THE ASHTRAYS ARE FULL
AND THE GLASSES ARE EMPTY
Raised amid great wealth and privilege, Sara Wiborg Murphy rejects her family’s traditional values to build a golden life of creativity and beauty amid the Lost Generation in France.
This lush historical novel follows Sara from New York to Paris and Antibes and back again. Wherever she lands, her flair for celebrating life and the people around her makes her a doyenne of the bohemian elite.
With her husband, Gerald, she befriends such literary and artistic icons as Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Pablo Picasso, and Dorothy Parker. But when tragedy strikes her family not once but twice, she must learn to accept that perhaps a larger hand holds the keys to her fate.
Over time, Sara’s strength and resilience allow her to find a new equilibrium—long after the parties have ended. The Ashtrays Are Full and the Glasses Are Empty follows Sara through her very modern life to reveal how heartbreak can be healed by faith, unconditional love, and a creative mind.
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PRAISE FOR THE ASHTRAYS ARE FULL AND THE GLASSES ARE EMPTY
“Sara Wiborg Murphy may have once been a footnote, but thanks to Mickelwait’s meticulous research, creative daring and uncanny personal connections, she emerges fully realized. The Ashtrays Are Full and the Glasses Are Empty isn’t just a historical novel—it’s a reclamation, a resurrection and, perhaps most importantly, a reminder that even as the party ends, the story continues.”
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Pacific Sun
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“With sensual finesse, the historical novel The Ashtrays Are Full and the Glasses Are Empty captures the decadence of a changing nation via a couple’s unique marriage.”
Foreword Clarion Reviews
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“Every scene in this well-researched novel is thick with authenticity, and Mickelwait's exquisite attention to detail makes this Jazz Age novel come alive.”
Iris Jamahl Dunkle, author of
Riding Like the Wind: The Life of Sanora Babb
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“The Ashtrays Are Full and the Glasses Are Empty transports readers back to the Paris and Côte d’Azur of the 1920s, slipping us into the luxury- and adventure-filled life of Sara and Gerald Murphy. Both quickly become dear to us, but it is Sara—channeling her creativity into making life beautiful for others—who captures our hearts... This novel will inspire, entertain, and move you in equal measure.”
Anne Matlack Evans, author of
The Light Through the Branches
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“Mickelwait's prose feels both personal and historically rich, moving between sensual details and cultural snapshots . . . At its core, this debut is about choosing a life deliberately and with devotion. . . Mickelwait champions this with a soft lyricism that never shies from sorrow.”
BookLife Reviews
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“Kirsten Mickelwait writes down to the very bone of the Lost Generation's artists, writers, and families, revealing a past that was not archaic but a glittering guide to today.
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“Weaving stunningly intricate details with a grandiose sweep, Mickelwait provides a jewel box of a book illustrating that none of us invented the fight for a singular creative life.
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“The remarkable guide, Sara Murphy, hooked me from the first page, and I've mourned her since turning the last. I loved this book.”
Randy Susan Meyers, international bestselling author of
The Many Mothers of Ivy Puddingstone
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“Fans of Paula McLain and Marie Benedict will enjoy this insightful novel.”
Kirkus Reviews
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