A Short History of Women
Kate Walbert
June 2009
256 pages
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Words for the FTC: I bought this at the LA Times Festival of Books. And it’s autographed. Nee-neer, nee-neer, nee-neer.
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I wanted to love this book. I saw the author speak on a panel at the LA Times Festival of Books and I enjoyed listening to her read from the book, and her brief description of the book. And okay, I confess…I also love the cover.
The story opens with a chapter told from the viewpoint of the daughter of an Englishwoman who is starving herself to death for women’s suffrage:
“Mum starved herself for suffrage, Grandmother claiming it was just like Mum to take a cause too far.”
It then proceeds to skip around between different generations of the family, and back and forth in time and place (England and the US, and the west coast and east coast of the US). At the center is Dorothy Trevor Townsend, the young mother who starved herself to death. Each chapter is told from either her viewpoint, or one of her female descendants…and some have stronger voices than others. In fact, the 5th generation only merits a one page resume.
But. There were times I was confused (the skipping around) and there were some continuity issues (they may not have really been issues, but I couldn’t figure them out and they added to my confusion) and I really didn’t care for any of the characters. And with five generations of women, you’d think there would’ve been someone I was interested in. And supposedly the book deals with the impact on the following generations of mom/grandma/great-grandma’s decision to starve herself for suffrage. But since some of the women never even knew about grandma/great-grandma until later in life, or even seemed to think about her, I found this to be a bit of a stretch. And…the motivation for her hunger strike never seemed that compelling (not that suffrage wasn’t compelling…it was. I just think in this book that the cause took a back seat and wasn’t as developed as it should have been). Ultimately, Dorothy never seemed the type to be that fully devoted to something.
However, this is just me being picky about what others have deemed a very good book. The reviewer for the NY Timesevidently got waaaay more out of this book than I did.
I love the opening of the book. It’s very attention grabbing. That said, if you had problems with the book jumping around, I am sure I would too. It doesn’t take much for me to lose my concentration.
.-= Stephanie´s last blog ..The Sunday Salon =-.
How disappointing! The story sounds great, too bad it fell short. I think I would have issues with it to, judging by your review.
.-= Amy´s last blog ..Why I Blog (and Why I Love It!) =-.
Yours is not the only underwhelmed review I’ve seen of this book. I want to love it too, if only because I think the cover is so charming, but I suspect it would only let me down.
.-= Jenny´s last blog ..Review: The Dud Avocado, Elaine Dundy (NYRB Classics) =-.
When I saw this title and cover, I thought it was gonna be some really cool nonfiction history book. But, apparently it’s not. I have a copy of When Everything Changed by Gail Collins to read…I guess that will have to be my women’s history nonfiction book of choice. Oh well, I really liked this cover!
.-= Kari´s last blog ..Not-so-Wordless Wednesday: España =-.
Oh, sad! This book has been on my wishlist for some time now, but I am sad it is not quite up to par. At least it’s autographed
.-= Aarti´s last blog ..TSS: NYRB Classics! =-.
Well, darn, what a disappointment!
I’m sorry it didn’t work for you! I have to say I’m intrigued, though. Hopefully I’ll have better luck.
.-= Nymeth´s last blog ..Illyria by Elizabeth Hand =-.
I hate when that happens – you’re reading a book and it gets confusing, and you’re not sure if it’s you or the book.
.-= EL Fay´s last blog ..A Unicorn Grows in London =-.
I recently saw this book at my library. After reading your review, I think I’ll take this off of my TBR list.
.-= Vasilly´s last blog ..Read-along: Touch Magic by Jane Yolen =-.
This sounds like a great premise poorly executed … but that cover is something else.
.-= Jenners´s last blog ..Question of the Week: Books That Changed My Opinions =-.
I’ve had this one on my shelf and I keep meaning to read it. I’ll have to compare notes with you when I do to see if I get any more out of it than you did!
.-= Amused´s last blog ..Mailbox Monday – May 10 – 15, 2010 =-.
I hadn’t heard of this book, but I agree, the cover is awesome. Too bad the inside isn’t quite as great.
Shoot. I’m crossing this one off my list. It does sound confusing.
.-= Beth F´s last blog ..Wordless Wednesday 79 =-.
I have a copy of this book somewhere around here to read, but it hasn’t made it to the top of my pile yet. I am sorry this one didn’t work well for you, Jill. It sounds so promising . . . Ah well.
.-= Literary Feline´s last blog ..That Long Overdue Reading Day is Here! =-.