Fascinating fictionalized biography of a brilliant woman who should be as renowned as the men who loved her.
An intriguing debut novel about the early life of muse and intellectual Lou Salomé.
Russian-born Louise von Salomé is determined to receive an education at a young age; unfortunately, her early instructor, Pastor Hendrik Gillot, falls in love with her, despite their 25-year age difference. Lou and her mother, Louise, flee to Western Europe to obtain more suitable, sexually untainted instruction for Lou. At Malwida von Meysenbug’s literary salon in Rome, Lou meets Paul Rée, a writer and gambler. They quickly form a cerebral partnership, and through Rée, Lou meets Friedrich Nietzsche. The three want to establish a commune but are deterred by family disapproval and the refusal of both men to accept Lou’s resolve to devote her whole being to intellectual pursuits, without the constraints of marriage, children or even sexual dalliance. Lou alternates between the two men but eventually grows frustrated with Nietzsche’s instability and his jealous, conniving sister Elisabeth. She and Rée move to Berlin, establishing a salon where Lou thrives, publishing her first book and attracting still more admirers, while Rée grows discouraged. In Rée’s absence, Lou is enticed into marriage—celibate by her insistence—with Persian scholar Friedrich Andreas. Author Atala, with a background in comparative literature and philosophy, brings life to 19th-century historical figures, although at times they seem unnaturally self-absorbed. Less convincing is Lou’s allure, her physical and intellectual gifts notwithstanding. Perhaps true to the spirit of the time, the prose is sometimes overblown and dramatic, like the characters themselves. Lou fears “any touching of loins” despite cohabitation and marriage. While Atala’s novel is well-written and researched, it would be enriched by additional context and depth for some of the secondary characters who may not be as well-known to casual readers. Similarly, development and description of the fabulous European settings are given short shrift. Still, Atala offers a captivating glimpse into a notable period of history and intellectual growth.
Fascinating fictionalized biography of a brilliant woman who should be as renowned as the men who loved her.Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1497403260
Page Count: 312
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A first novel, this is also a first person account of Scout's (Jean Louise) recall of the years that led to the ending of a mystery, the breaking of her brother Jem's elbow, the death of her father's enemy — and the close of childhood years. A widower, Atticus raises his children with legal dispassion and paternal intelligence, and is ably abetted by Calpurnia, the colored cook, while the Alabama town of Maycomb, in the 1930's, remains aloof to their divergence from its tribal patterns. Scout and Jem, with their summer-time companion, Dill, find their paths free from interference — but not from dangers; their curiosity about the imprisoned Boo, whose miserable past is incorporated in their play, results in a tentative friendliness; their fears of Atticus' lack of distinction is dissipated when he shoots a mad dog; his defense of a Negro accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell, is followed with avid interest and turns the rabble whites against him. Scout is the means of averting an attack on Atticus but when he loses the case it is Boo who saves Jem and Scout by killing Mayella's father when he attempts to murder them. The shadows of a beginning for black-white understanding, the persistent fight that Scout carries on against school, Jem's emergence into adulthood, Calpurnia's quiet power, and all the incidents touching on the children's "growing outward" have an attractive starchiness that keeps this southern picture pert and provocative. There is much advance interest in this book; it has been selected by the Literary Guild and Reader's Digest; it should win many friends.
Pub Date: July 11, 1960
ISBN: 0060935464
Page Count: 323
Publisher: Lippincott
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1960
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with...
Talk-show queen takes tumble as millions jeer.
Nora Bridges is a wildly popular radio spokesperson for family-first virtues, but her loyal listeners don't know that she walked out on her husband and teenaged daughters years ago and didn't look back. Now that a former lover has sold racy pix of naked Nora and horny himself to a national tabloid, her estranged daughter Ruby, an unsuccessful stand-up comic in Los Angeles, has been approached to pen a tell-all. Greedy for the fat fee she's been promised, Ruby agrees and heads for the San Juan Islands, eager to get reacquainted with the mom she plans to betray. Once in the family homestead, nasty Ruby alternately sulks and glares at her mother, who is temporarily wheelchair-bound as a result of a post-scandal car crash. Uncaring, Ruby begins writing her side of the story when she's not strolling on the beach with former sweetheart Dean Sloan, the son of wealthy socialites who basically ignored him and his gay brother Eric. Eric, now dying of cancer and also in a wheelchair, has returned to the island. This dismal threesome catch up on old times, recalling their childhood idylls on the island. After Ruby's perfect big sister Caroline shows up, there's another round of heartfelt talk. Nora gradually reveals the truth about her unloving husband and her late father's alcoholism, which led her to seek the approval of others at the cost of her own peace of mind. And so on. Ruby is aghast to discover that she doesn't know everything after all, but Dean offers her subdued comfort. Happy endings await almost everyone—except for readers of this nobly preachy snifflefest.
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with syrupy platitudes about life and love.Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-609-60737-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2001
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