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A review by elempr
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert K. Massie
5.0
I really enjoyed this book. I was worried it would be too dry, but Massie somehow manages to include a plethora of factual information while simultaneously making the book an engaging telling of Catherine's story. I also appreciated Massie's insights as to the strengths and weaknesses of key players in the story, particularly Peter, Johanna, and Princess Dashkova. Massie presents individuals in shades of gray, avoiding the 2D characterizations so common other biographies. He paints Catherine not only as a thoroughly capable, intelligent woman who governed with compassion, but also as a person who was good-tempered, appreciated the arts, and loved to laugh.
I also appreciated most of Massie's digressions, though some readers may not. For me, it was enlightening to read brief accounts on Voltaire and Diderot, two philosophers Catherine greatly admired, because it helped me better understand her relationship to these men and their ideas. However, I found his discussion of the French Revolution extremely odd. For one thing, Massie launched into this discussion abruptly and with little transition, so that after a while I was wondering how this tied back to Catherine the Great. But what I found most confusing was Massie's brief, but disturbing musings on the guillotine - particularly his exploration of whether the severed heads of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette may have retained consciousness for some agonizing seconds. This had absolutely nothing to do with Catherine, and should have been cut by Massie's editor.
Overall, however, I thought this was a great book.
I also appreciated most of Massie's digressions, though some readers may not. For me, it was enlightening to read brief accounts on Voltaire and Diderot, two philosophers Catherine greatly admired, because it helped me better understand her relationship to these men and their ideas. However, I found his discussion of the French Revolution extremely odd. For one thing, Massie launched into this discussion abruptly and with little transition, so that after a while I was wondering how this tied back to Catherine the Great. But what I found most confusing was Massie's brief, but disturbing musings on the guillotine - particularly his exploration of whether the severed heads of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette may have retained consciousness for some agonizing seconds. This had absolutely nothing to do with Catherine, and should have been cut by Massie's editor.
Overall, however, I thought this was a great book.