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Barbara
Like Nolan’s Oppenheimer by way of Lucia Berlin, a radiant novel tracking the lifecycle of a silver screen starlet rising against the backdrop of the mid-20th century.
Barbara is born shortly before World War II and lives through the conflict as a desert child trailing her father, an engineer in the famed and infamous Manhattan Project. When Barbara is thirteen, her beautiful, sensitive mother commits suicide. From that point on, these twin poles—the historic and the personal, the political and the violently intimate—vie for control of Barbara’s consciousness.
As Barbara grows up and becomes a successful actress, traveling the world between film sets and love affairs, she takes on and sheds various roles—vampire’s victim and frontier prostitute; a saint and a bored housewife. She marries and divorces and marries again, the second time to a visionary director who proves to be the love of her life. Though they are not faithful to each other, their relationship provides the most enduring anchor in a remarkable life turbulent with fiction.
Joni Murphy’s Barbara is a deep character study of a woman losing hold and recapturing her identity through the art and technology of moviemaking. Through an intimate first-person perspective, the novel follows Barbara as she navigates decades and genres—from austere 1950s family dramas to countercultural 1970s gothics—glimpsing herself in the reflective and deadly shards of the long 20th Century.
Barbara is born shortly before World War II and lives through the conflict as a desert child trailing her father, an engineer in the famed and infamous Manhattan Project. When Barbara is thirteen, her beautiful, sensitive mother commits suicide. From that point on, these twin poles—the historic and the personal, the political and the violently intimate—vie for control of Barbara’s consciousness.
As Barbara grows up and becomes a successful actress, traveling the world between film sets and love affairs, she takes on and sheds various roles—vampire’s victim and frontier prostitute; a saint and a bored housewife. She marries and divorces and marries again, the second time to a visionary director who proves to be the love of her life. Though they are not faithful to each other, their relationship provides the most enduring anchor in a remarkable life turbulent with fiction.
Joni Murphy’s Barbara is a deep character study of a woman losing hold and recapturing her identity through the art and technology of moviemaking. Through an intimate first-person perspective, the novel follows Barbara as she navigates decades and genres—from austere 1950s family dramas to countercultural 1970s gothics—glimpsing herself in the reflective and deadly shards of the long 20th Century.
244 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 25, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 4, 2025
barbara was an intricate novel about many things but it was not about what the synopsis led me to believe, not really. while all in all it's a well-written, enjoyable novel, i did read with the expectation that it would explore more of what it promised to, or in more depth. her marriage, for instance, was presented as a complex but essential aspect of her life but didn't end up being that way. or, the interaction between the character herself and the political context she exists within—especially having grown up during the cold war with a father that worked on the atomic bomb—is discussed much later in the book. for most of it the political occurrences are reported in a way that is separate from the character entirely, which i understand may be intentional, but i was misled by the synopsis in this too. however, her mother's suicide was the event that propelled barbara into her subsequent life, and the complexities of the generational experiences she was shaped by were tied inextricably to the political realities of the setting. everything about this book was set up really well, i only wish the author had engaged with it all more in-depth.
thank you to astra house and netgalley for the arc!
thank you to astra house and netgalley for the arc!
October 20, 2024
"What is poisoned may stay poisoned for generations to come."
I approached this novel expecting a deep dive into the trials of fame and Hollywood (think Marilyn Monroe). However, what I encountered was a profound character study that delved into generational trauma. The narrative intricately explores how the protagonist’s parents and their past profoundly influenced her own life. In parallel, we see a similar story at the societal level.
The time period in which the story unfolds plays a crucial role, amplifying the themes of trauma and cause and effect. It’s a fascinating exploration of how the weight of the past can shape our identities.
This novel left a lasting impression on me and I'll be reflecting on the themes for a while. Thank you NetGalley and Astra Publishing House for the ARC!
I approached this novel expecting a deep dive into the trials of fame and Hollywood (think Marilyn Monroe). However, what I encountered was a profound character study that delved into generational trauma. The narrative intricately explores how the protagonist’s parents and their past profoundly influenced her own life. In parallel, we see a similar story at the societal level.
The time period in which the story unfolds plays a crucial role, amplifying the themes of trauma and cause and effect. It’s a fascinating exploration of how the weight of the past can shape our identities.
This novel left a lasting impression on me and I'll be reflecting on the themes for a while. Thank you NetGalley and Astra Publishing House for the ARC!
