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Jul 11, 2011

Susan rated it:

If you don't see the “A Novel” part of the title, don't confuse this novel for an autobiography or a biography. Ms. Benjamin (aka Melanie Hauser) has taken the bits of available knowledge about Mrs. General Tom Thumb's life, and woven it into a fictionalized and highly entertaining story. Apparently, the actual autobiography read more like a travelogue and was a bit boring.

At 32” full-grown, Vinnie did not want to be defined by her size, wanted to make her own way in the world. Un More...

0 comments like (6 people liked it)

Oct 22, 2011

Orsolya rated it:

Enchanting, engaging, moving, and beautiful. These are just a few words which can amply describe The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb… and that was only by page 27!

The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb instantly grabs 110% of your attention with vivid imagery, bright descriptions, emotional currents, and a strong plot without the usual fictional fluff. A coming of age story, depicting self-acceptance and growth; The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb is a traditional theme and yet far fro More...

2 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 13, 2012

Leslie rated it:

While I understand that this book is a historical NOVEL, I think Ms. Benjamin would have been better served to write a novel about a fictional character. It is obvious that there was very little actual historical information about Vinnie Bump. Therefore, Ms Benjamin basically had to repeat herself over and over and over. After the first hundred pages, I wanted to throw the book or burn it for kindling. There are only so many ways to convey that Vinnie was a self-absorbed person with no idea that More...

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Oct 27, 2011

Linda rated it:

Born a dwarf in the early 1800s, Lavinia Bump was part of a loving family and community. She constantly chafed against the limitations she had not only as a dwarf, but as a woman. Women were not typically educated in the 19th century, but Lavinia not only learned, but was a teacher for a period of time. Yearning to move beyond her restrictive environment, she took a job as an entertainer on a riverboat just prior to the Civil War. The man who "recruited" her was believed to be a family More...

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Oct 08, 2011

Meg rated it:

I can finally review this book since our book club (The Jolly Girls Book Club, ha!) has met and discussed. Growing up next to Bridgeport, CT I have always been fascinated with Lavinia Warren who stood 2 ft. 8 inches tall and was perfectly porportioned. This book was written as if from Lavinia's own hand. At times Vinnie's character is very raw, and hard to like. I would then remember what it must have been like for her, and found it much easier to relate. She was stubborn, brave, selfish, loving More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 29, 2011

Jane rated it:

I picked up this book because it was on the "new arrivals" shelf at the library. I don't read a lot of historical fiction, but scanned the inside jacket, decided to give it a read and am glad I did. Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump, 32 inches high, is from a farming family concerned with what life possibilities were available to her. Perhaps against their own better judgment they allow her to go to school where she excels, becomes the school teacher. But she wants more - and boy, does she More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 24, 2011

Susan rated it:

I almost passed on The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb. There was a part of me when I first saw the title in my public library enews that felt like I was participating in the objectification of little people. I dare say after listening to Kim Mai's excellent performance of Melanie Benjamin's fictional story, that I found myself admiring Mrs. General Tom Thumb, aka Lavinia Mercy Warren Bump Stratton.

Ms. Benjamin creates a deep and strong character in Vinnie, as Mrs. Stratton was commo More...

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Aug 28, 2011

Betty rated it:

Review from Amazon.com:

This is a novelization about Mrs. Tom Thumb who stood 2 feet, 8 inches tall. The novel is told in the first person, Vinnie's (Mrs. TT) and just as the title says, like an autobiography.

I was completely charmed by this little two foot narrator even though she isn't perfect. She is strong, determined, prideful and ashamed both, arrogant, selfish, and yet also extremely loving. Throughout the novel, she does wrong and she does right, just like everyone els More...

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Aug 24, 2011

Catherine rated it:

I enjoyed Melanie Benjamin's first historical novel, Alice I Have Been because she thought through potential scenarios in the Alice Liddell/Charles Dodgson friendship, rather than just recycling rumor and innuendo as in Katie Roiphie's Still She Haunts Me. But while I've done a great deal of research into Lewis Carroll and his creations, I knew very little about Lavinia Warren. A performer with P.T. Barnum's operations, in the mid-late 19th century, she was several inches short of three feet t More...

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Aug 23, 2011

Melanie rated it:

Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump Stratton or ‘Vinnie’ to her friends and family was an actual woman in history standing a mere 32 inches tall. Prior to reading this novel I hadn’t heard Mrs. Tom Thumb. What a delight to learn about her rich history and character through Melanie Benjamin’s autobiographical novel. Wow does that seem like a conflict of terms. Vinnie had hoped to write an autobiography of her life, and had taken notes and written journals toward that goal. Her dream was not fulfilled More...

