BOOK REVIEW: Christine de Pizan: Her Life and Works. A Biography by Charity Cannon Willard

Something else I feel I should have read in college – Christine de Pizan’s work. A late fourteenth-early fifteenth century French intellectual, writer, defender of women, Christine has been called France’s first woman of letters. She is perhaps best known for The Book of the City of Ladies, but she has a very impressive list of literary accomplishments. Somehow, despite majoring in French and having a particular interest in medieval French, I managed to not read anything of hers.

All right. I still haven’t. But I did read Christine de Pizan: Her Life and Works. A Biography by Charity Cannon Willard. This is a well-researched account of the life of this extraordinary woman who was born in Italy but who spent most of her life in France. She was brought up in the court of King Charles V. (Her father was a court scientist/astronomer.) She married well-a royal secretary. She and her husband had three children and were happily married for ten years. Little seems to be known about this part of her life. But when she was about twenty-four, things changed for Christine.

King Charles had died and his heir was given to bouts of insanity which worsened over time. This made things difficult for those in his court who depended on his patronage. And, worse for Christine, her husband died, leaving her to support their three children.

And so, Christine begins her career as a writer, first as a poet and then as a writer of political, historical, educational, and moral treatises. Most of these are dedicated/gifted to various members of the royal family as a way to seek patronage and a way to build her following. The impressive thing is, Christine does gain an ever increasing audience for her writing. Despite the fact that she is a woman, her work is widely praised and she was respected for her learning and intelligence not only throughout France but in England and Italy as well.

Christine de Pizan is remembered now mainly for her writing in defense of women and against the misogynistic writings of her male counterparts. However, she also wrote a biography of Charles V and a military instruction manual. She seems to have studied widely and mastered quite a breadth of knowledge.

The biography is subtitled "Her Life and Works." The book does do a good job of summarizing the works and putting them in context within a complex historical framework. It was interesting, but dry. While I definitely learned about the writing, I don’t feel that I got a very good look at the life of the writer. Willard provided only an outline of what was going on around Christine de Pizan as she was writing the different pieces, with some inclusion of major life events. It’s unfortunately probable that the types of details I would have liked to see are unrecorded and lost to history. Still, I’d like to read more about this fascinating woman and to read some of her work for myself.

I read this as part of my Mount TBR challenge because this book has been on my shelf for a long time.

ESCAPE TO THE PAST WITH: The Celebrated Pedestrian by Suzanne Allain

I’ve entered countless Goodreads giveaways over the years but have yet to win a book – but that doesn’t matter. Scanning the contests has brought numerous books to my attention that I’ve ended up reading anyway, and many more that are still on my TBR someday list. One book that sounded like a quick, fun read was The Celebrated Pedestrian by Suzanne Allain. I didn’t win, but after doing some pretty heavy reading the past week or so (The Autobiography of Malcolm X for my book group - review coming up) and then being about halfway into another biography (Christine de Pizan. Her Life and Works. A Biography. By Charity Cannon Willard) I decided I needed a break. Glancing through my TBR list, I saw this light Regency Romance that had caught my attention. My library didn’t have it, but I could get it instantaneously on my ipad/kindle for just $3.99. Why not?

Faith Wentworth is a shy, intelligent young lady come to London for her first season. Her father, the famous sportsman, Captain Wentworth, has hired a chaperone to see to her debut since her mother is long dead. Thus far, husband-hunting has been a disaster. Faith is lovely enough, but the chaperone’s dogged man chasing scares the prospects away.

But then, the chaperone introduces Faith to Sir Anthony, who also has sporting ambitions. He is thrilled to meet Captain Wentworth’s daughter–it could be a means of meeting the great man himself!

The attention he begins to pay Faith gets the gossips going, but she is under no illusions. Not even when he invites her (and her father and younger sister) to a house party at his country home. Although the ton may expect that they will return betrothed, Faith has no intention of accepting a proposal from another sportsman even if he had any intention of making one.

Thankfully, Sir Anthony’s friend, Lord Frederick will also be a guest at Sir Anthony’s. Although she doesn’t know him well, the few words he has spoken to her have been more interesting than anything Sir Anthony has ever said. And once they do all get to the country, Lord Frederick’s attentions seem much more focused on her than Sir Anthony’s do. But then, the attention the men at the house are paying her begins to seem odd. Something strange is going on. Something that perhaps has to do with a bet. Faith isn’t sure she can trust a bunch of sportsmen, not even Lord Frederick.

The Celebrated Pedestrian is a sweet book with some charming gentle humor. The conflicts are muted. It’s pretty clear right from the start how the romance will sort out, but it’s an enjoyable process watching the romance progress. If you’re in the mood for a quick book about genuinely nice people who are rewarded with happy outcomes, this is a good choice.

MAILBOX MONDAY

Mailbox Monday is a meme created by Marcia's Mailbox, a chance for bloggers to display the great new books they've accumulated over the week. It's now rotating on a monthly basis to different guest hosts. For October, Mailbox Monday can be found here.