October 19, 2024
DNF @ 68% I’m so sorry but couldn’t get into this. The simplistic writing chops and mundane voice didn’t captivate at all. I liked the photographs and overall plotline. faux autobiographical account. mid 20th century high jinks. just fell flat to me..thank you Astra House and NetGalley. Will give this author another try come time!
March 24, 2025
Unexpectedly loved, this is the A24 version of Evelyn Hugo
April 1, 2025
I am usually not a fan of “fictional biographical” novels, but this book does it wonderfully.
Murphy places less weight on the specific details of Barbara’s life story, and more on the universally-relatable impacts the events have had on her, and how this affects the way she experiences the world. Murphy’s insightful writing combines lively morsels of mid-century glamour with the searing realities of womanhood.
Murphy places less weight on the specific details of Barbara’s life story, and more on the universally-relatable impacts the events have had on her, and how this affects the way she experiences the world. Murphy’s insightful writing combines lively morsels of mid-century glamour with the searing realities of womanhood.
November 30, 2024
4.5 ⭐️
I think that I will have to revisit this review as I continue to sit with the book, but I really loved Joni Murphy's Barbara. I am biased; it touches upon many things that deeply interest me, personally: mid-20th century America, the problematization of celebrity, physics and the obsession of the scientist with forward progress, parental relationships complicated by tragedy and circumstance, beauty and femininity, and the experiences and motivations of performers. I think it is worthwhile for anyone interested in any one of those subjects to read this book. I thought the form was also interesting and appreciated the inclusion of photographs to ground the faux memoir in the material world.
I can see why readers who prefer a plot-driven book might feel like Barbara goes nowhere and has no point. I would not recommend the book to people who need a meaty plot and/or to those who don't enjoy literary fiction. I, clearly, don't feel this way. I enjoyed this as an expanded character study of a complex woman who has experienced a life that is at once fabulously charmed and extremely difficult. I will definitely be recommending this book to many people in my life with whom I think Barbara will resonate.
Thank you to Astra House and Netgalley for the ARC I received in exchange for my honest review.
I think that I will have to revisit this review as I continue to sit with the book, but I really loved Joni Murphy's Barbara. I am biased; it touches upon many things that deeply interest me, personally: mid-20th century America, the problematization of celebrity, physics and the obsession of the scientist with forward progress, parental relationships complicated by tragedy and circumstance, beauty and femininity, and the experiences and motivations of performers. I think it is worthwhile for anyone interested in any one of those subjects to read this book. I thought the form was also interesting and appreciated the inclusion of photographs to ground the faux memoir in the material world.
I can see why readers who prefer a plot-driven book might feel like Barbara goes nowhere and has no point. I would not recommend the book to people who need a meaty plot and/or to those who don't enjoy literary fiction. I, clearly, don't feel this way. I enjoyed this as an expanded character study of a complex woman who has experienced a life that is at once fabulously charmed and extremely difficult. I will definitely be recommending this book to many people in my life with whom I think Barbara will resonate.
Thank you to Astra House and Netgalley for the ARC I received in exchange for my honest review.
February 12, 2025
Oh, Barbara. Sometimes a book really will find you at the perfect time.
I've been thinking about David Lynch, so I've been thinking about the atomic bomb. When I was given the chance to read this book and I remember thinking, how funny, I remember walking out of the theatres in July 2023 thinking someone should write something that connects the events of Oppenheimer to the creation of the Barbie doll. Anyway, this book is not about that. But it is a story about creating, and its consequences. One woman's generational trauma set against a nuclear trauma that affected a whole generation.
Joni Murphy's Barbara is a delicious freudian dream of a character study.
Very much not a plot-driven sort of story, with paragraphs circling back and forth, run on prose becoming poetry – a brilliant, distant father's work on the Manhattan Project as a mother's fragile mind unravels towards the suicide that will be the bomb trickling radiation down throughout her child's life, all the nuclear explosions in all the nuclear compositions that came before them, and the culmination of this in Barbara, saint Barbara, the patron saint of mathematicians and those who work with explosions, a story of the many that starts with the one, a woman played by several women, who plays herself but also her mother and her grandmother. I could write an essay on this, but I'll spare us both.
I'd recommend this to anyone interested in “nothing” books, literary and historical fiction, troubled women in the mid 20th century, and especially to anyone who participated in the web weaving movement on tumblr from 2020 to 2022.
Thank you immensely to Astra House and Netgalley for this arc, and Joni Murphy for Getting It.