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Aug 22, 2011

Q. rated it:

"Uniquely Vinnie"

Put simply, I loved this book. The reasons off the top of my head: an atypical protagonist whom I can identify with (for example, the logical mind and always seeking something indefinable), the historical aspects, the celebrity aspects, the circus, the shows, the traveling. Vinnie Warren (Mrs. Tom Thumb) faces the world largely on her own terms — and largely alone, or in a tiny group of people.

Although the word “autobiography” appears in the ti More...

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Aug 10, 2011

Laurie rated it:

This isn’t really an autobiography, but fictionalized history told from the POV of Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump- Vinnie- who later married and became Mrs. Charles Stratton, AKA Tom Thumb. These were real people; famous in show business, touring the world and performing before presidents and royalty. While they were brought into show business because of their stature- they were little people- they elevated themselves above the sideshow acts so common in those days and were stage performers who sang More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 04, 2011

Felice rated it:

One of the biggest celebrities of the 19th century was the 32 inch tall Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump also known as Mrs Tom Thumb. Vinnie, as she was called, was born in Massachusetts in 1841. She was born into a normal sized family. Her three older siblings were all average height. Only Vinnie and her younger sister Mabel stopped growing as toddlers. They were perfectly proportioned dwarves.

Author Melanie Benjamin has already (Very!) successfully fictionalized the life of woman brou More...

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Jul 28, 2011

John rated it:

For fans of "Alice I Have Been", author Melanie Benjamin's first novel, you are in for a real treat with her new novel, "The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb". In my humble opinion Ms. Benjamin has shown a gift for choosing historical figures who have passed from the limelight and bringing their fascinating stories back to life in the enlightening and accessible form of the historical novel. I had never heard of Mercy Lavinia "Vinnie" Warren Bump, the future wife o More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jun 07, 2011

Jessi rated it:

I was amazed at this book. Who knew that such an incredibly fascinating person existed that I had never even heard of before. The story is a novel interpretation of the autobiography of an American proportionate dwarf named Lavinia Bump, "Vinnie", aka Mrs. Tom Thumb. The book chronicles her amazing life, from childhood until late adulthood. While the facts about the character are true-to-life, the interpretation of her feelings about the events, as well as specific details, may or may More...

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Apr 08, 2011

Candace rated it:

It gave me real pleasure to be the first person to "Like" Lavinia Warren on Facebook.

Vinnie would have been posting like mad and collecting friends like a fiend because her sense of self promotion was sure and timely. Born to a middle class Massachussetts family, proportional dwarfism caused her to grow to 2'8". A younger sister did not even make it that far, and so they were indeed well-proportioned tiny people in a family of strapping farmers. Vinnie became a teacher More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 21, 2011

Paula rated it:

A fascinating read about the life of Lavina Warren, a proportional dwarf who performed with P.T. Barnum and married another of Barnum's stars, Charles Stratton, the famous dwarf known as General Tom Thumb. The relationship between Lavinia (or "Vinnie," as she's known to her friends and family) and Barnum is fascinating and rings true: they were both extremely intelligent, determined individuals, who were willing to sacrifice their emotional needs for the sake of fame and fortune. Vinni More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 07, 2011

Ckg rated it:

Good historical fiction forces implants the desire within the reader to learn the facts that surround the narrative. This book does not disappoint. I finished this book a couple of weeks back and have been researching P.T. Barnum and his Museum of Curiosities since I shelved the book. I was completely unaware of Ms. Benjamin and if you follow my reviews, (which I was recently reminded, some do.), few and far between though they may be; you know about my reading difficulties. I'm not going to More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 28, 2011

Jeanne rated it:

Lavinia "Vinnie" Warren was born in 1841, an era in which career choices for women were limited, to say the least. However, Vinnie was a proportionate dwarf, i.e. she was perfectly proportioned woman but in miniature. Vinnie was 32 inches tall and decided that her size provided a path to opportunity.

The author did a marvelous job imagining Vinnie's world. Using Vinnie's own writings among other resources, she brings her to life. The author vividly describes the world fro More...

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Aug 15, 2011

Paul rated it:

“The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb” by Melanie Benjamin, published by Delacorte Press.

Category – Autobiography/Biography

Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump was born on October 31, 1841. She was born of normal parents but “Vinnie”, due to a medical condition, never grew taller than 32 inches. Her sister Minnie was only 27 inches tall, however her other sisters and brothers grew to normal heights.

