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Mary, Queen of France (Tudor Saga #9)
by Jean PlaidyLegendary historical novelist Jean Plaidy brings to life the story of Princess Mary Tudor, a celebrated beauty and born rebel who would defy the most powerful king in Europe--her older brother.Princess Mary Rose is the youngest sister of Henry VIII, and one of the few people whom he adores unconditionally. Known throughout Europe for her charm and good looks, Mary is the golden child of the Tudor family and is granted her every wish.Except when it comes to marriage. Henry VIII, locked in a political showdown with France, decides to offer up his pampered baby sister to secure peace between the two mighty kingdoms. Innocent, teenage Mary must become the wife of the elderly King Louis, a toothless, ailing man in his sixties. Horrified and furious, Mary has no choice but to sail for France. There she hones her political skills, bides her time, and remains secretly in love with Charles Brandon, the Duke of Suffolk. When King Louis dies, after only two years of marriage, Mary is determined not to be sold into another unhappy union. She must act quickly; if she wants to be with the man she truly loves, she must defy the laws of church and state by marrying without her brother's permission. Together, Mary and Charles devise a scheme to outwit the most ruthless king in Europe and gain their hearts' desire, not knowing if it will lead to marital bliss or certain death. From the Trade Paperback edition.
Mary, Queen of Scotland and the Isles: A Novel
by Margaret George“A massive, erudite, and entertaining novel . . . skillfully weaves historical fact and plausible fiction” to tell the story of Mary Queen of Scots (New York Newsday).She was a child crowned a queen. . . .A sinner hailed as a saint. . . .A lover denounced as a whore . . .A woman murdered for her dreams . . .Margaret George’s national bestselling Mary Queen of Scotlandand the Isles brings to life the fascinating story of Mary, who became the Queen of Scots when she was only six days old. Raised in the glittering French court, returning to Scotland to rule as a Catholic monarch over a newly Protestant country, and executed like a criminal in Queen Elizabeth’s England, Queen Mary lived a life like no other, and Margaret George weaves the facts into a stunning work of historical fiction.“The best kind of historical novel, one the reader can’t wait to get lost in.” —San Francisco Chronicle“George has created a lively, gallant Mary of intelligence, charm and terrible judgment . . . A popular, readable, inordinately moving tribute to a remarkable queen.” —Kirkus Reviews“An engrossing novel. . . . [George’s] deep sympathy for her subject renders Mary an entirely real and unforgettable heroine.” —Publishers Weekly“Dramatic . . . Romantic . . . George makes Mary a heroine to identify with because of her spirit, wit and charm . . . A triumph.” —Houston Chronicle“An evocative portrait.” —The New York Times Book Review
Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley: And The Murder Of Lord Darnley
by Alison WeirHandsome, accomplished, and charming, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, staked his claim to the English throne by marrying Mary Stuart, who herself claimed to be the Queen of England. It was not long before Mary discovered that her new husband was interested only in securing sovereign power for himself. Then, on February 10, 1567, an explosion at his lodgings left Darnley dead; the intrigue thickened after it was discovered that he had apparently been suffocated before the blast. After an exhaustive reevaluation of the source material, Alison Weir has come up with a solution to this enduring mystery. Employing her gift for vivid characterization and gripping storytelling, Weir has written one of her most engaging excursions yet into Britain's bloodstained, power-obsessed past.From the Trade Paperback edition.
Mary, Queen of Scots: Now A Major New Film (The Stewart Dynasty in Scotland #8)
by Jenny WormaldThe acclaimed Scottish historian offers a provocative reassessment of one of British royalty&’s most famous figures in this authoritative biography. Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, has long been portrayed as one of history&’s romantically tragic figures. Devious, naive, beautiful and sexually voracious, often highly principled, she secured the Scottish throne and bolstered the position of the Catholic Church in Scotland. Her plotting, including probable involvement in the murder of her husband Lord Darnley, led to her flight from Scotland and imprisonment by her equally ambitious cousin and fellow queen, Elizabeth of England. Yet when Elizabeth ordered Mary&’s execution in 1587 it was an act of exasperated frustration rather than political wrath. Unlike previous biographies of Mary, this masterly study eschews her romantic persona in order to shine a light on her role as a renaissance monarch. A leading historian of the period, Jenny Wormald traces the roots of Mary&’s downfall to her way of dealing, or failing to deal, with the problems facing her as a ruler. She was tragic because she was born to supreme power yet wholly incapable of coping with its responsibilities.
