Jane Trahey (1923–2000)

Aka "Life With Mother Superior" - this is the book that the Hayley Mills "The Trouble With Angels" is based on. Was surprised how much of the book made it into the movie. Shockingly dated at a few points, but a good read.

Tip: If you're looking to read this one and your library doesn't have a copy, you can borrow it by the hour at Archive.org if you join (free). Here's the link:
https://archive.org/details/lifewithmothersu00trah… (mais)

Life with Mother Superior is a fun series of short tales about life in a convent school told through the eyes of a troublemaking teenager - who is often partner-in-crime with another girl. Most are comedic, though some here and there are more sentimental or reflective.

The book purports to be an autobiography of Jane Trahey's high school days in the late 1930s or early 1940s, but it seems to be that it's more "inspired by" than anything else. I suspect that she combined many friends into single characters, and likewise moved events around to make for better storytelling. For example, one tale involves the Chicago World's Fair in January, before it is ready to open to the public - in 1933, when she would have been ten years old, but in the book, she goes with her high school classmates. I don't think that absolute truth in history is needed, since the book isn't about that, but it might be worth keeping in mind.

I did really enjoy reading it. As a former Catholic schoolgirl myself, I could really sympathise with many of the stories about the nuns and school life, though my experience in the 1990s wasn't quite as strict. In fact, I liked that a lot of what Trahey writes about is fairly timeless, and often only dated by reference to pop culture (types of dancing, actors and actresses) or technology (typewriters, especially).

The book isn't very long and most people who have seen the movie adaptation, The Trouble With Angels (1966), will recognize most of the stories, but it's light and fun and was a nice weekend read.… (mais)