false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170265618m/44538.jpg 44538 7 One of the satisfactions of Emma Donoghue's masterful fourth novel, <I>Life Mask</I>, is the tension between the writer's contemporary interests, like lesbianism and the balance of power in marriage, and her 18th Century subject matter. <I>Life Mask</I> is a fictional recreation of a plausible (but unproven) love triangle between the comedic actress Eliza Farren, the sculptor Anne Damer (the niece of Horace Walpole, a fantastic minor character here), and Edward Smith-Stanley, the twelfth Earl of Derby, a Whig (liberal) politician who left his name to the horse race he founded. Like her bestseller <I>Slammerkin</I>, the novel spins an intricate story from the slightest of historical traces, in this case a single reference in the commonplace book of Hester (Thrale) Piozzi: a snarky four-line epigram that hints at the danger to Miss Farren's reputation in consorting with "one whose name approaches 'Damn Her.'"<p> Readers who stay with Donoghue through the crowded and confusing early chapters of <I>Life Mask</I> will find a skillful, partly sympathetic portrait of English aristocracy during and after the French Revolution, a trove of period detail, and a spellbinding tale of unlikely but enduring love. <I>--Regina Marler</I> 43895 2004 Life Mask total:226|5:31|4:81|3:74|2:30|1:10| 226 771 425 39 3 0 false false Fri Jul 17 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 17 09:22:01 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 17 10:27:51 -0700 2009 Life Mask is an incredibly detailed and long novel examining the intersecting lives of several of the Beau Monde in 18th century England. Here, Donoghue reanimates actual historical figures including the actress Eliza Farren, the Earl of Derby, the author Horace Walpole, and the sculptor Anne Damer...more...]]> 1 1 true false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sat Apr 21 15:15:00 -0700 2007 Sat Apr 21 20:21:59 -0700 2007 3 1 false false Tue Mar 04 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Feb 24 16:10:44 -0800 2008 Tue Mar 04 15:11:24 -0800 2008
1. It´s no Slammerkin
2. What editor allowed this to be so long, for no reason?



]]> 3 1 false false Tue May 19 09:24:31 -0700 2009 Tue May 19 09:24:31 -0700 2009 This novel is based on actual historical figures, and it’s set in England, around the time of the French Revolution. The protagonist is a sculptor, a rare occupation for women at that time, and there are rumors that she is a “Sapphist”. The novel is very well-written, but one does get...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Jan 31 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 16:49:55 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 31 06:44:35 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 26 18:30:39 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 26 18:31:03 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Sun Apr 29 14:16:34 -0700 2007 Sat Jul 21 10:39:03 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Apr 06 17:14:15 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 02 13:43:49 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Nov 27 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 17 18:47:21 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 29 17:41:23 -0800 2008 1 more...]]> 2 0 false false Fri May 29 07:49:06 -0700 2009 Fri May 29 07:49:55 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Jul 03 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 25 13:01:27 -0700 2008 Thu Jul 03 16:03:05 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu May 29 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri May 02 15:54:29 -0700 2008 Thu May 29 23:09:03 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon May 18 21:24:34 -0700 2009 Mon May 18 21:24:34 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Thu Mar 19 18:18:06 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 19 18:18:58 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Tue Jul 15 13:14:06 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 15 13:14:28 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Aug 03 13:33:22 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 03 13:33:54 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed Apr 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 19 06:12:44 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 08 07:52:02 -0700 2009
I'll just cut the the chase this time. Life Mask was long and complicated. At times it felt slow in meandering, but in the end I felt it was well worth the read.]]> 4 0 false false Wed Mar 04 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 28 15:36:20 -0800 2009 Wed Mar 04 17:55:36 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Tue Apr 22 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 15 18:04:26 -0700 2008 Wed Apr 30 17:36:20 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Apr 09 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Apr 05 17:03:27 -0700 2008 Wed Apr 09 18:06:48 -0700 2008 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=44538