Last Thursday, my local library held a talk and signing by Hanna Rosin, author of The End of Men (and the Rise of Women). She's a very engaging speaker. She was also very pleasant and personable at the booksigning afterward. (The line was long, yet she was very goodnatured and didn't seem rushed.) Here's the blurb from goodreads:

A landmark portrait of women, men, and power in a transformed world.
Men have been the dominant sex since, well, the dawn of mankind. But Hanna Rosin was the first to notice that this long-held truth is, astonishingly, no longer true. At this unprecedented moment, by almost every measure, women are no longer gaining on men: They have pulled decisively ahead. And "the end of men"—the title of Rosin’s Atlantic cover story on the subject—has entered the lexicon as dramatically as Betty Friedan’s "feminine mystique," Simone de Beauvoir’s "second sex," Susan Faludi’s "backlash," and Naomi Wolf’s "beauty myth" once did.

In this landmark book, Rosin reveals how this new state of affairs is radically shifting the power dynamics between men and women at every level of society, with profound implications for marriage, sex, children, work, and more. With wide-ranging curiosity and insight unhampered by assumptions or ideology, Rosin shows how the radically different ways men and women today earn, learn, spend, couple up—even kill—has turned the big picture upside down. And in The End of Men she helps us see how, regardless of gender, we can adapt to the new reality and channel it for a better future.

The book is generating a lot of interest. Hanna Rosin a well-respected journalist and the topic is timely. The book title obviously courts controversy, but her discussion of the book made it sound a lot more balanced than the title would imply. I'm eager to read it-- maybe in combination with Grace and Grit by Lilly Ledbetter.

BOOK REVIEW: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein is an extraordinary book. A YA historical adventure set during WWII, the novel has received a great deal of buzz. I was a bit hesitant to read it, fearing that with all the hype my expectations would be too high, but the book lived up to its reputation. This is a page-turner.

The difficulty is trying to review it without giving anything away, because this is a multi-layered book and you’ll want to unravel its mysteries yourself.

The protagonist, "Verity," is a young female spy caught in France by the Gestapo. She is being tortured for information about Britain. She has finally cracked under the pressure. Aware that she will be killed when her interrogators have wrung everything they can from her, she is drawing out her confession. She writes everything down, weaving a tale, from the very beginning, of her involvement in the war effort. This includes her friendship with the female pilot, Maddie, who delivered her to France but crash-landed.

The friendship between the two women makes for a richly emotional story. "Verity" and Maddie are dedicated to their tasks and to each other. Their bravery is truly inspiring. The writing is wonderfully descriptive, yet the pace of the book gets faster and faster as the plot becomes more and more complex. Code Name Verity is billed as a YA novel but adults of all ages can get caught up in this gripping story. I look forward to reading more of Elizabeth Wein’s books.

WOW: Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine. Bloggers can spotlight books that they are eagerly awaiting.

I confess, I am usually so buried under my TBR pile that I am not looking ahead at unreleased books. Even exciting new releases usually have to wait their turn. I buy the books I’m excited about but don’t manage to get to them right away (except for some special favorite, favorite authors whose books get devoured on day one–that means you Margaret Frazer!)

Moreover, I’m a historical fiction reader first and foremost. While I do read some contemporary fiction, it’s usually just to take a break and see what else is out there. So, on one of those forays, I read Sean Griswold’s Head by Lindsey Leavitt and I was charmed.

And here is Leavitt’s new book: Going Vintage, due out March 26, 2013l.

When Mallory discovers that her boyfriend, Jeremy, is cheating on her with an online girlfriend, she swears off boys. She also swears off modern technology. Inspired by a list of goals her grandmother made in 1962, Mallory decides to "go vintage" and return to a simpler time (when boyfriends couldn't cheat on you online). She sets out to complete grandma's list: run for pep club secretary, host a dinner party, sew a homecoming dress, find a steady, do something dangerous. But the list is trickier than it looks. And obviously finding a steady is out . . . no matter how good Oliver (Jeremy's cousin) smells. But with the help of her sister, she'll get it done. Somehow. Lindsey Leavitt perfectly pairs heartfelt family moments, laugh-out-loud humor, and a little bit of romance in this delightful contemporary novel.

　

I can’t wait! Doesn’t it sound fun?

BOOK REVIEW: Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

For a change of pace, my next book was a light romantic comedy. Set in 1999, it can’t even be called historical fiction, but I was in the mood for something different. I’d read a review of Attachments by Rainbow Rowell over at Sarah Reads Too Much that made me want to give it a try.

Lincoln O’Neil has been hired as the IT guy for The Courier, the daily paper in an unnamed Nebraska city. It’s 1999, and the newspaper is reluctantly transitioning to the digital age–giving its employees limited internet access and e-mail–while preparing itself for various Y2K doomsday scenarios. Lincoln’s job is to monitor what the employees are doing online. He’s supposed to make sure they aren’t downloading porn, gambling, or using office computers for personal emails. He works the late shift and reads other peoples’ electronic communications. Lincoln hates his job.