Mary, Queen of Scots: Pride, Passion and a Kingdom Lost
by Jenny WormaldMary Stuart, Queen of Scots, was one of history's romantically tragic figures. Devious, naive, often principled, beautiful and sexually voracious, this was a woman who had secured the Scottish throne and bolstered the position of the Catholic Church in Scotland. Her endless plotting, including a probable involvement in the murder of her husband Lord Darnley, eventually led to her flight from Scotland and imprisonment by her equally ambitious cousin and fellow queen, Elizabeth I of England. And yet when Elizabeth ordered her unpredictable rival and kinswoman to be beheaded in 1587, she did so in resigned frustration rather than as an act of political wrath. Was the beheading of a cousin truly necessary? Did Mary, though churlish, petulant and often disloyal, deserve to forfeit the compassion of her cousin, a woman who had since childhood been her friend and playmate? Mary's fragile fate was to be born to supreme power whilst totally lacking in the political ability to deal with its responsibilities. Her story, which has inspired poets, playwrights and operatic composers of the centuries, is one of the most colourful and emotional tales of Western history, and is here told by a specialist of the 16th century.
Maryam's Magic: The Story of Mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani
by Megan ReidFrom Althea Gibson author Megan Reid and rising star artist Aaliya Jaleel, illustrator of Under My Hijab, comes the first picture book about trailblazing mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani, the first woman to win the world’s most prestigious honor in mathematics. Perfect for fans of Hidden Figures and Mae Among the Stars. As a little girl, Maryam Mirzakhani was spellbound by stories. She loved reading in Tehran’s crowded bookstores, and at home she'd spend hours crafting her own tales on giant rolls of paper. Maryam loved school, especially her classes in reading and writing. But she did not like math. Numbers were nowhere near as interesting as the bold, adventurous characters she found in books. Until Maryam unexpectedly discovered a new genre of storytelling: In geometry, numbers became shapes, each with its own fascinating personality—making every equation a brilliant story waiting to be told. As an adult, Maryam became a professor, inventing new formulas to solve some of math's most complicated puzzles. And she made history by becoming the first woman—and the first Iranian—to win the Fields Medal, mathematics’ highest award. Maryam's Magic is the true story of a girl whose creativity and love of stories helped her—and the world—to see math in a new and inspiring way.
Marzipan Bananas: And Other True Stories: Footnotes on Life and Faith
by Ed EwartWe never outgrow our appreciation for a good story, especially if it’s true! All of these stories are true in three important ways. First, they happened just as I have written them. Second, each is a snapshot of a teachable moment in my life that tattooed itself into me, got under my skin, and has colored who I am today. Finally, these stories are true because they resonate with the oldest and truest stories I know. Thousands of years ago, some grandpas began writing down their true stories of life and faith for their grandchildren. Their Bible stories are older and better than my stories, but mine are a kind of modern-day footnote to theirs. In spite of the thousands of years between us, the authors of Scripture and I believe that God speaks to us in our daily experiences. It is this grandfather’s privilege and joy to learn from what He has said and to pass it on.
María Cano. La virgen roja
by Beatriz Helena RobledoLa historia de de María Cano, precursora de la emancipación de las mujeres en Colombia. María Cano es uno de los personajes colombianos del siglo XX que han despertado especial interés en los últimos años. La igualdad de género y el feminismo han revivido la importancia de esta precursora de la emancipación política y social de las mujeres. Aunque existen bosquejos biográficos, este es el primer proyecto que puede considerarse una biografía como tal. Su autora, Beatriz Robledo, reconocida por su biografía de Rafael Pombo, se pone en la piel de una mujer sembró una forma de pensar y de relacionarse que marcaría el futuro. Este libro es además un retrato de la Medellín de principios del siglo XX y de una Colombia avocada al conflicto.
María Elena Walsh en la casa de Doña Disparate: Incluye el epistolario inédito entre María Elena Walsh y Victoria Ocampo
by María Elena WalshMaría Elena Walsh en la casa de Doña Disparate resulta una obra única que ilumina rincones inexplorados del alma de dos personalidades insoslayables. Este libro pone de relieve la amistad hasta ahora poco conocida, de dos mujeres esenciales para la cultura argentina: Victoria Ocampo y María Elena Walsh. Entre los documentos que constituyen el corazón de la obra se destaca un epistolario inédito, compuesto por cartas, dedicatorias e invitaciones que revelan, a lo largo de dos décadas (1960-1980), un vínculo cálido y lleno de complicidad, pero también de respeto y admiración mutuos entre estas dos creadoras. Este recorrido tiene otro hito fundamental en las colaboraciones de María Elena Walsh en la mítica revista Sur. Recién salida de la adolescencia, escribe allí sobre la condición femenina, traza un emocionado retrato de Juan Ramón Jiménez o defiende, sin concesiones populistas, el folklore como creación colectiva, casi anónima. A estos artículos se suman los poemas y las reseñas que nos descubren la pluma de una poeta exquisita y de una intelectual comprometida con la literatura y con su tiempo. Con prólogo de Leopoldo Brizuela, admirador de ambas mujeres, y una galería de fotografías bajo la supervisión de Sara Facio, que ofrece desde objetos personales hasta retratos.
