WHISTLING WOMEN AND CROWING HENS

A young trombonist embarks on a journey of self-discovery when she joins a lively touring troupe of female musicians in Fern’s novel.

In March of 1924, 19-year-old Bertha (Birdie) Stauffer has just finished playing trombone in a musical and dramatic presentation at a West Chester, Pennsylvania, ladies luncheon with her older sister, Lydia. An acquaintance of Lydia’s approaches the pair to compliment them and introduce her niece, Helen Wilcox, a classical pianist. Much to Lydia’s displeasure, Helen encourages Birdie to audition for the locally famous Westdale Chautauqua touring company, but Lydia has other plans for her sister. Birdie lives with Lydia and her husband, Gerald, and they have agreed it is time for Birdie to find a local eligible gentleman to marry. With Lydia finally relenting, Birdie goes off to the audition, and although she isn’t initially accepted, Helen tells the group manager that in addition to being able to sing and play the piano, Birdie has another talent: She is a gifted whistler, able to mimic bird calls in perfect pitch. Nicknamed the “Versatile Quartet,” with Birdie’s addition it becomes the “Versatile Quintet,” and next thing you know she’s off for a life-changing adventure that takes her all across the eastern United States and even into Canada. The five multitalented women—Birdie on trombone and Helen on piano, plus Florence (Flo) Armstrong on harp, Mary Brewer on violin, and Adelle Rowley on banjo—vary widely in personalities and temperaments, adding to the challenges and confrontations of life on the road. Written in breezy, easy-flowing prose, the novel captures the excitement of the emergence of the Roaring ’20s, with the characters eagerly embracing the new styles and colloquial wordplay (“I’m a hoofer” “We’re all chums”) popular at the time. Fern packs the pages with interesting behind-the-scenes details of the quintet members creating innovative musical arrangements, problems with the circuit manager, production complications, romantic entanglements, and even a frightening assault on one of the women. Although there are many descriptions of Birdie’s avion calls and tweets, the most interesting of these come when her birdcalls are described while accompanied by harp and violin. Most satisfying is watching Birdie’s development from obedient underconfident younger sister to fully fledged adult, learning to define her own life.

A pleasant showbiz coming-of-age beach read that gives an evocative taste of America’s Jazz Age.