I've been thinking about David Lynch, so I've been thinking about the atomic bomb. When I was given the chance to read this book and I remember thinking, how funny, I remember walking out of the theatres in July 2023 thinking someone should write something that connects the events of Oppenheimer to the creation of the Barbie doll. Anyway, this book is not about that. But it is a story about creating, and its consequences. One woman's generational trauma set against a nuclear trauma that affected a whole generation.
"There are ways to survive an atomic blast my father said, but I wonder sometimes if he said that to give me something to hope for, in the event of a catastrophe.
My mother was so sad. She was sad enough to leave me and the world and now I can do nothing but remember her.”
Joni Murphy's Barbara is a delicious freudian dream of a character study.
Very much not a plot-driven sort of story, with paragraphs circling back and forth, run on prose becoming poetry – a brilliant, distant father's work on the Manhattan Project as a mother's fragile mind unravels towards the suicide that will be the bomb trickling radiation down throughout her child's life, all the nuclear explosions in all the nuclear compositions that came before them, and the culmination of this in Barbara, saint Barbara, the patron saint of mathematicians and those who work with explosions, a story of the many that starts with the one, a woman played by several women, who plays herself but also her mother and her grandmother. I could write an essay on this, but I'll spare us both.
I'd recommend this to anyone interested in “nothing” books, literary and historical fiction, troubled women in the mid 20th century, and especially to anyone who participated in the web weaving movement on tumblr from 2020 to 2022.
Thank you immensely to Astra House and Netgalley for this arc, and Joni Murphy for Getting It.
January 19, 2025
Barbara is an arresting exploration of a woman’s psyche, offering a quiet yet unsettling study of 20th-century malaise.
Set in 1975, the novel follows Barbara, an actress in her early 40s, who spends her downtime confined to a hotel room, engaged in a fleeting affair with her leading man while reflecting on her life and career. At first, she seems poised yet resigned: “I got to be beautiful, and that determined the direction my whole life would take.” But as her narrative unfolds, the weight of her family’s past and the turbulence of the century emerge as central to her identity. While Barbara finds power in her beauty, she’s painfully aware of the effort it takes to fit into “the endless small rectangles controlled by grown men.”
A devoted cinephile, Barbara is captivated by the alchemy of filmmaking, embracing its methods, magic, and contradictions. Her passion for the craft—workshopping characters and creating authenticity in an artificial medium—mirrors her broader quest to make sense of life’s complexities. She applies this deconstructive lens to everything: her parents’ lives, war, gender, performance, and relationships. Her observations are startling in their clarity, such as when she reflects on her father: “He had appeared as a baby in the olden days, and by the time he died, the sky was speckled with satellites.”
Barbara’s voice, marked by its understated tone, is both disarming and absorbing. Is her simplicity a way to contain the chaos of her experiences, or is it a deliberate distancing from their enormity? The narrative, though structured, flows with the organic rhythm of a therapy session—a string of reflections that feel intimate and raw. Scattered photographs deepen its resonance, grounding her memories in a tangible space.
This is a quietly affecting novel, delivering its shocks and uncertainties with measured restraint. Its unassuming tone allows its truths to settle gradually, creating an emotional impact that feels both unexpected and profound.
Set in 1975, the novel follows Barbara, an actress in her early 40s, who spends her downtime confined to a hotel room, engaged in a fleeting affair with her leading man while reflecting on her life and career. At first, she seems poised yet resigned: “I got to be beautiful, and that determined the direction my whole life would take.” But as her narrative unfolds, the weight of her family’s past and the turbulence of the century emerge as central to her identity. While Barbara finds power in her beauty, she’s painfully aware of the effort it takes to fit into “the endless small rectangles controlled by grown men.”
A devoted cinephile, Barbara is captivated by the alchemy of filmmaking, embracing its methods, magic, and contradictions. Her passion for the craft—workshopping characters and creating authenticity in an artificial medium—mirrors her broader quest to make sense of life’s complexities. She applies this deconstructive lens to everything: her parents’ lives, war, gender, performance, and relationships. Her observations are startling in their clarity, such as when she reflects on her father: “He had appeared as a baby in the olden days, and by the time he died, the sky was speckled with satellites.”
Barbara’s voice, marked by its understated tone, is both disarming and absorbing. Is her simplicity a way to contain the chaos of her experiences, or is it a deliberate distancing from their enormity? The narrative, though structured, flows with the organic rhythm of a therapy session—a string of reflections that feel intimate and raw. Scattered photographs deepen its resonance, grounding her memories in a tangible space.
