Anne Northup: Slavery and the Birth of American Cuisine

Two of my favorite things are history and food, when I can combine them both, I’m in heaven. I dream of doing an American version of the BBC TV-show Supersizers Go. Imagine getting to time-travel through almost four hundred years of American cuisine. I enjoy reading about restaurants such as Delmonico’s and the lobster palaces like Rector’s that used to litter Times Square around the turn of the century. When I travel, I actively search out places, where it’s a café, a pub, or a restaurant that has a sense of history. In New Orleans, I once ate at Antoine’s (which is pretty much a tourist trap now) just because my boyfriend wanted to sit in the same room where they filmed a scene from JFK. So when I learned that the Morris-Jumel mansion had planned an event involving Solomon Northup’s wife, Anne, I quickly signed up.

With “12 Years A Slave” nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, it seemed appropriate to have an event that celebrated the woman that he unwillingly left behind, when he was kidnapped into slavery. Anne Northup was born in 1808 in a town called Sandy Hill in upstate New York. Like Solomon, she was born free. She was of mixed race, African, Caucasian and Native American. From a young age, she apprenticed in the kitchens of the taverns in the nearby towns. She worked at the Eagle Tavern & Sherrill’s Coffee House, eventually becoming not just a skilled cook but also a kitchen manager. She was an ambitious, independent free African-American woman in 19th century New York. In 1828, she married Solomon with whom she had 3 children, Margaret, Elizabeth and Alonzo. The couple owned a farm in Hebron in Washington County, but they also worked at various jobs to provide a better life for their children. After they moved to Saratoga Springs, Anne worked from time to time at the United States Hotel and other public houses, gaining a reputation for her culinary skills. At the time that Anne and Solomon lived in Saratoga, there were about 65 free black families that lived in the area, providing a growing labor force.

While living in Saratoga, Anne Northup made the acquaintance of Eliza Jumel, who spent her summers in the resort town. After Solomon’s disappearance, Eliza invited Anne and her children to come live and work in her mansion in New York City where they lived for several months. Alonzo worked as an apprentice to Madame Jumel’s coachman. No doubt Elizabeth and Margaret helped Anne out in the kitchen. After a few months, Anne moved back upstate, where she worked for several families and establishments in the area. Anne eventually worked on and off for Madame Jumel for three years. No doubt she felt that if Solomon could manage to smuggle a letter out, which he did at least three times, he would contact her there. Historians know that Anne worked for Madame Jumel for a few months, because she later testified during the struggle over Madame Jumel’s will, which was a regular Bleak House affair.

The day started off at 3 pm with a talk by Professor Jane Lancaster from Brown University, who is writing a biography of Eliza Jumel. She discussed the relationship between Anne and Eliza Jumel. According to Professor Lancaster, because Eliza had grown up in a multiracial brothel run by madam of color, she had a more tolerant attitude towards race relations than was common at the time. Eliza inviting the family to come to New York wasn’t charity by any means. Anne, no doubt, worked hard for Madame Jumel. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if Eliza used what influence she might have had to try and help Anne find Solomon.

After Jane Lancaster’s talk, local historian Greg Washington took us on a brief tour of the mansion and the local neighborhood as Anne would have experienced them in the 1840's. Unfortunately it was cold as hell outside, so most of us just stood around shivering while he talked. He talked briefly on the differences between slavery in the North and the South. While both Solomon and Anne were born free, Solomon’s father was not, although his father was freed in his master’s will. Slavery had only been abolished in New York in 1827. The South’s economy was mainly agriculturally based, with slaves providing the labor force, whereas in the North, manufacturing and industry began to become major players. Most families in the North, if they had slaves, probably only had two or three.

At the end of Greg’s tour, we gathered in the kitchen where food historian Tonya Hopkins shared with us a little bit of what Anne’s life would have been like working in the kitchen. The kitchen at the Jumel mansion currently looks more colonial than Victorian. Anne, however, would have had access to the latest invention, the stove by the time she came to work for Madame Jumel. The kitchen is quite small although larger than most New York apartments. I tried hard to imagine what it would have been like for Anne in the kitchen, roasting a chicken in the hearth, baking bread in the oven. It must have been incredibly strenuous. Her only help probably would have been her daughters.

