She has been known as the 'kept woman', the 'fancy woman' and the 'other woman'. She is both a fictional character and flesh-and-blood human being. But who is she, really? What do Madame de Pompadour, Heloise, Marilyn Monroe, Jane Eyre and Camilla Parker-Bowles have in common? Why do women become mistresses, and what is it like to have a private life that is usually also a secret life? Is a mistress merely a wife-in-waiting, or is she the very definition of the modern emancipated, independent female? In 'Mistresses' Elizabeth Abbott intelligently probes the motives and morals of some of history's most infamous and fascinating women. Drawing intimate portraits of those who have - either by chance, coercion or choice - assumed this complex role, from Chinese concubines and European royal mistresses to mobster molls and trophy dolls, 'Mistresses' offers a rich blend of history, personality and cultural study.
Mistresses: A History of the Other Woman
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'a fascinating account of the other woman through history, more sobering than titillating.' --Sunday Times
'It is not just mistresses, it seems, who need to wake up to the new millennium; one of the surprises of this engrossing book is how mired in myth and fantasy it reveals our attitude to mistresses as being.' --Sunday Telegraph
The book will go next to Schott's Miscellany [in the guest loo rather than under the tree] and no doubt will be enjoyed for years to come. --New Statesman
'It is not just mistresses, it seems, who need to wake up to the new millennium; one of the surprises of this engrossing book is how mired in myth and fantasy it reveals our attitude to mistresses as being.' --Sunday Telegraph
The book will go next to Schott's Miscellany [in the guest loo rather than under the tree] and no doubt will be enjoyed for years to come. --New Statesman
About the Author
Elizabeth Abbott is Research Associate at Trinity College, University of Toronto and, from 1991 to 2004, was Dean of Women. She is the author of several books, including 'Sugar: a Bittersweet History', published by Duckworth, 'Haiti: a Modern History' and 'A History of Celibacy'.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By MelB
Format:Hardcover
I first read about this book in the Sunday Times review late last year and my appetite was immediately whetted. And this has proven to be a great gut feel, as the author writes with such clarity and continuity; you really do get the overwhelming sense of deja vu about all of these mistresses, no matter what the era. The sad desperation of the women victimised for their race or religion, need for love and sometimes need for danger, abused in most cases in the end by powerful men with huge ego's really does permeate the pages. You long to turn the page and find a mistress who has 'won' against all odds. But I guess history really does repeat itself, I'm still reading the book and it seems that only literary heroines 'get the man in the end'. I know for sure that I will go on to read more about some of these strong women.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Clarice
Format:Hardcover
Beautifully written and incredibly well researched, this book is both informative and engrossing. In spite of its length, I couldn't put it down. Excellent value for money.
By Joe
Format:Hardcover
I am in the middle of reading this book and find it very interesting and knowing the history of mistresses through the ages. A little gushy at times but a good read nevertheless.
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