María Estuardo, reina de Escocia: Edición estudiante – maestro (Mujeres legendarias de la Historia Mundial #3)
by Laurel A. RockefellerLa reina María Estuardo fue una de las más amadas y controversiales mujeres en la historia de Escocia. Nieta del rey James IV y su esposa Margaret Tudor, con un estatus de heredera aparente al trono inglés junto con la violencia de la Reforma Protestante Escocesa dio lugar a una de las vidas más dramáticas y poco entendidas del siglo XVI. Este libro cuenta la historia verdadera de María, enfocándose principalmente en su reinado como reina de Escocia, celebrando su vida más que su muerte y mostrándonos a todos nosotros porque era una mujer adelantada a su tiempo. La edición estudiante - maestro incluye preguntas de estudio después de cada capítulo, además de una cronología detallada y una extensa lista de lecturas sugeridas.
María Estuardo, reina de Escocia: El reino olvidado
by Laurel A. RockefellerLa reina María Estuardo fue una de las más amadas y controversiales mujeres en la historia de Escocia. Nieta del rey James IV y su esposa Margaret Tudor, con un estatus de heredera aparente al trono inglés junto con la violencia de la Reforma Protestante Escocesa dio lugar a una de las vidas más dramáticas y poco entendidas del siglo XVI. Este libro cuenta la historia verdadera de María, enfocándose principalmente en su reinado como reina de Escocia, celebrando su vida más que su muerte y mostrándonos a todos nosotros porque era una mujer adelantada a su tiempo.
María Magdalena
by Margaret GeorgeA través de la historia de María Magdalena, Margaret George narra un período clave de la Historia: el nacimiento del cristianismo. María Magdalena se caracterizó desde sus primeros años por su deseo de conocimiento, así como por sus visiones. Su encuentro con un joven profeta, Jesús, la ayudó a encontrar un sentido a su propia vida. María pasó a formar parte del círculo más cercano de Jesús, contribuyendo activamente a la forja de una nueva fe, no sin grandes sacrificios personales. Su elección, sin embargo, le obligó a renunciar a su marido y a su hija, un sacrificio que despertó toda clase de rumores que han llegado hasta nuestros días.
María of Ágreda: Mystical Lady in Blue
by Marilyn H. FedewaNews of María of Ágreda's exceptional attributes spread from her cloistered convent in seventeenth-century Ågreda (Spain) to the court in Madrid and beyond. Without leaving her village, the abbess impacted the kingdom, her church, and the New World; Spanish Hapsburg king Felipe IV sought her spiritual and political counsel for over twenty-two years. Based upon her transcendent visionary experiences, Sor María chronicled the life of Mary, mother of Jesus of Nazareth, in Mystical City of God, a work the Spanish Inquisition temporarily condemned. In America, reports emerged that she had miraculously appeared to Jumano Native Americans - a feat corroborated by witnesses in Spain, Texas, and New Mexico, where she is honored today as the legendary "Lady in Blue." Lauded in Spain as one of the most influential women in its history, and in the United States as an inspiring pioneer, Sor María's story will appeal to cultural historians and to women who have struggled for equanimity against all odds. Marilyn Fedewa's biography of this fascinating woman integrates voluminous autobiographical, historical, and literary sources published by and about María of Ágreda. With liberal access to Sor María's papal delegate in Spain and convent archives in Ágreda, Fedewa skillfully reconstructs a historical and spiritual backdrop against which Sor María's voice may be heard."Marilyn Fedewa has written a stirring portrait of María of Ágreda, a brilliant . . . remarkable player in major spiritual and secular events of [her] age." - Kenneth A. Briggs, former religion editor for the New York Times"A fascinating biography of an extraordinary woman told from the perspective of her 17th-century Spanish religious culture." - Clark A. Colahan, author of Visions of Sor María de Ágreda: Writing Knowledge and Power
Mas alla de mi / Reaching Out (Spanish Edition)
by Francisco JiménezFrom the perspective of the young adult he once was, Francisco Jiménez describes the challenges he faces when continuing his education. During his college years, the very family solidarity that allows Francisco to survive as a child is tested. Not only must he leave his family when his goes to Santa Clara University, but while Francisco is there, his father abandons the family and returns to Mexico. This is the story of how Francisco copes with poverty, with his guilt over leaving his family financially strapped, with his self-doubt about succeeding academically, and with separation. Once again, his telling is honest and true--and inspiring.
