relentless, and courageous. This time period shows no regard or equality for women. I highly recommend this novel to readers who appreciate Historical Fiction.
    • 4/5
      This book grabbed my attention right away and held it for the entire book. This definitely kept me entertained.
    • 4/5
      Lilli de Jong was about a young woman who became pregnant with a child out of wedlock. After her lover abandoned her, she was banished from her Quaker home and from everything she ever knew. She entered a charity to deliver her child, but when it became time to give her daughter up for adoption, she realized that she could not bear to – the bond between them was already too strong. She was adamant that keeping her daughter was the best course of action for them both, and she was determined to carve a life out for them in a society which was morally against single, unwed mothers.I really enjoyed the writing style of this book, which was both engaging and insightful. Told through Lilli’s diary entries, the story became personal. There were a lot of short yet insightful quotes, such as “How is it that shame affixes itself to the violated, and not to the violator?” that really made me stop and think. Even though the story was set in the 1880s, a lot of commentary about the life of women – the subtleties rather than the overt – were comparable to life today.I also really liked Lilli’s character. She made mistakes - a lot of mistakes - but that just showed she was human. She cared about her daughter Charlotte and wanted to provide the best life she could. In the end, the tone was a hopeful one: even when something terrible happened, Lilli managed to come out on top – with luck, with the help of others, and with sheer will.Overall, I’d place this book around 3.5, however, I decided to round up to 4 stars. Not only did I round up because I liked the story, but I felt nostalgic toward the setting of Germantown, Philadelphia, because I too grew up in a suburb right outside of Philadelphia, so I particularly enjoyed reading about Philadelphia in the 1880s!Thank you to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for a copy of this eBook in exchange for an honest review!
    • 5/5
      Janet Benton uses this well written novel to shed light on the plight of many pregnant and unwed women in 1880's America. Lilli de Jong has very few choices as to what she can do about her pregnancy, her absent finance, a place to find safe shelter, and what to do with her child once it is born. The terrible poverty that faces a woman alone, or even worse if she is trying to support both herself and a child, is demonstrated in both the life of Lilli, and in others she meets when she is taken in by a rare home for young women in her situation. Lilli's Quaker family is not a resource for her, and the lack of meaningful employment after her baby is born means a life of homelessness and starvation. Luckily Lilli's story does not end there, but for many this was the whole story.
    • 4/5
      The narrator's personal experience of motherhood comes out strongly in this novel - it's no surprise when the author admits in the afterword that the book was partially inspired by her own bonding with her child. I appreciated the vivid description of what life held for an unwed mother in the 19th century and I really started to like the narrator Lilli when she's listening to a sermon on how she should repent for her sins but wonders why the man who impregnated her isn't similarly being called out. Lilli's path to keep her child seeing her serving as a wet nurse in a wealthy household, needing to reclaim her baby from a state hospital and even living on the streets for a time. Overall, I like this book, although I do wish the character of Clementina had gotten a little more development.
    • 5/5
      "Does all beauty end in rot?"Lilli de Jong is an amazing woman, inspiring and flawed; a thought-provoking superhero of a mother. Even if she is fictional.None of Janet Benton's novel reads like fiction, although it is, of course, historical fiction. She writes in such a poetic, captivating way, yet her story is so incredibly detailed, it almost felt like I was reading a thesis of a Ph.D. student. Ms. Benton writes in this seamless fashion, caught between poetry and fact, but at no point does her writing feel bogged down by the details. It is not dry university textbook reading, but is written so beautifully and appears so factually true that I thought this must be non-fiction. If this doesn't sound like a compliment, that's my fault. I am complimenting the author highly for this brilliant feat of work.I am deeply impressed by this novel. I was more than pleased to realize this was not a flip-flopping time period novel, like most historical fiction I've read in the past few weeks and I am grateful! There is no cheesy melodrama, no get-the-guy-in-the-end-or-bust romance that makes me queasy. (view spoiler)We follow Lilli throughout her hardships as an unwed mother in late 19th century Philadelphia. Shunned by just about everybody but for a temporary home for women who fall pregnant due to multitudes of circumstances, Lilli struggles for her survival and the survival of her child. From day one, this is no easy feat. She must degrade herself to levels she never thought she'd have to sink to, against her morals and her beliefs as a good Quaker woman. She struggles to find kindness in strangers and every new battle gives her one more reason to stop continuing on, to stop fighting. Even the strongest, most hardy women have a breaking point.If you want to read a gorgeous novel about strong women, this one is for you.Lilli de Jong is the epitome of a fierce, bad ass, nasty woman.Thank you to Netgalley, Janet Benton and the publishers for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
    • 2/5
      This is a well written book. I commend Benton for writing it. But two thirds the way through, I realize I just can't listen any longer. I am laid so low by it, and cannot see any light.
    • 5/5
      Lilli De Jong is a young woman who grew up in the Quaker faith in Germantown, Pennsylvania. She enjoys her post as a schoolteacher and is engaged in her 1883 community. However, when her mother passes, Lilli's life takes a turn. Lilli's father turns cold and Lilli seeks solace in the arms of Johan, her father's apprentice. One night of passion leaves Lilli pregnant after Johan has moved to Pittsburgh for work in the steel mills. With no news from Johan, Lilli finds herself at a charity of unwed mothers. However, when the time comes to give up her daughter, she can't, throwing Lilli down a path of hardship all for the sake of her daughter.Intimate details of Lilli's hardships are shown through her private journal entries, pulling me into the unknown world of wet nurses and limited women's rights at the time. Reading Lilli's journey was an intensely emotional experience for me, as I imagine it would be for anyone who has had a child. I was most impressed by the writing of the reality of having a baby and the overwhelmingness of it all. I could not imagine having to go through what Lilli did. I was happy that the writing included the true feelings of new motherhood- the ups, the downs, the fatigue, not knowing if you can carry on, all while falling hopelessly in love with the person you have created. Lilli's voice is unique in that she is an intelligent, outspoken and passionate woman who has fallen into an unfortunate circumstance for her time period. However, even with these attributes, she is barely able to pull through as an unmarried mother in 19th century America. I am aware that being an unmarried mother definitely had its challenges in early American history, although I was surprised at some of the challenges Lilli faced and how they paralleled mothers in today's society. Overall, a passionate and engaging book about the bond between mother and child and the will to conserve that bond in 19th Century America. This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
    • 5/5
      Lilli De Jong is living in Philadelphia with a conservative community of Quakers in 1883. She is in love with Johan who is leaving to look for work in Pittsburgh and once established will send for her. They both would like to marry. A mishap occurs and Lilli finds out that she is pregnant after Johan leaves town. She is in a difficult situation because she has not heard from Johan during her pregnancy. The options are bleak for an unwed mother should she decide to keep her baby. She is left with three options surrounding the birth of her child. Put the baby up for adoption and go back to her former life. Keep her baby and live a life filled with hardships and negative social stigma. Search for her fiance and pursue marriage while finding a means to support herself and her child. Lilli decides to leave home to have her baby at a haven for unwed mothers. She will delay her decision until the baby is born. This novel is a wonderful story about love and the intense bond that a mother instantaneously feels for her child. This book made me appreciate how society has changed for women and how much easier our lives are today. This is a beautiful debut novel by Janet Benton and one of my favorite reads of the year.
    • 4/5
      What an intensely emotional and powerful book. The latter part of the eighteen hundreds, options are few for unmarried women in the family way. This is the condition in which Lillie a Quaker, finds herself. Though educated to be a teacher, Quaker woman did receive an education, she finds herself alone and with resources.Her mother has died, her brother and fiancée gone away trying to make some money, promising to send for her when they are able, her father remarried and booted out of church, she is forced to turn to a home for pregnant women. This is actually a better place then many, but they are fighting for resources and are unable to provide much help after delivery. Most women are forced to give up their child but Lilli cannot.Lilli goes from circumstance to circumstance, each one bleaker than the one before. These women were so looked down on, often forced into prostitution or suicide, not able to find any type of normal, sustainable employment. Considered unclean, sinners, beneath consideration. Heartbreaking and we travel along with her, the writing, the atmosphere so detailed. Can't help but admire her fortitude, her drive to survive and find away for her and her child. A few people offered small kindnesses that kept her going, but I literally has to put this down at times, I became so emotionally invested in her quest. Angry too, that women were treated like this. The unfairness, the hypocrisy. I won't tell you how this turns out, will just have to read it for yourselves, it is well worth the read.Author's note furnished at the back of the books is also very well done, explaining the situations and trials unmarried, pregnant women went through, what places in the novel were real and other interesting details.ARC from publisher.Publishes May 16th by Nan A. Talese
    • 4/5
      Written in the form of a diary, Lilli de Jong chronicles the story of a brave woman who fights to keep her child after giving birth at a Philadelphia institution for unwed mothers in 1883. Lilli's beloved mother dies. Her father refuses to permit Lilli to marry the man she loves. Her younger brother leaves town. Father and stepmother disown her. Lilli has few remaining options. In this time period, single women fight for every right including that of keeping their own babies.Janet Benton has a flair for painting with words. We feel hot breath on Lilli's neck. Childbirth shrieks pierce our ears. A soft cloth wipes excess milk from a baby's mouth. Overwhelming love of a mother toward her baby is the overriding theme. Adversity heaped on unwed mothers fills in the plot. Benton fleshes it out in spades. Highly recommended American Historical Fiction.I thank Nan A. Talese Publishing and NetGalley for the advance readers copy supplied for my unbiased opinion.
    • 5/5
      Lilli de Jong by Janet Benton is a great example of historical fiction. The author researched the time period and was nursing her own baby at the time. She incorporates Quaker customs and teachings and also focused on the special problems of poor women and the lack of opportunities to support themselves. Lilli is a sixteen year old Quaker and able to contribute money to the family. But she loses her mother who felt the closest. A spinster cousin of her fathers comes to their home and Lilli ends up banished from home, she loses her teaching position and becomes pregnant after her love, Johan persuades her to marry him. He and her brother are going to Pittsburgh in search of better paying jobs in the steel mills. There she is pregnant, no source of income and feeling disgraced. What can she do? The choices in 1883 are less than what can be counted on one hand. This book really brings the plight of the unwed mother under examination. Her experiences made me think of Charles Dicken's writings but also spoke of her indominable spirit and determination to keep, protect, feed and shelter her baby.Lilli De Jong will emtionally grip you and not let you go.I received an Advanced Reading copy of this book as a win from FirstReads, but that in no way determined my thoughts or feelings in this review.