A review by ruthiella
The Queen of Whale Cay: The Eccentric Story of 'Joe' Carstairs, Fastest Woman on Water by Kate Summerscale, Joe Carstairs

3.0

This was a very slim biography of a woman doomed to obscurity. At best, Joe Carstairs could be described as an eccentric. Sparked by an obituary, Summerscale attempts to tease out the life story of a woman who was briefly hailed in the early part of the 20th century as “The fastest woman on water”. Parts of the book are best taken with a whole shaker of salt since Carstairs by the author’s and her own admission embellished, misremembered and sometimes outright lied. Because there was so little documented information about Ms. Carstairs, the book occasionally feels padded, but if you are looking for non-fiction about a cross-dressing heiress whose best friend was a doll, this is the book for you.