Guests on Earth

Written by Lee Smith

Narrated by Emily Woo Zeller

When she is thirteen years old, Evalina Toussaint, the orphaned child of an exotic dancer in New Orleans, is admitted as a mental patient to Highland Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina. The year is 1936, and the hospital, under the direction of celebrity psychiatrist Robert S. Carroll, is famous for its up-to-the-minute shock therapies and for Dr. Carroll's revolutionary theory of the benefits of nonintrospection.Evalina finds herself in the midst of a kaleidoscope of characters, including the estranged wife of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Her role as accompanist for all theatricals and programs at the hospital gives her privileged insight into the events that transpire over the twelve years leading up to a tragic 1948 fire-its mystery unsolved to this day-that killed nine women in a locked ward on the top floor, including Zelda.In Evalina Toussaint, Lee Smith has a created a narrator whose story is one of unstoppable and defiant introspection. At the risk of Dr. Carroll's ire and at all costs, Evalina listens, observes, delves, pursues, accompanies, remembers-and tells us everything. This is her wildly prescient story about a time and a place where creativity and passion, theory and medicine, fact and fiction are luminously intertwined.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Highbridge Company
• Release date: Oct 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781622312375

Lee Smith

Lee Smith is the best-selling author of over a dozen books, including Dimestore: A Writer's Life and Guests on Earth. She lives in Hillsborough, North Carolina.

Reviews for Guests on Earth

[rvhatha · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is an immensely readable novel; Lee Smith shows her prolific talent for capturing the atmosphere of places and times in incredibly evocative detail. And the conceit here is interesting: the narrator, Evalina Toussaint, begins by telling us that this is not *her* story, but that of Zelda Fitzgerald, who was a fellow psychiatric patient (or "guest," in the hospital's rhetoric) at Highland Hospital in Ashville, North Carolina, in the 1930s and '40s. On the very first page, Evalina acknowledges that in this sense, her book is not unlike Zelda's husband's masterpiece, _The Great Gatsby_, which is narrated by Nick but really about Gatsby. Or is it? As Evalina says, "Is any story not always the narrator's story, in the end?"Smith sets a high bar for herself in likening her novel to _Gatsby_, and like that book, _Guests on Earth_ ends up being very much more about Evalina's life than Zelda's. It's a compelling story, too: born to a courtesan in New Orleans, Evalina is orphaned early and sent to Highland Hospital by her benefactor when she enters a profound depression after her mother's death. At Highland, she is taken in by the director and his wife, a concert pianist who recognizes Evalina's musical talent and eventually helps her get admitted to Peabody. From there, Evalina's life takes her to Boston, Paris, Canada, back to New Orleans, and finally, back to Ashville and the hospital.Along the way, there are lots of other characters who move in and out of Evalina's life (and the hospital), including Zelda, but also many others. The vast array of peoplee--and their problems--is part of what makes the novel so readable, but it also makes it somewhat confusing (I found it hard to keep track of everyone), and sort of diluted, ultimately.In a way, this dilution fits the novel's themes, as Evalina discovers that her real gift is to be an accompanist, not a soloist. She functions best in the background, making others shine. But it makes for a strangely dissatisfying plot and ending, at least for me. I found the ending perplexing and kind of baffling. Maybe that's the point, too, though? As one of the Hospital's psychologists remarks, "How can we ever expect to understand a whole life?"

[curvymommy · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I don't quite know if I really liked this book or not. It started off well, the story of Evalina's childhood and how she ended up at the mental hospital in North Carolina that also treated Zelda Fitzgerald off and on. But by about half-way in, I realized that I was reading not because I was compelled to, but because I just wanted to finish the book and move on.Problems with this novel: SO many characters - I couldn't keep them all straight. Odd flashbacks that seemed to come out of nowhere. Side stories that didn't really seem to help drive the main story. Story threads that just are dropped (why was the break in Evalina's relationship with the Carrolls never really addressed?), leaving the reader wondering. But, most of all, the ending. Ugh. We know going in that there was a fire that killed 9 women at this hospital, including Zelda. So I keep waiting and waiting and waiting for the fire to happen, thinking that this story will then be Evalina's repsonse to the aftermath. But, it doesn't even happen until the last 20 pages! And the ending was completely unsatisfying, as if the author just stopped trying to write this story.Overall, an unsatisfying read that I'm relieved is done with.

