A thoroughly researched and clearly written account of a determined and talented woman and of an era.
A biographer debuts with the astonishing story of Comtesse Valtesse de la Bigne (1848-1910), who rose from poverty and prostitution to enormous wealth, influence, and controversy.
Hewitt—who studied French literature and art, pursuits that led her to the woman she calls Valtesse through much of the tale—begins with the serendipitous discovery in 1933 of some of Valtesse’s vast art collection. The author then retreats to the 1840s and tells us the compelling story of Valtesse’s mother, a woman who returns much later on to threaten her daughter’s hard-won status. Born as “Louise,” Valtesse was fortunate with her stunning good looks (lustrous red hair her most striking feature), and although she began as a street prostitute, her looks, good fortune, and insatiable desires to read and learn transformed her quickly into a highly desirable companion for powerful men. She eventually amassed a fortune, educated herself broadly, collected priceless works of art, associated with some of the great artists of her time, including Manet and Édouard Detaille, lived in great opulence, and became a glittering celebrity. Hewitt’s work is nonjudgmental and even, at times, drop-jawed admiring. Every new twist in Valtesse’s life brings surprises. She published books that sold well, created works of art for popular shows (one attended by Buffalo Bill), dazzled the south of France, and survived some potentially damning court cases (two involving her mother). Hewitt shows us Valtesse’s circumspection, as well: her great care to avoid scandal (one episode, sex on a train, threatened and then diminished) and her preparation for retirement. The author’s diction is at times a little conventional and even clichéd. She writes, for example, that Valtesse “had won the heart of Paris.” But her intriguing portrait shines through.
A thoroughly researched and clearly written account of a determined and talented woman and of an era.Pub Date: Jan. 24, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-12066-3
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dunne/St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Oct. 17, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
Jahren transcends both memoir and science writing in this literary fusion of both genres.
Award-winning scientist Jahren (Geology and Geophysics/Univ. of Hawaii) delivers a personal memoir and a paean to the natural world.
The author’s father was a physics and earth science teacher who encouraged her play in the laboratory, and her mother was a student of English literature who nurtured her love of reading. Both of these early influences engrossingly combine in this adroit story of a dedication to science. Jahren’s journey from struggling student to struggling scientist has the narrative tension of a novel and characters she imbues with real depth. The heroes in this tale are the plants that the author studies, and throughout, she employs her facility with words to engage her readers. We learn much along the way—e.g., how the willow tree clones itself, the courage of a seed’s first root, the symbiotic relationship between trees and fungi, and the airborne signals used by trees in their ongoing war against insects. Trees are of key interest to Jahren, and at times she waxes poetic: “Each beginning is the end of a waiting. We are each given exactly one chance to be. Each of us is both impossible and inevitable. Every replete tree was first a seed that waited.” The author draws many parallels between her subjects and herself. This is her story, after all, and we are engaged beyond expectation as she relates her struggle in building and running laboratory after laboratory at the universities that have employed her. Present throughout is her lab partner, a disaffected genius named Bill, whom she recruited when she was a graduate student at Berkeley and with whom she’s worked ever since. The author’s tenacity, hope, and gratitude are all evident as she and Bill chase the sweetness of discovery in the face of the harsh economic realities of the research scientist.
Jahren transcends both memoir and science writing in this literary fusion of both genres.Pub Date: April 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-101-87493-6
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Jan. 4, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Both entertaining and grippingly introspective, Haddish’s take-no-prisoners tale is a testament to self-will and how humor...
The stand-up comedian and actress opens up about her past and the perils of being a woman in comedy.
In her uncensored and often hilarious debut memoir, Haddish reveals pivotal events from her personal life that helped propel her toward the stage. “I got into the entertainment business so I could feel accepted,” she writes. “And loved. And safe.” After learning about the trials of her early years, readers will appreciate how trying to make a roomful of strangers laugh could prove easier than negotiating the minefield of the author’s home life. Though somewhat dismissive of her uncanny ability to rise above adversity, Haddish provides a colloquially written rags-to-riches story that is both impressive and harrowing. Abandoned by her father at age 3 and forced to live with her grandmother at 8, after her mother was in a devastating car accident that caused permanent brain damage, Haddish spent years taking care of her younger siblings or being abused while in foster care. She turned to humor as a defense mechanism, getting her comedic start as a teen working as an “energy producer” at bar mitzvahs around Los Angeles. Once her grandmother learned she would no longer receive financial support for caring for her granddaughter, she turned Haddish out, causing her to become homeless at 18. At 21, the author’s stepfather told her that not only was he responsible for the accident that had forever changed her mother, but that it had been meant to kill her and all her siblings so he could cash in on the life insurance. After learning this, Haddish says she started dating policemen. “It’s always good to have police friends,” she writes, “especially black police, because there aren’t a lot of them.” The author’s unrelenting positivity and openness about how insecurities about her own self-worth led to poor decisions later in life offer important lessons and hope for others seemingly trapped in toxic relationships.
Both entertaining and grippingly introspective, Haddish’s take-no-prisoners tale is a testament to self-will and how humor can save your life.Pub Date: Dec. 12, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5011-8182-5
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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