The Gallery

Narrator Jorjeana Marie quickly transports listeners to New York City in 1928. Martha O'Doyle, upon expulsion from her parochial school, becomes a maid in the Sewell mansion, where her mother, an Irish immigrant, is housekeeper. Martha soon discovers that something is amiss. Her inquisitive nature, voiced by Marie in a rush and full-stop rhythm, adds to the tension as she secretly investigates the mystery behind the mad wife who is locked away upstairs. Marie delivers Mrs. O'Doyle's voice in equal parts exasperation and reverence as she juggles between her wayward daughter and her stern employer. The trapped Mrs. Sewell is portrayed in hoarse, desperate gasps, which contrast well with the cool tones of her husband and the frantic thoughts of Martha, who fears that the worst is on the horizon. M.F.T. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

May 23, 2016
This cleverly constructed historical mystery stars 12-year-old Martha O'Doyle, expelled from her Brooklyn parochial school in 1928 for what Sister Ignatius deems cheekiness but others might call curiosity. Martha's Irish immigrant mother gets her a job as a maid at the Fifth Avenue mansion where she keeps house for J. Archer Sewell, a newspaper mogul with a problem straight out of Jane Eyre: a mad wife locked away upstairs (with an art collection that would make curators drool). Fitzgerald (Under the Egg) stuffs the story with period detail: the Herbert Hoover/Al Smith presidential race, Sacco and Vanzetti's execution, and women's suffrage all figure in the plot as Martha, sensing something amiss, tries to decode the messages Mrs. Sewell may be sending through the paintings that hang in the eponymous gallery. At first, the frame device (Martha tells the story in flashback as she celebrates her 100th birthday) seems superfluous, but the neat ending wraps up the mystery in a satisfying way. Offer this to fans of Blue Balliett who like sophisticated adventures. Ages 8â12. Agent: Sara Crowe, Harvey Klinger.