[amanaceerdh · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

i wanted to read this book because i am a little obsessed with the life of zelda fitzgerald. The book was about way more than just her story. There were so many characters with such sad stories. The book examines the defintion of "crazy" and what it's like for those who suffer from various levels of depression!!! Some passages that sum up the meaning of the book to me:"Illness infatilizes everybody, it holds us back, keeps us from being adults.""When children have been damaged during their childhod, all those crucial stages of development are missed.""We must go back into the past, we must try to process the trauma of our earlier lives, if we are to move forward at all.""We are entering the middle phase of life where one often gets lost in a dark wood. We must go through the darkness to find the light."

[elka.gimpel · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Guests on Earth by Lee Smith tells the story of Evalina, the child of a New Orleans exotic dancer. In 1936, left fatherless and orphaned, her mother’s married ex-boyfriend assumes her care. While in his home, the first sign of mental illness presents itself, and she is sent to Highland Hospital in Ashville NC—a progressive insane asylum for the wealthy who call the residents guests. At Highland, Evalina forms a makeshift family of colorfully tragic characters, finds love, herself and maybe even hope for a future.

Music features heavily as we follow Evalina from her childhood in New Orleans into her early 20’s at the hospital. Real residents like Zelda Fitzgerald and Nina Simone make appearances; and having read other reviews of the book, I knew not to expect a Zelda heavy story. Since it spans so many years, some parts are breezed through with the use of postcards and newspaper clippings, which were a great way to prevent the story from becoming overwhelming.

Many of the characters were repeat guests who came to view Highland as their home, Zelda and Evalina especially. At one point, a nurse and patient muse that the reason so many of the women return is that they just don’t fit in and society doesn’t know what to do with them. The splashes of local culture and color kept me aware that no matter how homelike Highland came to feel for the characters, it was still a mental hospital for the privileged. Though not really featured in-depth, there were discussions and use of ‘modern’ psychiatric treatments like insulin comas, electroshock therapy, and equine serums, and the disapproval of horrifying lobotomies and forced sterilizations were touched on.

The novel ends with the famous fire that killed several of the residents trapped in a lock ward and conjecture as to who really started it. I’m not really sure what to make of Evalina’s ending, She returns to New Orleans where she’s built a life, but is still holding onto delusional hopes from the past. But, maybe that’s the point–Highland will always be her real home because she just doesn’t fit. In society, she’s only a guest.

[melopher_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have been focusing on reading about the 1920s-30s this year for some reason, so this novel fit right into that focus. However, even with that going for it, as well as the fact that I loved Smith's Fair and Tender Ladies, I found Guests on Earth to be a less than satisfactory read. I think that an interest in early mental health treatment (or in this specific hospital or location) would result in a better reading experience. Zelda Fitzgerald's involvement was peripheral, and the main character herself seemed rather hazy and distant. Much of the book was skim-worthy. Still, the writing wasn't bad, and it wasn't entirely uninteresting, just rather mediocre.

[justella_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Since moving to North Carolina I have read most of Lee Smith's books. I think that this is the best as far as wonderful, descriptive writing.The stories within the story are powerful. That being said I found this to be a very depressing book.Too much emphasis was placed on the fact that Zelda Fitzgerald was at the Highland Hospital in Ashland where most of the story takes place. While many reviewers were impressed by the blending of fact and fiction-I think I would prefer to read more about the true facts that occurred and I disagree that this book solved the mystery of the death of Zelda Fitzgerald, as one published reviewer stated.

