Friday, May 29, 2009

Book Review: Vindication by Frances Sherwood


I wish I had enjoyed Vindication more. I was really looking forward to reading it. One of my favorite genres is that which takes a historical person and write fiction about him/her. Or takes a fictional character and writes another story about him/her. Vindication, about early feminist Mary Wollstonecraft fell short for me.

Sherwood said in a little write-up at the end of the book that she enjoys writing fiction about historical characters because (among other reasons) she likes writing "tart dialog." I find that I don't like tart dialog. Otherwise, she's a good writer, Wollstonecraft’s story follows her relationships with different men in different phases of her life. It examines her mental illness. I found it hard to believe, however, that Mary Wollstonecraft would have been such a masochist when it came to men...maybe she was and that means that I don't like her as a person, maybe she wasn't and that means that I don't like the way Sherwood has imagined her...
Recommended for those who are interested in feminist history--or those who like tart dialog.

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