This is a quietly affecting novel, delivering its shocks and uncertainties with measured restraint. Its unassuming tone allows its truths to settle gradually, creating an emotional impact that feels both unexpected and profound.
March 17, 2025
2.5 ☆
This book description has everything you could want in a book. I quote: "a radiant novel tracking the lifecycle of a silver screen starlet rising against the backdrop of the mid-20th century." This sounds so interesting, right? Some of it was in fact interesting, but honestly, this novel felt so disjointed. We jumped around from past, to present, to slightly more past. Honestly, it felt like listening to an old Aunt who can only recall memories in fragments, ramble on about her past, but none of the stuff you actually want to hear about. I feel like we hear more about Barbara in the book's description than we do from the book's actual content.
That being said, there were some interesting parts of the book, some quotes that were particularly poignant, however that didn't make the rest of the book more enjoyable. It felt like every time we were settling into a particular part of the story, the next sentence was ripping us completely out of that and dropping us in the middle of a completely different part and it was so disorienting and disjointed.
This next part may be due to receiving an e-ARC of this book, and it not being the final product, but there was also a lot of either editing mistakes, or really strange editing choices. This book didn't appear to have chapters, and was only punctuated by sporadic photos (that I was originally concerned could be AI, but after seeing the image credits at the end, I'm glad to say I was wrong about that) that also sometimes happened in the middle of the current story arc?
I know there are books out there that don't use quotation marks when characters are speaking, but I am not a fan. Not only were there no quotation marks, but there were also no paragraph breaks to even indicate someone was talking. I often only realised a conversation was going on after the typical "he said/told me/etc".
Disclaimer: Thank you to Netgalley, Astra Publishing House, and Joni Murphy for this e-ARC. I was provided this ARC for review only, I was not paid for this review. All opinions are my own.
This book description has everything you could want in a book. I quote: "a radiant novel tracking the lifecycle of a silver screen starlet rising against the backdrop of the mid-20th century." This sounds so interesting, right? Some of it was in fact interesting, but honestly, this novel felt so disjointed. We jumped around from past, to present, to slightly more past. Honestly, it felt like listening to an old Aunt who can only recall memories in fragments, ramble on about her past, but none of the stuff you actually want to hear about. I feel like we hear more about Barbara in the book's description than we do from the book's actual content.
That being said, there were some interesting parts of the book, some quotes that were particularly poignant, however that didn't make the rest of the book more enjoyable. It felt like every time we were settling into a particular part of the story, the next sentence was ripping us completely out of that and dropping us in the middle of a completely different part and it was so disorienting and disjointed.
This next part may be due to receiving an e-ARC of this book, and it not being the final product, but there was also a lot of either editing mistakes, or really strange editing choices. This book didn't appear to have chapters, and was only punctuated by sporadic photos (that I was originally concerned could be AI, but after seeing the image credits at the end, I'm glad to say I was wrong about that) that also sometimes happened in the middle of the current story arc?
I know there are books out there that don't use quotation marks when characters are speaking, but I am not a fan. Not only were there no quotation marks, but there were also no paragraph breaks to even indicate someone was talking. I often only realised a conversation was going on after the typical "he said/told me/etc".
Disclaimer: Thank you to Netgalley, Astra Publishing House, and Joni Murphy for this e-ARC. I was provided this ARC for review only, I was not paid for this review. All opinions are my own.
February 22, 2025
Thanks Astra House for the ARC!
Character studies like this are hit or miss for me. Sometimes I love books like this and other times I'm bored to tears. I thought Barbara was well-written and immersive enough to be worth reading. However, I was left wanting more out of this book.
I think my main problem with this book was what felt like a lack of direction. Barbara narrates our story and I believe it's meant to be her talking to her lover, with whom she's filming a movie. At first, I was really into it. Barbara's life was following a series of events and she was changing and growing as a character. Eventually, the book hit a wall. It became mostly existential musings in the last 50 or so pages. Barbara also switches her focus to be on her father, which felt abrupt because he and his work on the atom bomb were mostly mentioned in passing for the first 3/4ths of the book. I felt like the book began wrapping up when there were still a lot of pages left, so I had to push through to finish.
Critiques aside, I think Joni Murphy is a great writer. She harnesses the power of sentence structure well. Murphy leans on short, succinct sentences or long, trailing thoughts to expand upon Barbara's POV. I also think Barbara is a compelling character. This was a pretty typical, 20th century woman character-driven book, but Murphy still manages to make it stick out within that niche genre.