Finally at around 6 pm, came the highlight of the evening, dinner. Curated by food historian Tonya Hopkins, the dinner recreate some recipes that would have been familiar to Anne, for a three-course formal dinner, while leading a conversation about Anne’s life and career. The meal was prepared by Chef Heather Jones and a staff pulled from ICE (Institute of Culinary Education) and the CIA (Culinary Institute of America). Tonya explained to us that menus, as such, didn’t exist back in the early 19^th century. Guests would have found out what was for dinner until they sat down at the table. While talking about the influences on Anne’s cooking, Tonya mentioned that most of the black population in the North would have come from the West Indies. This lead to what could be called a “creolelization” of food. Tonya pointed out that soul food is actually American food, all American food essentially is fusion food, a mélange of tastes and recipes from all the immigrants to this country.

Indian Meal Bread

 

Our first course was Indian meal bread and pepper pot soup (which was George Washington’s favorite). The bread, which tasted a lot like corn bread, was made with white corn meal and lots of molasses, baked in a skillet. It was delicious and reminded of the corn muffins we made in social studies class in 3^rd grade when we were studying The Iroquois. The pepper pot soup, which is West Indian in origin, was made with collard greens, allspice, oxtail, and habanero or scotch bonnet peppers. I only had a taste, since I don’t eat red meat, but it was quite peppery. We were also given the choice of hock (white wine like a Riesling) or claret (Bordeaux). I chose the hock since the tannins in red wine give me a headache.



Pepper Pot Soup

There was a bit of discussion of whether or not Anne would have been able to support her 3 children as a cook in the 19^th century. Apparently a critic of the film suggested that it wouldn’t have been possible. Tonya told us that she believed that since Anne had a reputation as a chief, and was in high demand, that it would have been possible but that Anne might have been paid in room and board, and her children probably went to work at an early age to help make ends meet.

Our second course was a dandelion salad with lardons and a hit of balsamic. I had never had dandelion greens before, as far as I was concerned they were weeds, but they were quite tasty if a bit bitter. Tonya informed us that Anne’s recipes were not written down because she was illiterate. All of her knowledge would have been in her head. Our dinner was based on dishes that she might have cooked at the establishments where she worked. Her only known recipe is for something called cracker toast. You take crackers, spread them with butter and then soaked in milk, then toasted in the oven until the milk is gone. To create the menu for the dinner, Tonya examined all the menus and recipes from the places that Anne had worked, the Eagle Tavern, the United States Hotel, also regional cooking in the area in upstate New York where Anne lived.

The main course was ham in a Madeira sauce and roast chicken with apple sauce, glazed turnips, and mashed potatoes. I normally don’t eat meat, but I was starving, so I hate the chicken which was delicious, as were the turnips, a root vegetable that I don’t normally eat. And finally for dessert, we had something called a jumble (another word for cookie) that was sort of like a spice cookie. It was flavored with cinnamon, nutmeg and rosewater.

It was such a fabulous evening, and the people at my table were wonderful, that I didn’t want to leave. I hope that the Morris-Jumel mansion does more events like this. I would also love to do my “Noted and Notorious New York Women,” lecture for them as well.  For another account of the evening, here is a link to an article written by my tablemate Sylvia Wong Lewis.

REIGN: "For King and Country" & "Sacrifice" SPOILER ALERT

You guys, this show is twisting itself in knots to try and figure out ways to keep Mary and Francis from getting married.  As you probably recall, Nostradamus predicted that marriage to Mary will be the death of Francis. And Henry, for some reason, decided that it's vitally important that Mary stake her claim to the throne of England. Diane de Poitier's plot to have Bash legitimized was discovered, so she convinced Bash to leave the court.

I can't even begin to recap these episodes.  Both of them hit new heights of ridiculousness.  "In For King and Country," Mary decides that there is only one way for her to keep Francis safe.  She tells King Henry that she will stake her claim to the English throne but there is a catch.  Henry has disinherit Francis and legitimize Bash, who she'll marry him instead. Henry hesitates for only a minute before agreeing.  Seriously? This plot is so ridiculous, I can only imagine the writers were smoking something when they came up with it.  Henry immediately decides to head to Rome to have a confab with the Pope about divorcing Catherine and legitimizing Bash.  First of all, the idea that the King had to go to Rome himself is absurd. That's what you have emissaries for! Did Henry VIII go to Rome for his divorce from Catherine of Aragon? Nope!

Of course, Francis ends up learning about the prediction. And of course he pleads with Mary not to throw away what they have on silly superstition.  Clearly he hasn't seen this show. Finally Francis just washes his hands of the whole thing, and decides to hightail it out of Dodge to go have a life now that he's not the heir to the throne anymore.  Catherine ends up being held prisoner in the dungeon.

Meanwhile, the man of the hour, Nostradamus is stabbed in the neck by Clarissa, the girl in the burlap sack. And we don't even find out what happens to him in the next episode! Is he lying dead in the basement? I guess everyone is so busy with the whole "Bash will be the next king," idea that Nostradamus has completely been forgotten.

The next episode, 'Sacrifice,' was all about whether or not Bash really has it in him to be the next King of France.  The episode opens with him having to listen to people's grievances.  A young woman is brought before him who is accused of being a traitor.  She's also heavily pregnant.  It's clear that Bash knows her, and Mary immediately jumps to the conclusion that he's knocked her up.  It turns out that she's his sort of cousin, her father was executed as a traitor but it turns out that he was really one of the heretics.  Oh, and another woman tries to kill Bash but only ends up nicking his new bodyguard/fencing instructor.

Of course this is all part of one of Catherine's plans to ruin Bash.  She's like the Wiley E. Coyote of the French court. Apparently if anyone finds out that Bash is related to this traitor, he will never be able to be King. Mary, who is nothing if not helpful, decides to help Bash escort Isabella somewhere safe before she gives birth. After taking away all of Catherine's luxuries, Mary leaves the Three Stooges aka Lola, Greer and Kenna to watch Catherine to keep her from pulling any funny business.

Bash, Mary, and Isabelle ending up getting stuck in The Dark Forest where evil lurks aka heretics. They set up a tent for the night and Bash puts up protective symbols to keep them safe which Mary tears down thinking they were put there by the heretics.  She then realizes that Bash's family are also heretics.  She and Bash argue about the whole thing which was pretty boring, and Mary was incredibly judgmental (wait until she gets back to Scotland and has to deal with Presbyterians!). Frankly by this point, I was bored with the entire episode.  I didn't care about Isabelle and her baby, or the pagans in the woods.

The only interesting bit in the whole episode was Catherine de Medici taunting Kenna. The best line of the night, of course, belonged to Catherine. "Where are you going? I'm not done abusing you yet. You're taking away all my amusement." And then Lola, who is the only one of three to really have any brains, tells Catherine that they have forged letters from her plotting against the King which she threatens to make public if any harm comes to Bash or Mary.

The sad thing about this show is that if the real Mary, Queen of Scots had been this strong, decisive, and level-headed she might have kept her throne and not ended up on the chopping block. She even offers Bash a way out, telling him that he doesn't have to marry her and become King, that she would understand if it was all too much for him. Bash, to his credit, tells her no that he's willing to go through with it if only so that he has a storyline on this show.

Nothing of real historical significance happened in either of these two episodes.

My Night with Madame Jumel

The Morris-Jumel mansion at night taken by Leanna Renee Hieber

 

Last November, I decided to do something different for my birthday. Instead of going out for dinner or having drinks at one of my favorite bars, I decided to invite a few friends to join me for a paranormal sleepover at the Morris-Jumel mansion here in Manhattan. The mansion, which is located less than twenty blocks from my house, is one of the oldest structures in Manhattan. It is a jewel of a museum, a pre-revolutionary mansion once owned by Roger Morris, a loyalist who left New York to return to England. The house was then used as George Washington's headquarters for a few months before the British took the city.

