January 10, 2020

 Lady Clementine: by Marie Benedict

Genre/Categories: Biographical Historical Fiction, WW1 and WW11, England

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Thanks #netgalley #sourcebooks #sbkslandmark for a free e ARC of #ladyclementine in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Summary:

Clementine Churchill is the devoted wife, partner, and best friend of Winston Churchill. Lady Clementine is brilliant, ambitious, innovative, and fascinating, and she devotes all her energy and loyalty to her husband and country.

My Thoughts:

An underappreciated woman in history….

Packed With Historical Details: Author Marie Benedict condenses decades of history as she relates the story of Clementine Churchill. The story is rich in historical details and descriptions of events, people, and places. If you love WW1 and WW11 history from an English perspective, you might enjoy Benedict’s well-researched and candid portrayal of Lady Clementine and her various achievements.

An Interesting Historical Character: Lady Clementine is a somewhat difficult review for me to write in the respect that I have conflicting thoughts about Lady Clementine. Although she contributed greatly to Winston Churchill’s success, the delegation of the care of their five children to the almost exclusive oversight of a nanny disappointed me. I DO think it’s possible for women to have a dual career of work and family, but Clementine clearly found the role of a nurturing parent challenging. As a result of personal stress and a zealous commitment to work, to entertain, and to support Winston, she needed frequent solo vacations…..one lasted four months. I did feel empathy for her at a few points when it seemed she might be suffering from bouts of postpartum depression, mental stress, and exhaustion. Benedict created a remarkable complete portrait of this complicated woman.

Lady Clementine was relentless in the causes and concerns to which she was committed. She was a tireless champion for women’s rights and equal opportunities for women. During WW11, her work to improve shelters for London citizens and her other work with charitable projects was impressive. However, for me, all of these positive achievements were overshadowed by her lack of involvement with her children. She did feel guilty from time to time, but she never felt convicted to put their needs before (or even on par with) her own. Her life was consumed by her partnership with Winston and service to England. Lady Clementine highly valued her contributions to Winston, the War, and the Nation, and she was disappointed that she didn’t receive the public recognition she felt she deserved for her hard work and forward thinking.

Recommended: Yes, I recommend Lady Clementine as an important and thought provoking read for fans of well-researched WW1 and WW11 histfic, for readers who appreciate stories about strong, complicated, and independent women who have been overlooked in history books, and for book clubs who enjoy books that read like narrative nonfiction.

My Rating: 4 Stars

Lady Clementine Information

Meet the Author, Marie Benedict

Once a New York City lawyer, Marie Benedict had long dreamed about a fantastical job unraveling the larger mysteries of the past as an archaeologist or historian — before she tried her hand at writing. While drafting her first book, she realized that she could excavate the possible truths lurking in history through fiction, and has done so in THE OTHER EINSTEIN, the story of Mileva Maric, Albert Einstein’s first wife and a physicist herself, and CARNEGIE’S MAID, the story of a brilliant woman who may have spurred Andrew Carnegie toward philanthropy. Her upcoming novel, THE ONLY WOMAN IN THE ROOM, will release in January of 2019. She is a graduate of Boston College and the Boston University School of Law, and lives in Pittsburgh with her family.

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QOTD!

Is Lady Clementine on your TBR?

Do you appreciate stories about women who have been underappreciated in history books?

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ICYMI

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