Moreover, Lincoln is none too crazy about life in general. He has never gotten over the high school girlfriend who dumped him in college. He’s living with his mother. His social life consists of a standing Saturday night Dungeons & Dragons game. He’s bored, lonely, and doesn’t see how to get out of his rut.

Then the email filter picks up correspondence between Beth (feature editor/movie critic) and Jennifer (copy editor.) Beth (in a long-term relationship with a guitarist who’s commitment-phobic) and Jennifer (terrified of having a baby but married to a sweet, sensitive man who wants to start a family) are breaking all the rules about personal emailing on the job. But they do it in an extremely entertaining way. Lincoln is unable to bring himself to send them a warning. And he is unable to stop himself from invading their privacy.

As Lincoln becomes caught up in the drama of the lives of these two friends (and the reader does also!) he’s inspired to make changes in his own life. He gets out more, makes friends, joins a gym. That’s all good. But he has a new problem. He’s fallen quite hopelessly for Beth. Hopelessly, because 1) she has a boyfriend and 2) how can he ever introduce himself as the guy who has been electronically stalking her?

This is an utterly charming book. Lincoln is a sweet protagonist through and through. Still, the real heroes in the book are the two women. Although they are seen only through their emails, their personalities are vivid. Their communications are caring and supportive, very funny, and at times, poignant. Attachments is a light romantic comedy and a feel-good friendship book all rolled into one.

BOOK REVIEW: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

I had a hard time deciding what to read after Lost Illusions. I was a little afraid whatever I read next was going to suffer by comparison. I finally decided to go with another classic that’s been on my shelf for a long time – The Great Gatsby. I can’t believe I was never assigned this book somewhere along the way, but then again, I made it through school without ever reading To Kill a Mockingbird, so I clearly have some huge gaps in my education.

We have a nice collection of Fitzgerald’s novels sitting on our bookshelves waiting to be read. After reading The Paris Wife with its brief but fascinating peep at the relationship between the Hemingways and the Fitzgeralds I reminded myself again that I really needed to read something by Fitzgerald other than Bernice Bobs her Hair. And so...



Not the edition I read

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a surprisingly short novel narrated by the earnest young Nick Carraway, a midwestern gentleman come to New York to make his way as a bond trader. He rents a house in the less fashionable (new money) West Egg which is across the bay from the more fashionable (old money) East Egg where his distant cousin Daisy lives with her husband Tom Buchanan.

Daisy is beautiful, rich, and spoiled; however, she isn’t happy. Her husband, an arrogant, unpleasant man, is having an affair (not his first) and is none too discreet about it.

Nick, meanwhile, is introduced to his neighbor on West Egg, a man who throws frequent, extravagant, wild parties at his mansion. Nick learns that the neighbor, Jay Gatsby, has set up ostentatious housekeeping in this particular place because it is directly across the water from the Buchanans. Gatsby is in love with Daisy. He had vainly hoped Daisy might come over to join the fun, but the Buchanans are not lured by wild parties. He now wonders if Nick will help him reconnect with the girl he once wooed.

Nick does.

Nick narrates the entire train wreck of the couple’s reunion and of the bits of their past that he pieces together. Gatsby was not born to money the way the others were. He craved riches and then he met Daisy and he became obsessed with her too. Could he have loved her if she wasn’t made of money? It doesn’t matter. He had to become fabulously wealthy to be worthy of her. But his method of obtaining money is a shady one. He must keep his methods secret because he has to appear to Daisy to be an insider. He can’t just have money, he has to have come from money.

Gatsby has created a false version of himself to present to Daisy when he reappears in her life. Nick, who styles himself fatally honest, is able to present the facts to the reader so that we see how everyone else is living a series of lies. Yet Gatsby’s pretense of belonging to their social class seems, to all but Nick perhaps, to be the most unacceptable of lies. Events spiral out of control and Nick bears witness to Gatsby’s tragic downfall. (I’m trying avoid spoilers in case I’m not the last person to have read this.)

The Great Gatsby has been called the Great American Novel (or novella) and it is a marvelous book in how much it accomplishes in such a compact story. The characters (although awful) are well-drawn. The settings are stunning. And Nick’s narration is quite ingenious, because while the reader most likely won’t be able to empathize with the protagonists, emotionally they can be drawn right along with Nick.

The novel was not as overwhelmingly good as Balzac’s Lost Illusions, but Balzac’s book was more ambitious in scope and it was part of a much larger body of work exploring the whole human condition. The Great Gatsby illuminates a very unattractive picture of one small subset of people.

If you like The Great Gatsby, you might also enjoy The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington.

I’m making some progress now on my Mount TBR Challenge (hosted by My Reader’s Block.)