800 Years of Women's Letters

Published by Bramley Books, 1997, hardcover, 298 pages, condition: very good.

Few books offer such an historical panorama of women's issues in such a small space. A remarkable voyage through time, cultures, and ways of being female.

This is a wonderful book. Arranged according to subject areas (such as Friendship, Marriage and Childbirth, Travellers and Travelling, and Political Skills) it contains a fascinating and insightful guide to the lives of women from the thirteenth century to the present day. It covers a wide variety of lifestyles from the rich and famous to the nun and factory worker, and relationships, with women writing to family members, lovers, husbands, friends and notable figures in society. Most of the letters are by British women but a good proportion of the come from other countries (USA, Spain, France, Nigeria, etc.) and so also allow the reader to compare lives geographically. The best thing, however, is that it shows women reflecting and commenting upon their own lives, often in candid and surprising ways. Olga Kenyon provides a lucid and intelligent commentary which serves to highlight the social and political importance of the material, whilst refraining from interfering with the voices contained within it. Highly recommended for the scholar or interested leisure reader alike.