[bohemima · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book had me in its grip by the end of the first paragraph. I couldn't stop turning the pages, led on by the compelling voice of the narrator, coupled with an intriguing story.Evalina, through no fault of her own has spent most of her life in a mental hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, tells the story of her life and of her encounters with Zelda Fitzgerald, who also spent much time in the same facility, eventually dying in a tragic fire.We learn a lot about a previous era in mental health practices, all easily incorporated in the story of Evalalina's oddyssey.Although the book is mostly concerned with women, it would be of interest to anyone.4.5 stars. Highly recommended.

[nkmunn · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Would I have given this more stars if I hadn't found myself w tears streaming down my face the other night while watching 'The Best of Youth' aka La meglio gioventù an Italian film directed by Marco Tullio Giordana ?

First curiosity then pathos take over the viewer's response to the characters, to a consideration of family, brotherhood, parenthood, childhood, sanity, caring, empathy and whether it is possible for justice to play a fair part in a topsy turvy world.

Guests on earth examines some of the same themes but in such a different milieux and from a very different narrative perspective .

There are sympathetic psychiatrists and maddening patients in both stories, a juxtaposition of health and infirmity , vigor and frailty, the sane and the insane, the institution or collective and the family or the loner .

[abergsman-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

3.5 stars, rounded up. This is the first novel I have read by North Carolinian author Lee Smith, but it likely won't be my last. Although the book may be marketed in a way that plays up the Zelda Fitzgerald connection, what truly interested me the most about was the depiction of life at Highland Hospital in the late 1930's and 40s. The tale largely revolves around the fictional stories of women patients at the hospital, from the perspective of narrator Evalina Touissant, and how mental illness (perceived or real) was treated during this time period.

[heatherms · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well written and enjoyable.

[john_warner-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Evalina Toussaint is orphaned when her mother, an exotic dancer in New Orleans, slips into depression and addiction. After Evalina also begins to exhibit signs of depression, she is admitted to Highland Hospital in Asheville, N.C., a psychiatric facility owned by Dr. Robert Carroll, whose innovative mental health treatment for the late 1930s include included fresh air, exercise, gardening, and music and art therapies. Mrs. Carroll, the doctor's wife, a famous concert pianist, agrees to further Evalina's piano lessons until she becomes the accompanist for all the Hospital's theatrical productions, which are generally choreographed by noted patient, Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of the famous author.

Under the hospital's care and attention, Evalina improves and is eventually discharged to attend and eventually graduate the prestigious Peabody Institute. She marries a fellow musical artist who eventually abuses her resulting in a second admission to Highland in her mid-20s. Hospital life continues similar to before until destroyed by a fire, which mysteriously began in the kitchen. I enjoyed the institutional life depicted at Highland Hospital in this historical novel setting in the mountainous area in and around Asheville in the first half of the 20th century.

The author's depicted well Dr. Carroll's treatment milieu, staff-patient relationships and the patients' symptoms well. Although some believed Zelda Fitzgerald to have schizophrenia, I believe the author adequately described her behavior more as bipolar disorder. One problem I had with the novel was keeping track of the various staff and patients, which I thought was too many. She would have been better, as some authors do, to provide some triggers to help the reader's memory. It didn't help that I discovered several errors where names of the characters were changed. Additionally, I thought one of the characters description of the causes of depression were anachronistic for the time. During the early 20th century, the genetic attributes and brain chemistry regarding roots. depression were not believed. Depression was still considered to have psychological flaw.

The novel direction appeared to be headed toward the 1948 fire. Ms. Smith built suspense by insinuating through character descriptions who may have set the fire in the novel's climax. However, when the event finally did occur, there was too little drama around this event given the impact it had on Highland Hospital.

[liisa22 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I really wanted to like this book. I thought that Zelda and Scott would be in it more than they were, as I am a huge fan. but alas, it was not so. I didn't hate it so I give it two stars. Maybe I'll give it another chance.

