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Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife: The Extraordinary Lives of Medieval Women
An invaluable reassessment of what we think we know about the daily lives of women in medieval Europe. Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife charts the life and times of four medieval women—Marie de France, a poet; Julian of Norwich, a mystic and anchoress; Christine de Pizan, a widow and court writer; and Margery Kempe, a no-good wife—who all bucked convention and forged their own path. Largely forgotten by modern readers, these women have an astonishing amount to teach us about love, marriage, motherhood, friendship, and earning a living. Through these four writers, Hetta Howes engagingly reveals how everyday women lived, survived, and thrived in medieval times. Who did they marry and why? Were they expected to have children? Did they ever have extramarital affairs? Could they earn money and become self-sufficient? How did they make friends? Could they be leaders? What did they think about death—and what about life and their place in it? While in many ways the Middle Ages was a terrible time to be a woman, there were areas of life that were surprisingly progressive. Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife paints a vibrant portrait of these women, their world, and the ways they speak to us today.
- GenresNonfiction
256 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication January 7, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
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August 2, 2024I ALSO NEED
August 18, 2024
I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to read this book.
Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife is a medieval journey based on four groundbreaking women. These four women (hence the excellently fit and creative title), with their norm-defying attitudes, bravery, honesty and determination, provide us with incredibly interesting insights about medieval life.
Howes’ prose is compelling and captivating. This title is by far the most informative and engaging non-fiction book that I have read on this matter to date. Howes’ approach to these cool women’s writing, life and what medieval life was like for women is a great addition to the literature, and thanks to the smooth blending with a fitting narrative, it is a wonderful addition to ‘literature’ as well.
Some things never change; they have not changed. Some things have - fortunately - changed a bit. This is a book about being a woman in a hostile society, child bearing, marriage, friendships, financial independence, brutal conditions, the universality of certain human emotions, needs and desires, the timelessness of resilience, standing up for yourself, and navigating irrational, discriminative or ignorant norms, practices, laws and the like. Oh, the ‘audacity’ of women.
Margery Kempe, you still shine a torch centuries later.
Thank you #netgalley and #bloomsbury. #hettahowes, may you give us more of these, please.
Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife is a medieval journey based on four groundbreaking women. These four women (hence the excellently fit and creative title), with their norm-defying attitudes, bravery, honesty and determination, provide us with incredibly interesting insights about medieval life.
Howes’ prose is compelling and captivating. This title is by far the most informative and engaging non-fiction book that I have read on this matter to date. Howes’ approach to these cool women’s writing, life and what medieval life was like for women is a great addition to the literature, and thanks to the smooth blending with a fitting narrative, it is a wonderful addition to ‘literature’ as well.
Some things never change; they have not changed. Some things have - fortunately - changed a bit. This is a book about being a woman in a hostile society, child bearing, marriage, friendships, financial independence, brutal conditions, the universality of certain human emotions, needs and desires, the timelessness of resilience, standing up for yourself, and navigating irrational, discriminative or ignorant norms, practices, laws and the like. Oh, the ‘audacity’ of women.
Margery Kempe, you still shine a torch centuries later.
Thank you #netgalley and #bloomsbury. #hettahowes, may you give us more of these, please.
August 27, 2024
This book is an exploration of the lives of medieval women, organized around (albeit sometimes very loosely) the lives of four women: Marie de France, Julian of Norwich, Christine de Pizan, and Margery Kempe. These were 'four different women who defied the expectations of their time and wrote back against the misogyny they experienced.' The author uses their own writing as well as other sources to describe what life was like for women, moving from childbirth to death, including marriage, adultery, travel, making a living, and influence in between. She states that all four of these women were 'trying to craft a legacy that would endure.' This book and others are witness to the fact that they succeeded, even if their work was unknown for a time.
This is a very enjoyable and informative book. It provides a fascinating glimpse into another time as well as showing us how some things continue hundreds of years later. It's a very readable book--lots of information but written in a very accessible style. If women's history in particular or medieval history in general interests you, then this is a great book to pick up.
I thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a digital review copy.
This is a very enjoyable and informative book. It provides a fascinating glimpse into another time as well as showing us how some things continue hundreds of years later. It's a very readable book--lots of information but written in a very accessible style. If women's history in particular or medieval history in general interests you, then this is a great book to pick up.
I thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a digital review copy.
July 28, 2024
Hetta Howes shines a bright spotlight on four women from the Middle Ages who have been almost forgotten or ignored for far too long. This period in history has always fascinated me and I know how very difficult it is to accurately research.
Marie de France, Christine de Pizan, Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe all lived before the era of mechanical printing but their writing continues to stand the test of time.
The author looks closely at her primary sources but also delves much deeper to reveal a compelling, surprising, and often shocking glimpse of what life and death was like for women in the Middle Ages. She offers a perceptive comparison between past and present and in some ways it is hard to believe just how much has hardly changed across the course of several centuries.
These four extraordinary women were determined to craft a legacy that endures. From them there is still so much we can learn. The past has never been more relevant now that we must face the dangers of an uncertain future.
Marie de France, Christine de Pizan, Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe all lived before the era of mechanical printing but their writing continues to stand the test of time.
The author looks closely at her primary sources but also delves much deeper to reveal a compelling, surprising, and often shocking glimpse of what life and death was like for women in the Middle Ages. She offers a perceptive comparison between past and present and in some ways it is hard to believe just how much has hardly changed across the course of several centuries.
These four extraordinary women were determined to craft a legacy that endures. From them there is still so much we can learn. The past has never been more relevant now that we must face the dangers of an uncertain future.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews