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Perdita: The Life of Mary Robinson
 
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Perdita: The Life of Mary Robinson (Paperback)

by Paula Byrne (Author)
3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
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Customers buy this book with Mrs. Jordan's Profession: The Story of a Great Actress and a Future King by Claire Tomalin

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Product details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: HarperPerennial; First Paperback Edition edition (17 Jan 2005)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0007164599
  • ISBN-13: 978-0007164592
  • Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 13 x 3.4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 168,754 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Review
Praise for Jane Austen and the Theatre: 'This scholarly, perceptive book leaves you wanting more from the same author.' Loraine Fletcher, Independent 'The definitive and pioneering work on the subject ... Byrne's perspective as a theatre historian exposes much that is original ... Jane Austen and the Theatre has much to say to the theatre historian about an extraordinary member of the late-eighteenth century audience, and a great deal more to teach the literary critic about that theatregoer's own art.' Michael Caines, TLS 'Fascinating and elegant ... invaluable as an academic study of the way that Austen, like Henry James after her, made brilliant use of theatrical techniques.' Miranda Seymour, Spectator

Daily Telegraph
'a candid exploration of an intriguing woman.'

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
5 star:
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3 star:
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Average Customer Review
3.5 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
40 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Richard and Judy Pick A Winner., 11 April 2005
By M. J. Holland (England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I'll confess I would never have looked at this book if it hadn't been for the fact that I decided to read the 10 nominations for Richard and Judy's Best Read 2005.This book has been the biggest pleasant surprise of the lot,because, to be honest, I was not really looking forward to it.
How wrong could I be ? This is a dazzling story of a fascinating woman. I am afraid to say the other biography in the Richard and Judy list,"Feel" by Chris Heath comes off a very poor second when compared to this volume. Sadly of course there's no doubt which book will sell more.I wish all Robbie Williams fans would read this book and find out that maybe their hero's exploits are not so special when compared to what the heroine of this biography got up to.
Mary Robinson, whose nickname was Perdita, was married at 15 and her marriage was something of a disaster and included spending some time in prison with her husband. She then made herself into one of London's most celebrated actresses and was a friend of the outstanding theatrical figures of the day.She became a leading figure in the glamorous high society of the city, reputedly being the most beautiful woman in Britain.She voluntarily gave up her theatrical career to become the mistress of the Prince of Wales, thus heightening her celebrity even further. Reading about this time of her life it appears that she was just as famous or infamous as any contemporary celebrity.Maybe more so.There are many obvious similarities.
In the second half of the book the plot changes almost completely as Mary, after being ditched by her royal lover, re-invents herself as a writer. She is so successful in this enterprise that she becomes one of the leading lady literary figures of the era. She is primarily a poetess, but also writes plays, novels and political tracts and she becomes friendly with both leading political and cultural figures.
It is an absolutely fascinating tale, made more moving perhaps by the fact that she was not lucky in love, suffered a debilitating illness for many years and finally died young at the age of 43.
All this is retold in an easy and entertaining way by Paula Byrne and I would thoroughly recommend this book to anyone.Thank you Richard and Judy !
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars An 18th century feminist ...., 14 Jun 2005
By Deborah M Reavell (Basingstoke, Hampshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
A fascinating study of the life of Mary Robinson, who achieved success in the second half of the 18th century as a novelist and poet, contemporary with Coleridge and Wordsworth. She championed the cause of women's education, knew Mary Wollstonecraft and William Godwin. However, her career began as an actress and willing mistress to the great and (not so) good, particularly the Prince of Wales, later George IV, from whom she demanded a pension because she gave up her acting livelihood to be his mistress. Her treatment by the press of the day was as vitriolic if not worse than the way some celebrities are treated today. This is a really good read.
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4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating, 13 Jul 2005
By A Customer
This book goes in waves - the first third and the last third are very gripping, but the middle section can be repetitive. However, it is a thorough, detailed and gripping look at the fluidity of late Georgian society. Mary Robinson was clearly a fascinating and talented woman whose travails did not really stand in her way. It was sad to see her end so quietly, who had created such a bang throughout the early part of her life, but her correspondence and acquaintance were fascinating.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars a work of genuine scholarship
We have a lot to thank Richard Holmes for (that's Holmes the biographer, not Holmes the military historian! Read more
Published on 31 Aug 2005

1.0 out of 5 stars Drags on and on and on and doesn't get to the point....
What a shame!!This book could have been so gripping and so interesting. Mary Robinson was obviously a very colourful figure with an amazing life (She achieved more than we mere... Read more
Published on 22 Aug 2005 by Karon.

3.0 out of 5 stars A good start but trails off towards the end
I started reading the book as Mary Robinson, known as Perdita, because of her role on the stage, was a contemporary of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire. Read more
Published on 1 Jun 2005

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