[jessica_reads · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Guests On Earth is the story of Evalina and her experiences throughout her life. This life is highly altered by her stay at Highland Hospital and the people she met there. One of those was Zelda Fizgerald. I believe that in some ways the summary of the book given is a bit deceiving. It makes a big deal of the presence of Zelda in this book.

**Spoilers**

In the first few chapters, Evalina goes through some heart wrenching changes. From living with her mother who was an exotic dancer, to moving into a house bought by her mother’s lover, to losing her new baby brother, to finding her mother after she committed suicide, to living with the nuns, to moving in with her mother’s ex-lover, and finally ending up at Highland. You watch this story of the guests at Highland Hospital through the eyes of this child as she then grows into an adult. Her love of reading, playing piano, art, and flowers all come together to weave this tale that will take hospital patients and turn them into relatable beings. I both liked and disliked the fast pacing (to move ahead the years) by following through Evalinas letters. Maybe if the author had included some letters from Mrs. Carroll as well it would’ve revealed more of the story. Later when she returns to Highland and the rift is there, you could’ve gotten more of the reasoning behind it. While Evalina’s abroad following her heart, she winds up pregnant. The result of that birth and the child’s subsequent death leaves her catatonic. So, she ends up back at Highland. At this point, though, the hospital has been sold to Duke and the changes in the hospital itself definitely made me sad. The events leading up to the fire and the idea of what really started it was a good explanation. The loss of the lives was sad, and the end of that part for some lives felt abdrupt.

Overall, this is a well written piece. The connections for me to the state I live in, and an area I am very familiar with was great. I could visualize most with just how the author wrote it, but knowing the area gave me real life memories to attach to it. The prose and pace are good, and the characters definitely grow and change throughout. My biggest mark against giving it five stars is simply the ending. It felt open, and I had wanted there to be a neater bow tied up than it gave. I wanted closure for a life that had never really had any, but it seemed the author did make Evalina be at peace.

[gypsysmom_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I guess I could say that I enjoyed this book but "enjoy" doesn't seem quite right for a book about such a dark subject. Perhaps appreciate would be a better choice of words because I did think that Lee Smith managed to make a book about an insane asylum interesting.Evalina Toussaint was the daughter of a dancer and lived in the French Quarter of New Orleans. When her mother died of an opium overdose Evalina was taken in by the family of her mother's lover. Needless to say this was not a good situation and Evalina was traumatized by the loss of her mother and everything that was familiar. She refused to eat and was sent away to the Highland Hospital, a mental institution in Asheville, North Carolina. Dr. Carroll, the director of the hospital, had ideas for treating the insane that were unusual at the time (1930s) which included lots of physical exercise and projects in art, horticulture, music etc. His wife took Evalina on as a piano student and Evalina had a real gift. One of the other patients at the time was Zelda Fitzgerald. Evalina crossed paths with her in the art studio and Zelda mistakes Evalina for her daughter, Patricia. With no other family the patients and staff of the hospital become Evalina's family and the hospital a home. However she went to Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore to continue her musical education. There she fell in love with an opera singer that she accompanies and follows him around the world. The relationship ended tragically and Evalina returned to Highland in a catatonic state. Back in familiar territory she quickly recovers and makes new friends. Zelda Fitzgerald also returned to Highland for treatment at this time. Unfortunately Zelda and 8 other women died in the Highland Hospital when a fire consumed the building they were locked into at night.The details about the hospital and the treatment of the patients are completely accurate. It was a shock to me to learn that people were deliberately put into diabetic comas to treat their mental illness. Thankfully with modern drugs available to psychiatrists people ICT is no longer necessary.Zelda and many of the other people in the book really were in the Highland Hospital but Evalina is fictional. Fiction is a very effective way to expose realities and Lee Smith has done an excellent job. My one criticism is that I found it difficult to keep track of all the lesser characters who appear. A list of dramatis personae would have helped.

[walklover · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

(Early Reviewer copy)I wish Zelda Fitzgerald had showed up in this book more than she did, but otherwise, this was an interesting read. I really enjoyed the way Lee Smith weaved in events from history with a fictional creation (the protagonist), and the setting was described in a way that really made it come alive.

[meeniereads · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I received this book as an Early Reviewer one. I requested it because I amalways interested in reading about Zelda or Scott Fitzgerald. This book is really a sort of coming of age book about a sad girl who is put ina mental institution because of just that. Being sad and lonely.Zelda is little more than a literary device who walks onto the stage ever oncein awhile.So a big ho hum from me.

[lkernagh · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I struggled with this one, as I sometimes do with books that take on a narrative, fictitious memoir feel to them. For books of this type of writing style to work for me I either have to feel empathy or connection with the narrator or else the topic of the story has to rivet me. I really don't know anything about Zelda Fitzgerald - one of the motivations that lead the author to write this story - so I was interested to learn about the mental illness issues she had faced and of her horrifying death along with other "clients" in the Highland Hospital fire of 1948. Medical treatment methods also fascinate me so reading about the insulin and shock therapy treatments that mental patients were subject to - more like experimental guinea pigs than as proven treatments, IMO - was an eye opener. I found the portrayal of New Orleans to be a good one, just enough details for me to visualize the scene and not get bogged down in descriptive details. Sadly, I found Evalina a very difficult narrator for me to connect with or feel any sympathy for. She is all cautious and sheltered angst on one hand while at the same time rather brazen, if not cavalier in her approach to her relationships with others or her own well being. I get the fact that her character's own mental health and her connection with Highland Hospital might lead one to expect these disconnects in her actions and character but I don't know, it just didn't gel very well with me. The same holds true for the ending, which was rather abrupt with the last chapter just leaving me shaking my head. This may be an interesting read for anyone who has an interest in Zelda Fitzgerald, Highland Hospital and innovative treatments in general, or aspects of North Carolina history.

[delphimo_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Lee Smith presents an interesting story based on Zelda Fitzgerald's sojourn and death in Asheville's Highland Mental Hospital. The story centers on mental illness and the treatment for this illness in the 1940's and 1950's. The novel follows a gifted young woman through her interaction with Zelda and through life in the beautiful and rugged Asheville, NC. The side trips into mountain life and the various characters of New Orleans and Asheville depict an enjoyable story. Lee Smith's writing makes the reader feel the cold winter and hear the sad mountain songs. I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

[loisck_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Lee Smith has created an unforgettable character in the musically talented, wondrously resilient and tremendously likeable Evalina Toussaint. Evalina narrates the story of her own life - New Orleans - Asheville - Paris - with her mother, her husband and the staff of the Highland Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina. Highland House is a mental institution where Evalina befriends a throng of characters, including Zelda Fitzgerald who comes and goes from the facility with frequency, as does Evalina. Though the staff is for the most part caring and kind, the well-intentioned doctors are really experimenting with the patients, trying all sorts of solutions to various mental illnesses such as depression, traumatic stress, schizophrenia and others. This part of the book is disturbing but certainly true to history, as is the fatal fire that ends Zelda's and other's lives. The title is from a quote by F. Scott Fitzgerald which is really about himself but sets up a wonderful way to explore what is "sanity": "But the insane are always mere guests on earth, eternal strangers carrying around broken decalogues that they cannot read."

[msf59 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Evalina Toussaint was only thirteen, when she was suddenly orphaned and admitted to a mental institution in Asheville North Carolina. This was 1936 and one of the hospital's most notable patients, was Zelda Fitzgerald. She befriends young Evalina and helps her navigate her way, through this unique time and place.The story, weaving fact and fiction, follows Evalina for the next twelve years, in and out of the institution and then concludes at the infamous fire that ravaged Highland Hospital, in 1948.I wanted to like this novel. It begins well but it never really clicked and the narrative felt disjointed and I never could connect with it, like I hoped. A misfire, no pun intended.I received a copy of this, through Early Reviewer's.