Masculinity and Film Performance
by Donna PeberdyMasculinity and Film Performance is a lively and engaging study of the complex relationship between masculinity and performance on and off screen, focusing on the performance of 'male angst' in American film and popular culture during the 1990s and 2000s. Building on theories of film acting, masculinity, performance, and cultural studies, this book establishes a framework for studying screen masculinity and provides close analysis of a range of performers and performance styles. It also examines the specific social, cultural, historical and political contexts that have shaped and affected the performance of masculinity on screen, such as the aging of the baby boom and the launch of Viagra onto the marketplace, the 'Iron John' and 'Wild Man' phenomenon, and the racially marked fatherhood crisis. Drawing from an array of illuminating film and actor case studies, including Bill Murray, Tom Cruise, Michael Douglas, Will Smith, William H. Macy, Denzel Washington, Broken Flowers, Far From Heaven, Pleasantville, Magnolia, and Wonder Boys, Donna Peberdyoffers a significant contribution to the emerging field of screen performance studies. "
Masculinity, Militarism and Eighteenth-Century Culture, 1689–1815
by Banister JuliaThis book investigates the figure of the military man in the long eighteenth century in order to explore how ideas about militarism served as vehicles for conceptualizations of masculinity. <P><P>Bringing together representations of military men and accounts of court martial proceedings, this book examines eighteenth-century arguments about masculinity and those that appealed to the 'naturally' sexed body and construed masculinity as social construction and performance. Julia Banister's discussion draws on a range of printed materials, including canonical literary and philosophical texts by David Hume, Adam Smith, Horace Walpole and Jane Austen, and texts relating to the naval trials of, amongst others, Admiral John Byng. <P>By mapping eighteenth-century ideas about militarism, including professionalism and heroism, alongside broader cultural concerns with politeness, sensibility, the Gothic past and celebrity, Julia Banister reveals how ideas about masculinity and militarism were shaped by and within eighteenth-century culture.<P> Provides a multifaceted discussion of the ideas surrounding the figure of the military man in the long eighteenth century.<P> Investigates ideas of masculinity through case studies of five court-martials of such men as Admiral John Byng.<P> Draws on the work of a range of writers from Hume to Austen as well as other less often studied printed sources.
Masetti: El periodista de la revolución
by Hernan Vaca NarvajaLa biografía de Jorge Ricardo Masetti, personaje fundante del periodismo latinoamericano, quien dedicó su vida a la causa revolucionaria y a la creación de un nuevo rol de la prensa en el continente. Masetti, además, fue el primer periodista argentino que entrevistó al Che Guevara en Sierra Maestra antes del triunfo de la Revolución cubana. En la famosa foto del Che, aquella de Korda que dio vuelta al mundo, había alguien más a quien la magia del revelado dejó a un costado: el argentino Jorge Ricardo Masetti. Fundador de Prensa Latina -la agencia de noticias cubana que llegó a pelearles el lugar a gigantes como la Associated Press y la United Press-, fue uno de los primeros en entrevistar a Fidel Castro y a Guevara cuando todavía combatían en Sierra Maestra. La aventura del periodismo fue un destino al que Masetti se entregó sin vacilaciones, con el mismo fervor con el que se incorporó a la causa revolucionaria, comandando el primer intento de guerrilla rural en la Argentina. Pero se ha perdido su rastro, y sus restos nunca fueron hallados en el monte salteño donde se instaló con sus camaradas de lucha. Tras entrevistar a muchos de los participantes de los hechos, consultar material inédito hasta ahora y revisar periódicos y publicaciones, Hernán Vaca Narvaja ha escrito un libro de aquellos que no se pueden dejar de leer. En su trabajo, la figura de Masetti se convierte en síntesis y símbolo de una época tan convulsionada como fascinante.