Later the mansion was bought by a wine merchant by the name of Stephen Jumel, who lived in the mansion with his much younger wife Eliza. You can read guest blogger Audrey Braver's post on Eliza Jumel Burr here. Eliza Jumel was a piece of work to say the least. Not many people know her name now but she was the subject of several historical novels over the years. I'm amazed that there hasn't been a major biography about her. I've become a little obsessed with her myself.

The paranormal sleepover was the night of my birthday, November 2nd, which also happens not only Marie Antoinette's birthday, was also All Soul's Day or the Day of the Dead. It was the perfect night, when the veil between the living and the dead is supposed to be at its thinnest.  I didn't own a sleeping bag, (I'm a total Bloomingdale's camper), so I moseyed on over to Target to pick one up. For the grand sum of $21, I was fully equipped for my night in the mansion.

The evening started at around 8 pm. It was kind of eerie walking up to the mansion from Broadway. I'd only ever been up to the mansion in the daytime. I could imagine horse drawn carriages pulling up the drive to drop guests off for an evening supper and dance at the mansion. Tea, coffee, and snacks awaited us. My friends, paranormal author Leanna Renee Hieber and her husband, and bookseller Stacey Agdern joined me for the adventure.

I've been fascinated by the paranormal since I was a child. I've done past life regressions (and no, I wasn't anyone famous!).  I watch Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures on TV. There have even been instances in my life that I can't explain, the feeling that my parents, who are deceased, watch over me.  So I guess you can say that I'm a skeptical believer. Still I wasn't sure that we were going to have any sightings at the mansion.

“Acoustic Archives” presented their findings from previous readings at the mansion. One of the docents then took us on a tour of the mansion, giving us details of the various sightings of Madame Jumel over the years. From there we went down to the kitchen and there's where the magic happened.  EVF meters were handed out for those of us who wanted to measure any paranormal activity.  There was a clear presence in the kitchen near where Stacey, Leanna and I were sitting.  I'm not kidding you, the meter went off the charts where we sitting on bench in the back, and when we moved to a different bench, the presence (whatever it was) followed us. And it was distinctly chilly where we were sitting which shouldn't have been the case given how many people were in the kitchen. Normally, the more people, the warmer the room. We weren't even sitting near the back door.

Eventually we joined the men (we had kicked them out earlier because  we thought they were inhibiting any women spirits who might be in the kitchen) upstairs in Eliza Jumel's bedroom. And that's when s*%t started to get real.  One of the guys from Acoustic Archives set up a flashlight in the middle of the floor.  The idea was that if there was any spirit or entity in the room they would answer our questions by making the flashlight flicker. Well Madame Jumel was quite talkative, (perhaps she knew it was my birthday and didn't want to disappoint me!) particularly when the subject of children was mentioned.  All of a sudden the flashlight went crazy. One of the stories that the docent told us was how Madame Jumel had appeared on the balcony of the mansion during a school visit. There was also a rumor that Madame Jumel had an illegitimate son during her years as an actress. After her death, a young man appeared claiming to be her son.  He went to court to try and overturn her will, trying to claim a portion of her estate.

Overall it was an exciting night although I'm a little old to be sleeping on hardwood floors, especially hardwood floors that are over 200 years old. Castles, Secrets & Legends on The Travel Channel recently did a segment on a séance that was held at the mansion in the sixties which you can see below:


Murder in the Mansion Video : Castle Secrets & Legends : Travel Channel

Also, apparently Ghost Adventures also did a segment at the mansion but they haven't shown it yet. I'm interested to know if anyone has had any paranormal experiences while visiting a historic home or site.

Josephine: Desire, Ambition, Napoleon - A Review

Title:  Josephine: Desire, Ambition, Napoleon
Author: Kate Williams
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Hutchinson (7 Nov 2013)

I've been waiting to read this biography ever since it was announced that Kate Williams' next book was going to be a biography of Josephine Bonaparte.  I devoured her  biography of Emma Hamilton, and her dual biography of Princess Charlotte of Wales and Queen Victoria. I think she is one of the best biographers around and not just because she has lovely curly red hair.