[dawnlovesbooks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

i wanted to read this book because i am a little obsessed with the life of zelda fitzgerald. The book was about way more than just her story. There were so many characters with such sad stories. The book examines the defintion of "crazy" and what it's like for those who suffer from various levels of depression!!! Some passages that sum up the meaning of the book to me:"Illness infatilizes everybody, it holds us back, keeps us from being adults.""When children have been damaged during their childhod, all those crucial stages of development are missed.""We must go back into the past, we must try to process the trauma of our earlier lives, if we are to move forward at all.""We are entering the middle phase of life where one often gets lost in a dark wood. We must go through the darkness to find the light."

[loosha_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel although I was a bit disappointed in how little Zelda was featured. I was led to believe that her time at the institution would be central, but in fact she was just one of the various characters floating in and out of Evalina's life at Highland House, a historic hospital for the treatment of mental illnesses. And that was fine, since after all this is Evalina's story. I enjoyed an excellent cast of characters and a look at a (mostly) compassionate treatment of the 'guests'. For me there was no down time, I enjoyed every single chapter. And I did check out Zelda Fitzgerald's artworks online...

[ldvoorberg · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

After just beginning this book, I saw Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald at the library and checked it out. Intrigued by the references to Zelda F in Guests on Earth, I thought more background on this pivotal but backdrop character might give me more insight or weight for this book. It did, indeed. Infact, I recommend reading the two books together, starting with this one, then going through Z: A Novel and back and forth a bit. While the parts of Zelda's life featured in Guests on Earth are only briefly referenced in Z: A Novel, having the history of Zelda's life in firm grasp makes Guests on Earth a richer novel, and vice versa, because where Z: A Novel goes vague, Guests on Earth can fill in the gaps a bit. Guests on Earth revolves around a young orphan who ends up in this mental institute for most of her life. While her mental illnesses are minor in comparison to others at the home, it does give some perspective on how treatments used to go, while at the same time giving an interesting snapshot into the life and times of the novel, and dabbling with the Fitzgeralds, a couple in the background. Music, art, and horticulture are also given a bit of a spotlight for their therapeutic roles. The novel is not overly profound or unusual, but it is pleasant, the characters interesting and realistic, and the writing is strong. This book would make a good book club selection.

[bookgirljen · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I don't quite know if I really liked this book or not. It started off well, the story of Evalina's childhood and how she ended up at the mental hospital in North Carolina that also treated Zelda Fitzgerald off and on. But by about half-way in, I realized that I was reading not because I was compelled to, but because I just wanted to finish the book and move on.Problems with this novel: SO many characters - I couldn't keep them all straight. Odd flashbacks that seemed to come out of nowhere. Side stories that didn't really seem to help drive the main story. Story threads that just are dropped (why was the break in Evalina's relationship with the Carrolls never really addressed?), leaving the reader wondering. But, most of all, the ending. Ugh. We know going in that there was a fire that killed 9 women at this hospital, including Zelda. So I keep waiting and waiting and waiting for the fire to happen, thinking that this story will then be Evalina's repsonse to the aftermath. But, it doesn't even happen until the last 20 pages! And the ending was completely unsatisfying, as if the author just stopped trying to write this story.Overall, an unsatisfying read that I'm relieved is done with.