Mashi: The Unfulfilled Baseball Dreams of Masanori Murakami, the First Japanese Major Leaguer
by Robert K. FittsIn the spring of 1964, the Nankai Hawks of Japan’s Pacific League sent nineteen-year-old Masanori Murakami to the Class A Fresno Giants to improve his skills. To nearly everyone’s surprise, Murakami, known as Mashi, dominated the American hitters. With the San Francisco Giants caught in a close pennant race and desperate for a left-handed reliever, Masanori was called up to join the big league club, becoming the first Japanese player in the Major Leagues. Featuring pinpoint control, a devastating curveball, and a friendly smile, Mashi became the Giants’ top lefty reliever and one of the team’s most popular players—as well as a national hero in Japan. Not surprisingly, the Giants offered him a contract for the 1965 season. Murakami signed, announcing that he would be thrilled to stay in San Francisco. There was just one problem: the Nankai Hawks still owned his contract.The dispute over Murakami’s contract would ignite an international incident that ultimately prevented other Japanese players from joining the Majors for thirty years. Mashi is the story of an unlikely hero who gets caught up in an American and Japanese baseball dispute and is forced to choose between his dreams in the United States or his duty in Japan.
Mask and Flippers: The Story of Skin Diving
by Lloyd BridgesThrough his work in motion pictures, Lloyd Bridges appreciated the impact of skin diving upon this medium and presented an exciting picture of future possibilities in underwater photography. The author’s role in Sea Hunt made him keenly aware of the revolution developing in the fields of salvage diving, treasure hunting, search and rescue, science, gold mining, and other virgin areas open to skin divers with imagination and enterprise. He described methods, techniques, and tools already in use and gave an exciting glimpse of future possibilities.First published in 1960, here is the complete story of skin diving as an exciting new field for fun, adventure, and opportunity open to millions of average swimmers. Those who are willing to accept the challenge of exploring and conquering a new world can benefit from past mistakes and the accumulation of experience by early skin divers; and perhaps become tomorrow’s pioneers who have yet to conquer the problems of great depths and reap the harvest on the bottom of the sea.
Masked
by Alfred HabeggerA brave British widow goes to Siam and-by dint of her principled and indomitable character-inspires that despotic nation to abolish slavery and absolute rule: this appealing legend first took shape after the Civil War when Anna Leonowens came to America from Bangkok and succeeded in becoming a celebrity author and lecturer. Three decades after her death, in the 1940s and 1950s, the story would be transformed into a powerful Western myth by Margaret Landon's best-selling book "Anna and the King of Siam" and Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical "The King and I. " But who was Leonowens and why did her story take hold? Although it has been known for some time that she was of Anglo-Indian parentage and that her tales about the Siamese court are unreliable, not until now, with the publication of "Masked," has there been a deeply researched account of her extraordinary life. Alfred Habegger, an award-winning biographer, draws on the archives of five continents and recent Thai-language scholarship to disclose the complex person behind the mask and the troubling facts behind the myth. He also ponders the curious fit between Leonowens's compelling fabrications and the New World's innocent dreams-in particular the dream that democracy can be spread through quick and easy interventions. Exploring the full historic complexity of what it once meant to pass as white, "Masked" pays close attention to Leonowens's midlevel origins in British India, her education at a Bombay charity school for Eurasian children, her material and social milieu in Australia and Singapore, the stresses she endured in Bangkok as a working widow, the latent melancholy that often afflicted her, the problematic aspects of her self-invention, and the welcome she found in America, where a circle of elite New England abolitionists who knew nothing about Southeast Asia gave her their uncritical support. Her embellished story would again capture America's imagination as World War II ended and a newly interventionist United States looked toward Asia. "
Masks and Facades: Sir John Vanbrugh the Man in his Setting (Routledge Revivals)
by Madeleine BinghamFirst published in 1974, Masks and Facades paints an authentic picture of John Vanbrugh as a man of character, talent, wit and charm, moving in an age where patronage held the key to worldly advancement. Yet against a backcloth of theatre, of the great palaces of the aristocracy, and the sycophancy which Court, rank and riches demanded, he always remained his own man. Whether imprisoned in the Bastille as the ‘guest’ of Louis XIV, or in his long contest with the insufferable Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough over the building of Blenheim, he invariably retained his balance and good humour, and as he said of one of his own buildings, ‘presented a manly appearance.’ This book will be of interest to students of history and literature.
