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Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Life of America's First Poet
An illuminating biography of Anne Bradstreet, the first writer--and the first bestseller--to emerge from the wilderness of the New World. Puritan Anne Bradstreet arrived in Massachusetts in 1630, 18 years old and newly married to Simon Bradstreet, the son of a minister. She was accompanied by her imperious father, Thomas Dudley, and a powerful clutch of Protestant dissent...more
Hardcover, 352 pages
Published
March 23rd 2005
by Little Brown and Company
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Dear Mistress Gordon,
I have been raving about your book all week, during this vacation time when I have the pleasure to delight my soul! I told Lauren that MISTRESS BRADSTREET is a book about her -- that is, a strong woman who triumphs over the roles cast upon her, using her stealth, wisdom, and strength (and there are even some good men, thank goodness, who support and nurture and minister and love as they can).
There are very few books I encounter which make me consider t...more
I have been raving about your book all week, during this vacation time when I have the pleasure to delight my soul! I told Lauren that MISTRESS BRADSTREET is a book about her -- that is, a strong woman who triumphs over the roles cast upon her, using her stealth, wisdom, and strength (and there are even some good men, thank goodness, who support and nurture and minister and love as they can).
There are very few books I encounter which make me consider t...more
This is the best biography of Bradstreet that I've found, and it was a pleasure to read. Charlotte Gordon has a real love of her subject that comes through, not only in the careful and extensive research presented here, but in the sympathetic and believable storytelling that ties it all together. Bradstreet becomes a real, flesh-and-blood woman here, rather than the stereotypical Puritan or the hapless victim of an oppressive patriarchal society that she's often made out to be. Here, we see a...more
This book is a good example of how you can write a book worth reading about a person who has left very few traces in the historical record. Almost everything the author describes is prefixed with phrases like, "Anne must have felt..." or "Anne probably thought..." because, in truth, we know very little about what Anne Bradstreet thought or did.
Even so, the author has reconstructed the world Bradstreet lived in very compellingly by drawing on biographical informat...more
Even so, the author has reconstructed the world Bradstreet lived in very compellingly by drawing on biographical informat...more
I enjoyed reading about Mistress Bradstreet....On one hand she was almost too good....people that are too good make me nervous....But it was very interesting reading about her life in Colonial New England, being a first settler in towns I frequently ride through. To tell you the truth I don't particularly care for her poetry, but credit where credit is due...she had 8 kids and her husband was off doing colony stuff most of the time and women were supposed to dumb themselves down to keep the men...more
This book is as much a history of early Puritan immigration to America as it is a biography of Anne Bradstreet. Some of the author's conjectures about Bradstreet's motivations seemed to be over-reaching (she used the phrase "must have" a lot, as in "Anne must have felt..."). Nevertheless, it was a fascinating read, particularly because it discussed the founding of Boston and many of the other towns around this area. It was just so cool read this book while living here.
Super compelling; Anne Bradstreet is brilliant and interesting herself, but the story of the Puritan settlement of New England is really incredible. Charlotte Gordan does a great job, I think, of bringing the history to life, so to speak.
I was surprised that this book kept my interest to the very end. Very well written account of Anne Bradstreet and the Puritans entry to the Massachusetts colony in the 1600s. Ms. Gordon did an excellent job with the resources she had. Bravo!
What drew me to this book was the fact that Miss Bradstreet was not only America's first poet but that she was a woman! That was quite an accomplishment back in those days of yore.
This was a pretty good novel. I loved reading about this puritan girl and her beliefs. I believe that the author put too much of her opinion into the novel though. I would suggest this book to anyone who is looking for a biography to read for school expecially for an American Lit. of American History class.
The book was excellent in its scope of research, and Gordon's writing captures the imagination of her reader. I felt, however, that Gordon imposed modern ideas of psychology on her Puritan subjects and often makes unfair conjectures of motivation that, in my opinion, didn't reflect an accurate understanding of Puritan ideology.
However, I still recommend the book highly and am glad someone has written an accessible account of such a fascinating and instrumental figure in our nation's...more
However, I still recommend the book highly and am glad someone has written an accessible account of such a fascinating and instrumental figure in our nation's...more
Barbara
rated it
Recommends it for:
anyone interested in Colonial America or women's history/literature.
I really enjoyed this book. Before I read it, I knew nothing about Anne Bradstreet. Now, I feel very close to her. The book generously quoted her poetry, gave an excellent sense of what life must have been like in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and provided a lot of background on the Old England from which the Puritans had emigrated. It also had a lot of info on Anne Hutchinson, who is the subject of one of the next books on my to-read list.
I can't give this book just one star because I might have liked it had I finished it. It is very detailed and I just couldn't get through it all. Also, I was hoping for more bits and pieces of Bradstreet's poetry. Anne Bradstreet, the first published writer in America, made a very important contribution to the history of American literature. But I really did not get much out of this book.
a pioneer in literature... raised kids, lived the puritan life and then wrote fantastic poetry by candle light. pretty amazing woman, visit her home in ipswich.
Roxanne
rated it
Recommends it for:
people who like women's history, women poets, colonial women, or the overall colonial era
Shelves:
nonfiction,
poetry
A really excellent biography of Anne Bradstreet and also the story of the founding of New England.
I was not so interested in Bradstreet's poetry until after reading this.
Esther
marked it as to-read
Maria
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Caleb Smith
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Diana
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Amanda
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Guineverethecelt
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Connie
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Cpettitmiller
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