[julie10reads · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It is 1936 when orphaned thirteen-year-old Evalina Toussaint is admitted to Highland Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, a mental institution known for its innovative treatments for nervous disorders and addictions. Taken under the wing of the hospitals most notable patient, Zelda Fitzgerald, Evalina witnesses the cascading events leading up to the tragic fire of 1948 that killed nine women in a locked ward, Zelda among them. Summary BPLThe insane are always mere guests on earth, eternal strangers carrying around broken decalogues that they cannot read.F. Scott Fitzgerald, in a letter to his daughter, Scottie c. December 15, 1940With this sweeping statement Fitzgerald sought to--what? Comfort his daughter over the institutionalization of her mother? Dismiss his wife? Author Lee Smith, whose own father and son were at different times inmates of Highland Hospital, asks the question: Aren't we all guests on earth? My question is: Don't we all carry within us some conditioning or burdensome moral imperatives we can no longer carry out?I was happy that Ms Smith depicts everyday life in a hospital for people with "nervous disorders" just like everyday life outside a hospital for people with "nervous disorders". Both realities feature friendships, love affairs, jealousies, rivalries, work and play, sickness and death. Narrator Evalina Toussaint, like THE GREAT GATSBY'S Nick Carraway, is a resident and observer of a highly stylized world. At first I was dissatisfied with the "parade" of characters: people who arrive, spend some time at Highland Hospital and then leave; people I felt I never given the opportunity to know. It was like reading a string of short stories connected by one cast. I was looking for an underlying pattern or motif to make the novel feel more--well more novelish. Now I think Ms Smith intends the characters to appear, and the title seems to support this, as "guests", as "eternal strangers" who have been sent by families/guardians to the hospital where they will be insulin shocked or ice-pick lobotomized into normalcy. Why these "guests" need therapy or what happens to them afterwards, Evalina doesn't always know. Nor does the reader. That's life.Although a fictionalized chronicle of a real institution, GUESTS ON EARTH conveys real attitudes towards mental illness and actual procedures considered ground-breaking during the 30s and 40s. These are sure to make you shudder, at the very least. The novel could have been much longer. Ms Smith crams lots of Highland Hospital lore into 327 pages; sometimes I felt her research deserved more space. Sometimes I felt the reader deserved more time in the stories.I received an ARC of GUESTS ON EARTH from Librarything.7.5 out of 10 Highly recommended to all.

[carolee888 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was fascinated by the mentions of Zelda Fitzgerald in two other books that I have read. I thought that Guests on Earth by Lee Smith would be a good book to read before I start one that focuses entirely on Zelda’s life. At the beginning, the main character tells us that this isn’t really her own story but is more about Zelda. But I was surprised to read about a thirteen year old, Evalina Toussaint who had a really difficult early childhood and ended up in 1936 at a mental hospital in Ashville, North Carolina.Evalina tells us about her tragic life previous to the hospital. Her growing up with a prostitute mother who later gets elevated to a “kept woman” in New Orleans is a life that is so sad. She is not supposed to go outside. She had no playmates then and her mother was an alcoholic. When her mother became an opium addict, things got even worse. When Evalina ends up in the mental hospital, life starts to be good. She had enough food to nourish her, clothes to wear, education, outside activities. She became friends with Robert, skinny and amazingly intelligent. And that is where she met Zelda Fitzgerald.Zelda became her friend too, Evalina received mothering from her but also learned to stay clear of her.Besides the peek into Zelda’s life in and out of this institution, this historical fiction book lets you into the world of the different treatments of the time. Those were the radical idea of scheduling the patient’s life with so many activities that they cannot have the harmful thoughts, with loads of hikes, good food, and art and music classes. There also a different approach with insulin and electric shock treatments. That is the part of the book that is very difficult to read.I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and learning some about Zelda and life in an institution such as Highland Hospital. There is a note from the author in the back of this book about how the real life characters ended up and her inspiration for this book. Book did seem to get a little lost at the end but on the whole I highly recommend it.I received this book from the publishers with a note that I had won it from Library Thing. But it is not shown as a win in the Library Thing records. I think it was just a luck accident that I received this book. Despite that, receiving this free book did not influence any of my thoughts or feelings in this review.

