Review: Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy

Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy

By Karen Abbott

Harper September 2014

544 pages

Received for review from TLC Book Tours and the publisher

The Civil War was one of the most terrible conflicts in our nation's history and had repercussions for years after it ended. While many people know about the major battles, few know of the many roles that women played during the war. Women took over for the men who went away to war by running farms and businesses. In this book, Karen Abbott introduces us to four fascinating women who took on men's roles and became soldiers and spies. 

Ms. Abbott has written a wonderful book that brings history to vivid life. She manage to write about both sides without elevating one and condemning the other. We meet two women who support the Confederacy and two who fight for the Union. Belle Boyd becomes a spy for the Confederacy after the Union invades her hometown and Rose O'Neal Greenhow romanced Union generals in order to gain information. Emma Edmonds masquerades as a man to fight for the Union and Elizabeth Van Lew smuggles soldiers out of Confederate prisons and sends them back North.

There is a lot of history to take in from these pages. We meet soldiers and generals, presidents and slaves, and move from The White House to cities under siege and bloody battle fields. While readers jump back and forth between the women, she moves in chronological order. By laying out the book this way, Abbott is able to show connections between these very different women. I know a fair deal about the Civil War because of a great teacher in high school. Even if you don't consider yourself a Civil War buff, this book makes it easy to follow along. The focus is on the women and their stories, not memorizing dates and locations.

While you may not agree with many of the tactics or the motives of these women, their commitment and intelligence are admirable. They were women in a time when women were seen as second class citizens. Belle, Rose, Emma, and Elizabeth used their smarts, their feminine wiles, and even the perception that they were weak and stupid to gain information for their cause. Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy is a perfect pick for the reader who loves history or learning about remarkable women. 

Need to know more about Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy? Check out other reviews at the TLC Book Tours page.

Review: American Rose Audiobook

American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare

The Life and Times of Gypsy Rose Lee

By Karen Abbott

Audiobook Random House December 2010

Library grab

I did it! I did it! I’ve only been listening to this book since December…

I was sucked in from the beginning because I loved the musical Gypsy, which I saw on Broadway a few years ago. The book opens with author Karen Abbott interviewing the elderly June Havoc, sister of Gypsy Rose Lee. She begins the book by saying that if you think you know about her family from that infamous musical, you don’t know anything. Of course I had to find out what really happened!

American Rose is a biography of Louise Hovick, who would become the infamous burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee. The audiobook covers her life from her childhood on the show biz circuit in the shadow of her sister to her death from cancer. It focuses on her relationships with her mother and her sister June, as well as her triumphs and failures as one of the biggest stars of the 20^th century. Gypsy Rose Lee became the face of burlesque, starred in movies, threw over the top parties, and carefully constructed a façade that showed the world exactly what she wanted them to see.

Unfortunately, author Karen Abbott does not stick to the history of Gypsy. Instead, she weaves other notable figures and events of the time into the narrative. This works some of the time. When we hear about the saga of the Minskys, the show biz family that helps Gypsy rise to the top, it enhances the story. But sometimes it's not clear how certain people connect to the story as a whole and I found myself wishing to to hear about strange and fascinating life of Gypsy instead.

This is even more frustrating when you are listening to the book instead of reading it. In addition to so many characters, the timeline is not linear. The writing jumps all over Gypsy’s life, leaving the reader to figure out where exactly they are and what has already happened. I would have preferred a linear telling and fewer auxiliary characters. The life and personality of our protagonist would more than have held up this book.

The narrator for this audiobook was Bernadette Dunn. I thought she did a great job. Her reading was understated. When you are dealing with personalities as big as Gypsy Rose Lee, it’s smarter to let her story and character shine through instead of trying to imitate her.

Gypsy Rose Lee is a fascinating character. When Ms. Abbott focuses on her, this biography shines. When she veers too far away from Gypsy, readers are left counting the minutes until we return. I would advise you to read the book instead of listening to the audio. The erratic timeline and plethora of characters are hard to keep track of in your head. If you are at all interested in burlesque or the seemingly larger than life Gypsy, American Rose is a good read for you.