An intelligently illuminating biography and cultural history.
An eminent British historical biographer tells the story of how a mistreated wife and writer helped bring about reform to laws governing married women’s personal and economic rights.
In 19th-century Britain, when women like famed writer Caroline Norton (1808-1877) married, they automatically lost the rights to all their assets—including those they earned—as well as the legal rights to future children. Men owned everything and everyone, both literally and figuratively. Norton came to know these hardships intimately over her long, colorful life. The granddaughter of celebrated playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Caroline quickly earned a reputation for both her beauty and her wit. At 19, still in mourning over the death of her first love, she married George Norton, who became her lifelong nemesis. His cruelty manifested early on in the marriage, and he “took to kicking his wife, pushing and shoving her, when she displeased him in some way. These attacks would be accompanied by an admonishment generally referring to her lack of respect for her husband.” Rather than let herself become a victim, Caroline flourished in her other pursuits as the hostess of a salon that included such luminaries as Lord Melbourne, the young Queen Victoria’s political mentor. When Caroline finally left her husband in 1836, he charged her with adultery and took their children with him. Though she was in a precarious financial position, Caroline used her political connections, influence, and pen to champion the Infant Custody Act of 1839, which granted women custody of their children up to age 7. Over the next two decades, Caroline continued the fight for legal rights for women, engaging in battles for the right to divorce and laying the groundwork for legislation to protect women’s property rights. This engagingly written, rigorously researched book will appeal to both feminist historians and readers who enjoy well-crafted portraits of historical figures who deserve more attention.
An intelligently illuminating biography and cultural history.Pub Date: May 3, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-63936-157-1
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Pegasus
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
A juicy story with some truly crazy moments, yet Anderson's good heart shines through.
The iconic model tells the story of her eventful life.
According to the acknowledgments, this memoir started as "a fifty-page poem and then grew into hundreds of pages of…more poetry." Readers will be glad that Anderson eventually turned to writing prose, since the well-told anecdotes and memorable character sketches are what make it a page-turner. The poetry (more accurately described as italicized notes-to-self with line breaks) remains strewn liberally through the pages, often summarizing the takeaway or the emotional impact of the events described: "I was / and still am / an exceptionally / easy target. / And, / I'm proud of that." This way of expressing herself is part of who she is, formed partly by her passion for Anaïs Nin and other writers; she is a serious maven of literature and the arts. The narrative gets off to a good start with Anderson’s nostalgic memories of her childhood in coastal Vancouver, raised by very young, very wild, and not very competent parents. Here and throughout the book, the author displays a remarkable lack of anger. She has faced abuse and mistreatment of many kinds over the decades, but she touches on the most appalling passages lightly—though not so lightly you don't feel the torment of the media attention on the events leading up to her divorce from Tommy Lee. Her trip to the pages of Playboy, which involved an escape from a violent fiance and sneaking across the border, is one of many jaw-dropping stories. In one interesting passage, Julian Assange's mother counsels Anderson to desexualize her image in order to be taken more seriously as an activist. She decided that “it was too late to turn back now”—that sexy is an inalienable part of who she is. Throughout her account of this kooky, messed-up, enviable, and often thrilling life, her humility (her sons "are true miracles, considering the gene pool") never fails her.
A juicy story with some truly crazy moments, yet Anderson's good heart shines through.Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2023
ISBN: 9780063226562
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
SEEN & HEARD
“Protect your passion,” writes an NBA star in this winning exploration of how we can succeed in life.
A future basketball Hall of Famer’s rosy outlook.
Curry is that rare athlete who looks like he gets joy from what he does. There’s no doubt that the Golden State Warriors point guard is a competitor—he’s led his team to four championships—but he plays the game with nonchalance and exuberance. That ease, he says, “only comes from discipline.” He practices hard enough—he’s altered the sport by mastering the three-point shot—so that he achieves a “kind of freedom.” In that “flow state,” he says, “I can let joy and creativity take over. I block out all distractions, even the person guarding me. He can wave his arms and call me every name in the book, but I just smile and wait as the solution to the problem—how to get the ball into the basket—presents itself.” Curry shares this approach to his craft in a stylish collection that mixes life lessons with sharp photographs and archival images. His dad, Dell, played in the NBA for 16 years, and Curry learned much from his father and mother: “My parents were extremely strict about me and my little brother Seth not going to my pops’s games on school nights.” Curry’s mother, Sonya, who founded the Montessori elementary school that Curry attended in North Carolina, emphasized the importance not just of learning but of playing. Her influence helped Curry and his wife, Ayesha, create a nonprofit foundation: Eat. Learn. Play. He writes that “making reading fun is the key to unlocking a kid’s ability to be successful in their academic journeys.” The book also has valuable pointers for ballers—and those hoping to hit the court. “Plant those arches—knees bent behind those 10 toes pointing at the hoop, hips squared with your shoulders—and draw your power up so you explode off the ground and rise into your shot.” Sounds easy, right?
“Protect your passion,” writes an NBA star in this winning exploration of how we can succeed in life.Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9780593597293
Page Count: 432
Publisher: One World/Random House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
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