Vinnie was a very determined young lady and was not going to let her size dete More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 08, 2011

Brian rated it:

If you flat out ask me, 'Do you like historical fiction?' I most likely will say no. However, after reading this book and thinking about it, I'd like to amend my answer to that question by saying that it depends on the topic. That being said, I've also come to a realization that I like books about circuses and carnie folks. I haven't' read one here on Goodreads, but if you look at my Shelfari, I have read several. I've read quite a few that have PT Barnum as a character. This book is about L More...

4 comments like (6 people liked it)

Feb 22, 2012

Beadyjan rated it:

A big book about a small lady. A novel based loosely on facts this is the life story of a tiny woman - Lavinia Warren Bump or Vinnie, just 28" high and perfectly proportioned born to poor farmers in pre civil war America who decides early on in life not to let her lack of height define her but to use it to give her an exciting life which helps her escape the constraints of small town life, see the world and meet many people, although finding true love remains very elusive.

She suc More...

1 comment like

Aug 25, 2011

Shari rated it:

This is not a true autobiography, but a fictionalized one told in that style, of Lavinia "Vinnie" Warren Bump, who was only two feet, 8 inches tall as an adult. She was most well known as being the wife of Charles Stratton, also known as General Tom Thumb, who also had dwarfism.

Vinnie was a remarkable woman; born in 1841, at a time when people like her were considered "freaks", she was not going to be content just to stay safely at home with her family. She spent More...

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Aug 24, 2011

Mandolin rated it:

If you miss the disclaiming "a novel" portion of the title, you may very well believe that this is an autobiographical work. Ms. Benjamin writes with such believable passion and feeling that it's hard to keep in mind that the book is a work of fiction. She brings Mrs. Tom Thumb, Lavinia Warren Bump, to life in a miraculous way and makes her - despite her diminutive size - a giantess in personality. I loved Vinnie from the beginning and, despite her faults, found her to be a charming More...

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Aug 12, 2011

Annika rated it:

This book was interesting only because of the protagonist. Had this same book been written in the same style and about a "normal" woman, it would've been terribly boring and slow.

Mrs. Tom Thumb's ("Vinnie" Warren Bump's) early life, life under PT Barnum's management, her marriage, and the very end of the book are the most interesting. There are too many slow, dragging places in this book. The story is told entirely through Vinnie's viewpoint, which would be okay, More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Sep 04, 2011

MAP rated it:

I won this book through a Goodreads Giveaway.

This is an excellent, excellent book. I've been interested in people involved in "the traveling life" ever since I stumbled upon Joseph Merrick's (the Elephant Man) story about 10 years ago. However, though I'd read a little about P.T. Barnum, Lavinia Warren Bump (AKA Mrs. Tom Thumb) is not someone who had really entered my consciousness.

The author does a great job of creating and growing Vinnie's character, as well as t More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 14, 2011

Jane rated it:

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Benjamin does an amazing job of bringing Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump Stratton, Vinnie, to life, showing the challenges she had as a little person, a woman, and a successful businesswoman. P. T. Barnum, always bigger than life, is a very sympathetic and engaging character as well. Vinnie's sister, Minnie, and General Tom Thumb (Charles Stratton) are also rendered in full as important minor characters. The travels throughout the U.S. during and before the Civil War a More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Sep 07, 2011

Karen rated it:

Another fabulous historical fiction novel by the author of Alice I Have Been. In this one, Melanie Benjamin takes on the story of the diminutive-but-larger-than-life Lavinia Warren Bump Stratton, also know as Mrs. Tom Thumb. A litte over two feet tall and perfectly proportioned, Vinnie knows from an early age that she wants more out of life than her role as small-town curiosity. She leaves home to embrace show business, first with a shady "cousin" on a traveling entertainment boat o More...

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Jul 08, 2011

Laura rated it:

What an enthralling novel! Now, normally I'm not one to get enthused about modern literature, the types of books full of high-minded ideals and deep subjects, books trumpeted by both critics and Oprah alike. However, this is one novel in which I would gladly join the masses and trumpet, push and generally talk it up to those that will listen. Because this is something else altogether, a book which stands apart from the masses of book-club reads and popular fiction. This is a larger-than-life tal More...

13 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 22, 2011

Diana rated it:

Read this book after a recommendation from the librarian. It is called an autobiography, but is really a novel. The author read a lot about Mrs. Tom Thumb (Mercy Lavinia "Vinnie" Warren Bump Stratton.....name is longer than she was tall) This tells the story of Vinnie from childhood and after finishing school, she becomes a school teacher. A man comes to her home and asks Vinnie and her parents if she can come star for him in a show on a steamship on the Mississippi. What a life More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)