Masks of the Prophet: The Theatrical World of Karl Kraus
by Karl Grimstad'When the name "Hitler" is mentioned, nothing occurs to me' – so said Karl Kraus. For this leading Viennese Jewish critic and intellectual the touchstone of art was ethics. How could he be speechless in the face of a threat to all that ethics means? To answer this question, the author makes a detailed chronological study of Kraus's intellectual activity as reflected in his work on the theatre. The results are presented in five chapters, each dealing with a different 'mask' adopted by Kraus during the period 1892-1936. Grimstad considers not only theatre and drama criticism in Die Fackel and Kraus's dramatic writings, but also biographical data, to help uncover the rationale of his work. That rationale is the logic of the theatrical mode in which he lived and wrote. The stage was not only his subject matter, it determined what he would see and say. Grimstad argues that when Kraus wrote, his words were the speech of an 'actor' who was often infatuated with himself and obsessed with the need to overwhelm his rival 'actors.' When Hitler's storm-troopers began their march, he could say nothing for the world in which his thought took shape had become a world of theatrics, not 'Realpolitik.' Kraus criticized plays without reading them and performances without seeing them, obsessed with the belief that his was the voice of all that was true, good, and beautiful. Grimstad observes that he was a prophet who confused the divine inspiration with the Thespian urge, playing to an audience, using a mask for each of his roles, yet thinking he spoke to all mankind, bringing them pure ethos. This volume will be of particular interest to those working in the fields of theatre criticism, comparative literature, German literature, and Jewish intellectual history.
Masquerade: A True Story of Seduction, Compulsion, and Murder (A\true Story Of Seduction, Compulsion, And Murder Ser.)
by Lowell CauffielA psychologist&’s secret life on the seedy side of Detroit gets him entangled with a prostitute—and her murderous pimp—in a &“compelling work of true crime&” (Detroit Free Press). In the exclusive suburb of Grosse Pointe, Alan Canty was a respected psychologist, with clients drawn from wealthy families across Detroit. But at night, he ventured into the city&’s seedy south side, where, under the name Dr. Al Miller, he met with prostitutes. One girl in particular caught Dr. Al&’s eye: a skinny teenage drug addict named Dawn, an ex-honor student who had fallen under the spell of a pimp named Lucky. Canty became their sugar daddy, spending thousands to buy them clothes, cars, and gifts. But when the money ran out, Canty&’s luck went with it—and he was soon found hacked to pieces, his body scattered across Michigan. Covering the trial for the local press, Lowell Cauffiel became enthralled by this story of double lives and double crosses. In this thrilling true crime tale, Cauffiel shows what happens when deception turns fatal.
Masquerade: The Life and Times of Deborah Sampson, Continental Soldier
by Alfred F. YoungAlfred F. Young scrapes through layers of fiction and myth to uncover the story of Deborah Sampson, a Massachusetts woman who passed as a man and fought as a soldier for seventeen months toward the end of the American Revolution. Deborah Sampson was not the only woman to pose as a male and fight in the war, but she was certainly one of the most successful and celebrated. She managed to fight in combat and earn the respect of her officers and peers, and in later years she toured the country lecturing about her experiences and was partially successful in obtaining veterans' benefits. Her full story, however, was buried underneath exaggeration and myth (some of which she may have created herself), becoming another sort of masquerade. Young takes the reader with him through his painstaking efforts to reveal the real Deborah Sampson in a work of history that is as spellbinding as the best detective fiction.
Masquerade: The Lives of Noël Coward
by Oliver Soden'This is the biography - truthful, sympathetic and thorough - that Coward deserves'DAILY TELEGRAPHThe voice, the dressing-gown, the cigarette in its holder, remain unmistakable. There is rarely a week when one of Private Lives, Hay Fever, and Blithe Spirit is not in production somewhere in the world. Phrases from Noël Coward's songs - "Mad About The Boy", "Mad Dogs and Englishman" - are forever lodged in the public consciousness. He was at one point the most highly paid author in the world. Yet some of his most striking and daring writing remains unfamiliar. As T.S. Eliot said, in 1954, "there are things you can learn from Noël Coward that you won't learn from Shakespeare".Coward wrote some fifty plays and nine musicals, as well as revues, screenplays, short stories, poetry, and a novel. He was both composer and lyricist for approximately 675 songs. Louis Mountbatten's famous tribute argued that, while there were greater comedians, novelists, composers, painters and so on, only "the master" had combined fourteen talents in one. So central was he to his age's theatre that any account of his career is also a history of the British stage. And so daring was Coward's unorthdoxy in his closest relationships, obliquely reflected throughout his writing, that it must also be a history of sexual liberation in the twentieth century. In Oliver Soden's sparkling, story-packed new Life, the Master finally gets his due.