[lizzied_11 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Oh dear. I have a passing interest in Zelda Fitzgerald and thought a novel based on her time at Highland Hospital in Asheville might be interesting. Thirty or so years ago I had read something that Lee Smith wrote and remembered it positively. So I asked ER for a copy of Guests on Earth three times and was excited to receive it. I was mistaken on all counts.The novel is not about Zelda F. at all. She makes cameo appearances from time to time, but she remains as she began, enigmatic and detached. The novel is the narrator's story. Evalina Toussaint is the daughter of a New Orleans dancer, who is admitted to the mental hospital following her mother's death and the attempt by her mother's lover to move her into his house with his family. She finds a home at Highland and returns after her education at Peabody Conservatory and a disastrous love affair. I couldn't drum up any feeling for Evalina, so the reading was pretty disastrous for me too.My biggest disappointment was in Ms. Smith's writing. Rather than reel off a number of adjectives, I'll simply quote a few sentences. A reader who doesn't find them wince-worthy can probably read this summer entertainment with enjoyment......"Illness infantilizes everybody, even if it doesn't paralyze or wreck us forever. It holds us back, it keeps us from being adults. I believe this is especially true when children are ill, or have been damaged during their childhood or adolescence - all those crucial stages of development are missed. But I am thinking aloud now, thinking of us all upon our snowy mountain, and wandering from the moment of my story."

[indygo88 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'd read Lee Smith's The Last Girls a few years back and was overall fairly disappointed in that one, but the premise of this novel sounded intriguing, so I decided the author deserved a second chance. I do feel that the description of this novel was somewhat misleading. It seems to be hyped up a bit by the inclusion of Zelda Fitzgerald, and indeed her character is included in this historical fictional account of Highland Hospital and the eventual fire that took Fitzgerald's life, but Zelda herself was a relatively minor character in this story.The story is more about the main character of Evalina Toussaint, who grew up in New Orleans, lost her mother at the age of thirteen, and was then admitted to Highland Hospital, a mental institution in Ashville, North Carolina. The reader soon realizes that Evalina really isn't all that mentally unstable -- rather, she's orphaned without a home, and thus Highland becomes her home. Lee Smith appears to have done a thorough job with her research regarding Highland Hospital. Her ability to interweave historical data with the fictional story of Evalina works, although not totally without flaws. I enjoyed this story a lot, but there were times when the flow was a little rough. The appearance and reappearance of certain characters was at times confusing, and would've been more clear had Smith elaborated a little more here and there to reacquaint the reader. As noted by quite a few other reviewers, the ending (i.e. the climax, the fire) was very abrupt, leaving the reader wanting more and feeling rather dissatisfied. Overall, I thought this novel showed a more mature writing style than what I'd previously read in The Last Girls, with an interesting and unique choice of plot, but it lacked a bit in refinement. However, still an enjoyable read.

[labibliophille · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In 1948, a fire at Highland Hospital, a mental institution in Asheville, NC, killed 9 patients who were trapped in a locked ward. Among the patients was Zelda Fitzgerald, who for for 12 years had been in and out of Highland for treatment. Lee Smith takes these facts (and quite a few others) and weaves them into an engrossing and engaging novel. Officially, the fire started in the kitchen of the hospital's central building. This novel speculates on the lives of the staff and patients of the hospital in the time before the fire, suggesting a possible sequence of events leading up to the fire.The narrator is Evalina Tousssaint, a young woman from New Orleans who has, essentially, grown up at Highland following her mother's death. Although she leaves Highland to attend a music conservatory, she eventually ends up back there as a patient. Her perceptive observations about the the inhabitants of the hospital bring a sense of reality to this novel.I found the descriptions of the hospital grounds and the mountains around Asheville particularly well done. It's very easy to imagine all the action taking place. Highland was a progressive institution for its time; however the descriptions of the treatment administered to the patients are unsettling, and I would caution anyone who is a bit sensitive to avoid those sections of the book. Otherwise, I whole-heartedly recommend this fine novel.

[quiltinfun06 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I felt at the beginning this book held great promise for an interesting historical read about a topic I hadn't read about before. Sadly, I am greatly disappointed. The book seems to drag and drag and honestly doesn't have enough about Zelda Fitzgerald which lead me to want to read.I appreciated that I received an advance copy edition to read but I am sorry to say I don't find myself making a recommendation.