Even though I saw the book in Waterstones when I was in London in December, I waited until I got back to order it. My suitcase was heavy enough as it was. So I ordered it from Amazon. It was the perfect companion to Heather Webb's novel BECOMING JOSEPHINE. By the time I was finished, I felt that I had a true portrait of the former Empress of the French.  Although Josephine grew up on a plantation, her family were not wealthy. At one point, the family were actually living in the sugar house after a hurricane destroyed their house. It's no wonder that Josephine spent so wildly when she had the opportunity. No one in her family seems to have any business acumen whatsoever. When you read about her early life, it seems incredible that this young creole woman with only her charm and her beauty to recommend her, managed to rise so high in the world.

Williams doesn't shy away from detailing the years when Josephine's only means of survival was to become the mistress of wealthy men. Paul Barras was not the only man who enjoyed her charms. The years during the Revolution and the early years of her marriage to Napoleon, for me, were the most interesting to read about. Reading the biography, I couldn't help but wonder if Josephine hadn't cheated on Napoleon would things have been different between them? Or would Napoleon's ego still gotten too big for his britches? Although her infidelity hurt him, I think that he still would have cheated. A man like Napoleon, who had been rejected by women, who suddenly had women throwing themselves at him, it would have been hard to turn down even for a man with a smaller ego.

Although I can't say that I loved Josephine by the time I finished the book, but I felt I had a better understanding of her character. In certain ways, she reminded me of Marie Antoinette (I found it fascinating that Napoleon recreated her wedding to Louis for his wedding to Marie Louise). I felt for Josephine when Napoleon decided to divorce her, his good luck charm. Although I'm sure she must have been relieved to no longer have to deal with his wretched family anymore.

Verdict: Definitely one for the keeper shelf, right next to BECOMING JOSEPHINE

Reign Recap: "Left Behind" and "Fated" - SPOILERT ALERT

I'm so sorry for getting behind with my REIGN recaps.  I went to England for a week, and I forgot to set my DVR to tape "Left Behind" and then I was so jet-lagged when I got back that I totally forgot that there was a new episode before the holidays.  In the meantime REIGN inexplicably won 'Best New Show' at the People's Choice Awards, which means that this show will probably be getting a second season.  Truthfully, it was really hard to watch these two episodes. I get so frustrated with this show! It has moments where it's decent, but for the most part these episodes are execrable for different reasons.

The biggest problem that I have with this show is the lack of atmosphere. The French court should be teeming with people, the royals should have no privacy whatsoever. Instead, Mary and ladies wander around the halls of the palace in their nightgowns at all hours of the day and night.  Where are Catherine's ladies-in-waiting, her flying squadron of women who seduced men and delivered tidbits of intel to her? Sort of a Renaissance MI-5.  Mary and Francis, or Mary and Bash are constantly wandering off to have private conversations. Perhaps they could spend less money on costumes so that they could pay more extras.

Let's start with "Left Behind" shall we?

* Mary and Francis are still have the same old argument about their relationship. She's upset that he's sleeping with Olivia and that Catherine de Medici keeps throwing it in her face. He claims that he's only sleeping with Olivia to forget Mary. Whatever!

* Catherine congratulates Olivia on a job well done but Olivia bursts her bubble by telling her that Francis is in love with Mary.

* Diane de Poitiers tells her son Sebastian that she has been corresponding with various cardinals to see about having him legitimized. Bash is not thrilled with this development and tells her to lay off.

* The boring sub-plot continues of Greer hanging out with her kitchen boy boyfriend. Somehow Greer and kitchen boy are completely alone in the kitchen.  Where are the servants people?

* Henry has ridden off to put down a minor rebellion in Lorraine taking most of the guards and nobles with him. Okay, this is one of the things that drives me crazy about this show.  No King worth his salt would leave his wife and children with only minimal guards while he rides off to put down a rebellion.  He would know that it would leave them vulnerable.

* An Italian Count arrives and Catherine greets him in their native language. It turns out that the Count is up to no good.  See his son was taken hostage and held by the French.  The Count bargained for his son's life, but after the child was released, he died from dysentery.  The Count is distraught and out for revenge.  His wife is dead, and he has no heir. He takes the palace and all its occupants prisoner.

