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challenging
dark
informative
slow-paced
This book was very informative, but also entertaining. I had never heard of Madame Restell, but now she is one of my favorite historical figures. She was such a badass who didn’t cower it shy away from doing the work she knew was necessary for women. The epilogue is almost worth reading the whole book for.
challenging
dark
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
I was able to listen to the Advanced Listener Copy with the exclusive interview between Jennifer Wright and Mara Wilson, and while this was a beautiful and deeply educational read, I’d I had to boil it down to one phrase it would be this: 🎶Men are stupid and I don’t respect them.🎶 Please, so yourself the favor of reading or listening to this book. Not only is it educational but it is entertaining.
Madame Restell was the most infamous abortionist in the United States. Jennifer Wright has taken on telling her story, set on the backdrop of Gilded Age New York. From Restell's Hubble beginnings through her illustrious career, she had many ups and downs, never apologizing and facing down her many detractors.
I'm not much of a nonfiction person. But if the right subject comes along, I can be convinced. I enjoyed reading about Restell, but there was a LOT in this book that was filler. Some was needed to fill out her story, but it felt like there was a lot extra. In fact, it felt to me like this would have made a good episode of Stuff You Missed in History Class.
I'm not much of a nonfiction person. But if the right subject comes along, I can be convinced. I enjoyed reading about Restell, but there was a LOT in this book that was filler. Some was needed to fill out her story, but it felt like there was a lot extra. In fact, it felt to me like this would have made a good episode of Stuff You Missed in History Class.
challenging
dark
informative
medium-paced
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book is truly incredible. It's a hard read, but it's such a necessary read, especially now. Wright not only tells the story of an incredible woman, but also pulls in a lot of the history that influenced Madame Restell's career over the years. The parallels in the swings from liberal to conservative morality over the nineteenth-century are scarily in-line with our current swings. The Know-Nothing party is frighteningly similar to current alt-right politicians and groups. The epilogue is a gut-punch of a plea for level-headedness and consideration in the aftermath of the overturn of Roe v Wade. Wright gets deeply personal in that epilogue to prove her point, which is both great support for her argument and incredibly brave of her. I had to put this down at times because it made me so angry that not a lot seems to have changed for women, but that's why this book is such a necessary read.
This book is truly incredible. It's a hard read, but it's such a necessary read, especially now. Wright not only tells the story of an incredible woman, but also pulls in a lot of the history that influenced Madame Restell's career over the years. The parallels in the swings from liberal to conservative morality over the nineteenth-century are scarily in-line with our current swings. The Know-Nothing party is frighteningly similar to current alt-right politicians and groups. The epilogue is a gut-punch of a plea for level-headedness and consideration in the aftermath of the overturn of Roe v Wade. Wright gets deeply personal in that epilogue to prove her point, which is both great support for her argument and incredibly brave of her. I had to put this down at times because it made me so angry that not a lot seems to have changed for women, but that's why this book is such a necessary read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Abortion, Pregnancy
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Xenophobia, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Classism
Minor: Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, War
informative
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
informative
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Xenophobia
Moderate: Suicide, Blood, Abortion
informative
medium-paced
I learned so much from reading this book. Madame Restell is written in a conversational tone that is easy to read. Along with being a biography, there is a lot of history within these pages that I previously knew nothing about. I think that people who are interested in women's rights, biographies, New York City and history in general will enjoy and appreciate this biography. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.