Overall, a solid but messy character study by a talented writer.
Character studies like this are hit or miss for me. Sometimes I love books like this and other times I'm bored to tears. I thought Barbara was well-written and immersive enough to be worth reading. However, I was left wanting more out of this book.
I think my main problem with this book was what felt like a lack of direction. Barbara narrates our story and I believe it's meant to be her talking to her lover, with whom she's filming a movie. At first, I was really into it. Barbara's life was following a series of events and she was changing and growing as a character. Eventually, the book hit a wall. It became mostly existential musings in the last 50 or so pages. Barbara also switches her focus to be on her father, which felt abrupt because he and his work on the atom bomb were mostly mentioned in passing for the first 3/4ths of the book. I felt like the book began wrapping up when there were still a lot of pages left, so I had to push through to finish.
Critiques aside, I think Joni Murphy is a great writer. She harnesses the power of sentence structure well. Murphy leans on short, succinct sentences or long, trailing thoughts to expand upon Barbara's POV. I also think Barbara is a compelling character. This was a pretty typical, 20th century woman character-driven book, but Murphy still manages to make it stick out within that niche genre.
Overall, a solid but messy character study by a talented writer.
April 9, 2025
2.5/3 stars
This is a bit of a difficult book to review. On the one hand I can fully appreciate the gravity of its subject matter and there were times when I couldn’t put the book down, but on the other hand it took me SO long to get through. Some parts felt very slow paced and randomly-placed, causing the plot to feel disjointed. The ending was also a bit underwhelming and I expected a bit more from such an intricate story.
With all that being said, I am glad I carried on and saw the book to its end, and some parts definitely resonated.
Thank you to Astra House and NetGalley for the ARC :)
This is a bit of a difficult book to review. On the one hand I can fully appreciate the gravity of its subject matter and there were times when I couldn’t put the book down, but on the other hand it took me SO long to get through. Some parts felt very slow paced and randomly-placed, causing the plot to feel disjointed. The ending was also a bit underwhelming and I expected a bit more from such an intricate story.
With all that being said, I am glad I carried on and saw the book to its end, and some parts definitely resonated.
Thank you to Astra House and NetGalley for the ARC :)
February 24, 2025
The narrator is Barbara, looking back on her life, particularly losing her mother to suicide as a child and her distant relationship with her scientist father. Some of Barbara’s introspection was interesting to read. I found her depiction of pre-roe abortion access particularly affecting since we now live in a post-roe era.
This book was fine. I didn’t really like it, but it wasn’t an unpleasant read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Astra House for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This book was fine. I didn’t really like it, but it wasn’t an unpleasant read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Astra House for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
November 11, 2024
This book was a great look into old Hollywood and fame. As you follow the main character you watch her grow and also dive into her generational trauma. You learn how everyone around her helped shape or influence her own life and the choices she made and how your past choices can shape your life.
Thank you NetGalley and Astra Publishing House for the ARC!
Thank you NetGalley and Astra Publishing House for the ARC!
March 23, 2025
I read an advance copy which was so full of errors it was distracting. The story is pretty thin. The character development was pretty light. Some of the phrasing was lovely, but in general, I wanted more. It is a short fast read.
The copy I had also included full pages of random photos that kind of set the mood. (Only kinda) I’d like to see more moody photos in books!
The copy I had also included full pages of random photos that kind of set the mood. (Only kinda) I’d like to see more moody photos in books!
October 14, 2024
ARC as a bookseller
*reese witherspoon voice*: women’s stories matter. they just matter.
appears that it still needs an extensive copy edit, but a great portrait of 20th century america and a great character study
*reese witherspoon voice*: women’s stories matter. they just matter.
appears that it still needs an extensive copy edit, but a great portrait of 20th century america and a great character study
February 18, 2025
DNF at 20%
Unfortunately, I found the tone very monotonous, not much variety. I just found it too boring from the start, personally. But I appreciate topics that were brought up and the synopsis as a whole.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book.
Unfortunately, I found the tone very monotonous, not much variety. I just found it too boring from the start, personally. But I appreciate topics that were brought up and the synopsis as a whole.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book.
November 26, 2024
an interestingly done meditation on the characters that feels a bit too simplistic to fully fill its big shoes. 3 stasrs. tysm for the arc.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews