In a beautifully sincere and clear voice, L.W. Clark’s THE YELLOW SUITCASE follows a young woman as she––literally––packs up and puts her old life aside in the pursuit of claiming a new one. Desperate to shed the limiting expectations of her friends and family of Eastern Europe in the 1990s, Alyssa Florescu finds that looking for love, freedom, and life itself in America under New York’s city skyline isn’t at all it's cracked up to be. It’s much more.
Author L.W. Clark
In THE YELLOW SUITCASE, twenty-one-year-old Alyssa Florescu wakes up at her impoverished home in Eastern Europe on New Year's Day in 1995 and decides to change her life. She's not sure what she should do, but she does know she can no longer live in her country with its tired traditions, lifestyle, and culture—she wants a free and independent life. Inspired by a friend, she decides to go to America. Even though she doesn't know anyone there and speaks little English, she overcomes her fears and doubts, and within a year she's off to America with $100 in her pocket.
However, Alyssa's bravery soon wears off and she second guesses her decision as she struggles with loneliness and being away from her friends and family while fitting into a new culture. As she struggles to work for a wealthy family on Long Island, with limited English and even less understanding of their lifestyle, she becomes mentally stronger. When she sees Manhattan for the first time, she's determined to succeed in her new city.
One cold evening, Alyssa is on the rooftop of a townhouse and she locks herself out. There she encounters Gilles, a wealthy French man. Their relationship grows and they become deep and loving friends. They soon marry, even though Gilles is in another loving relationship. Through this friendship, Alyssa is lifted out of the grinding poverty and loneliness of her life as an immigrant, and into the world of wealth, glamor, and fashion.
One weekend in the Hamptons, Alyssa confronts Gilles about hiding his relationship, and what it means to be free and in love. As Gilles thinks about his life, Alyssa is contacted by Rachel, an art dealer from Arizona. Rachel and Alyssa strike up a friendship, which leads to a surprising story twist.
Based on real events, THE YELLOW SUITCASE is an immigrant's story about love, courage, and freedom. Written in the first person with internal dialogues to expose Alyssa's innermost thoughts, this is a story of drama, comedy, and self-reliance.
L.W. Clark is a writer and author who marks her fiction debut with The Yellow Suitcase. Born in Tbilisi, Georgia, Clark immigrated to NYC in 1997. She holds a Masters of Cultural Studies from the Georgian State Institute of Theater and Film. She lives in Manhattan with her husband. Follow @_theyellowsuitcase on Instagram, @suitcase_yellow on Twitter, and on TikTok @_theyellowsuitcase.