This was an interesting plot, I have to admit. But again, it was too easy for the Count to take the palace. There should have been a fight and some bloodshed.  Francis and Bash fighting side by side to protect the Queen and Mary. Instead Bash is hidden by guards along with his mother, while Francis is left to deal with the Count. Also, while I found it compelling that the Count would want revenge for his son's death, in reality the Count would have remarried as soon as it was feasible to sire another heir.

* Catherine offers Mary as a wife but Francis offers himself instead as a hostage.

* Mary consults Clarissa, who she thinks is a ghost, to figure out how they can sneak out of the palace using the underground tunnels.  She then tells Catherine de Medici her plan.  She and Catherine argue over who loves Francis more.

* The plan is that they will entertain the Count at dinner, and then after dinner they will all sneak out of the palace.  Mary gives Olivia the instruction to open the door when Mary knocks on the door. However, Olivia decides that "All for One" is her new motto and she hightails it out of there leaving Mary and her women stranded.

* Fortunately Catherine de Medici poisons the guards with a slow-acting poison and Mary stabs the Count with one of those new fangled forks that Catherine insisted on using.

* With the crisis behind them, Mary and Francis decide they don't want to be apart and they hop into the sack.

 

 

Historical Note:  Catherine tells Mary and her ladies how she survived the overthrow of her family, particularly how As the siege dragged on, voices called for Catherine to be killed and exposed naked and chained to the city walls. Some even suggested that she be handed over to the troops to be used for their sexual gratification.  This actually happened. Her uncle had to crown Charles V Holy Roman Emperor to get his help to lift the siege. She was 11 when her uncle, Pope Clement VII summoned her to Rome.

 

 

"Fated"

 

* Mary and Francis are basking in the after-glow after the consummation of their relationship. She worries that it's wrong that they have anticipated the marriage vows. Francis hopes that she is pregnant so that they can have a shot-gun wedding.

 

* Henry II and Kenna are having an awkward conversation. Kenna, who was roughed up by the Count's men, is not happy that Henry has been spending time with his other mistress Diane.  Henry tells her that he will never give Diane up. I'm incensed that he seems to have no reaction to the fact that his family and his palace were taken hostage.

 

* News arrives that Queen Mary of England is on her deathbed.  Henry decides that Mary will stake her claim to the English throne as soon as she's dead, and that she and Francis will marry. He makes some comment about England waging war against France for half a century.  Umm, it was longer than that which is why it was called The Hundred Years war. And the war ended long before Henry or even his father Francis was born. Part of the reason why Henry VIII's sister was married off to Louis XII.

 

* Catherine is not happy at the news what with Nostradamus' prediction that marrying Mary will be the death of him. She wants to poison Mary but Nostradamus convinces her to just tell Mary about the prediction instead. Speaking of Nostradamus, where was he in the last episode? And why didn't he have a premonition about the Count?

 

* Mary and Francis talk about the whole England situation.  Mary is one the fence about invading England.  Francis tells her that they will secretly get married and then tell his father to stuff it.

 

* Kenna is mistaken for Diane de Poitiers and learns all about her plans for Bash.  She runs to Catherine de Medici hoping for her help.  Catherine goes to Diane and tells her to leave otherwise she'll tell Henry about her little plan, but before she does, maybe she could do Catherine a favor by poisoning Kenna on her way out the door.

 

* Mary learns about the prediction but at first she doesn't believe it. Also Nostradamus tells her that one of her ladies is going to die. The girls sit around talking about Nostradamus and his predictions for all of them. Aylee mentions that she was told that she would never go home again. Mary is confused.

 

*Diane tells Bash that Catherine knows about her plot and that they both need to get the hell out of Dodge for awhile.

 

* Mary's ladies are sitting around chatting.  Aylee takes a sip of a drink meant for Kenna.  She feels ill when she's pushed down the stairs by a girl in a burlap sack. Aylee dies of her injuries, meaning that one of Nostradamus' predictions has come to fruition. Mary now decides that she cannot marry Francis.

 

* Nostradamus scolds the girl in the burlap sack.  He recognizes the poison used as one of his, not Catherine's (it turns out that Diane got rid of the poison that Catherine had wanted her to use on Kenna).  Burlap sack girl says that she just wanted to help Mary out.  Nostradamus calls her a monster and pulls the sack off. The camera cuts away before we get to see anything.

 

* Mary decides that she is going to flee the palace all by herself.  She runs into Bash in the stable and they ride off together with Francis calling out plaintively.

 

Well that's it for the last two episodes of REIGN. There is a new episode this coming Thursday. Will Francis find out why Mary fled?  Will Bash and Mary fall for each other.  Does anyone care?

 

 



Queen Victoria's Children (Documentary)...

I watched the first two parts of this documentary, and I found it fascinating. Although none of the information is new, it was interesting to hear from Lucinda Hawksley, the author of a new biography of Princess Louise, as well as one of my favorite historians, Helen Rappaport. The other two parts are also available on YouTube.

January Book of the Month: Becoming Josephine

Title:  Becoming Josephine

Author:  Heather Webb

Publisher:  Penguin/Plume

Pub Date:  December 31, 2013

From the back cover:  Rose sails from Martinique to Paris to trade her plantation ways and Creole black magic culture for love and adventure. But her haughty Parisian husband dashes her hopes when he abandons her amid the tumult of the French Revolution. Through her savoir faire, Rose secures her footing in high society, reveling in handsome men and glitzy balls—until the heads of her friends begin to roll. After narrowly escaping death in the blood-drenched cells of Les Carmes prison, she reinvents herself as Josephine, a socialite of status and power. Yet her youth is fading, and Josephine must choose between a precarious independence and the unwelcome love of an awkward suitor. Little does she know, he would become the most powerful man of his century—Napoleon Bonaparte. BECOMING JOSEPHINE is a novel of one woman’s journey to find eternal love and stability, and ultimately to find herself .

About the author:  Heather Webb is a former French teacher, a blogger, and a member of the Historical Novel Society. She lives with her family in Connecticut.

My thoughts:  Long time readers of the blog know that during it's first year of existence, I did a week long series about some of the women in Napoleon's life: his sister Pauline, his mistress Marie Walewska, and his sister-in-law Betsy Patterson Bonaparte.  I deliberately stayed away from writing about Josephine, because frankly I didn't find her as interesting. After reading Heather Webb's fascinating new novel, BECOMING JOSEPHINE, I find that I've reversed my previous opinion of Napoleon's first wife.

This won't be my usual in-depth review, partly because Heather and I are represented by the same agency, and I don't want anyone to think that I'm biased because of it. I found it hard to believe when I picked up the novel, that this was Heather's first book. It reads like her fifth or tenth book, her prose is that polished. From the beginning, I was captivated by her descriptions of colonial Martinique and Josephine's family or I should say Rose because that was the name she was known by until Napoleon began calling her by her middle name.

Webb captures the complex personality of Josephine, innocent, naïve, shrewd, passionate, spoiled, impetuous with deft brush strokes. It's the perfect book for anyone looking for an antidote for the plethora of Tudor novels that have glutted the market.  It made me long for more authors to write books set during and after the French Revolution. By the end of the novel, I was praying that Napoleon wouldn't make the fateful decision to set aside his good-luck charm (Josephine) in favor of a dynastic marriage.

I think that part of my problem with Josephine has been that she realized almost too late how important Napoleon was to her. Webb does a very good job of portraying a woman who has been damaged by her first marriage, and her incarceration during the Revolution. Josephine is so afraid to love, and Napoleon is the exact opposite of her handsome, feckless, faithless first husband.

My only quibble with this book is that I wish that it were about 100 pages longer. That's not the authors fault, publisher's have been cutting word counts right and left. Frankly it's a testament to Webb's talent that she is able to give the reader such a satisfying portrait of Josephine in 320 pages.  I look forward to seeing what else Webb has up her sleeves.  She's certainly a new talent to watch in historical fiction.