Madame Sarah [Paperback]

Cornelia Otis Skinner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1988

310pages. in8. relié cartonné. Reliure skaïvertex vert-olive avec dorures et faux nerfs, tête et titre dorés sur dos. Collection des femmes célèbres. Traduction francaise de denise van moppes, preface de gilbert sigaux, reine d' angleterre, imperatrice des indes,

Product Details

• Paperback: 378 pages
• Publisher: Paragon House (May 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557781079
• ISBN-13: 978-1557781079
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,069,771 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sarah B by Someone Who Really Knows the French Theatre, March 18, 2002

By 

"ninondelenclos" (Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madame Sarah (Paperback)

Sarah Bernhardt was the Madonna and the Meryl Streep of her day. She was a brilliant actress who broke from the traditions of the Comedie Francaise to create her own theatrical milieu. She inspired the intellectuals and the fans alike in fin-de-siecle Paris and she acted her way around the world. Her scandalous life style inspired plenty of press and numerous imitations.

Author Cornelia Otis Skinner provides a direct link to this era: her father, a noted stage actor, remembers seeing The Divine Sarah on the stage, and Cornelia herself became an actress. Cornelia was also a devotee of the French theatre--her most famous book, "Our Hearts Were Young and Gay", recounts her early studies with the stars of the Comedie Francaise in the 1920s.

Reading the witty "Madame Sarah" you have the feeling that you are hearing from someone who was there, someone who actually saw the Left Bank students unhitch the horses of Sarah's carriage and pull it through the streets themselves. The book is well-informed and admiring of its complex subject, but it is not fawning, as it frankly documents the less-appealing sides of a talented woman.

I highly recommend it for anyone interested in the history of the theatre, the French theatre, the Paris of the era, or the very intriguing actress herself...

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A nearly perfect book...., May 31, 2006

By 

Thom Gunn (Greenbank,, Wa. United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Madame Sarah (Paperback)

about a figure as compelling as almost any in the last 160 years.

After reading it, I was in love with Sarah Bernhardt and author Cornelia Otis Skinner.

Anybody who didn't like this book wouldn't like Princess Bride, Pepe Le Moko or Messages From My Father. (And I wouldn't like them.)

This book is funny, touching, adventurous, complete and satisfying. I think it should be required reading for everyone, not only for its insights about character, life and countries -- but also as a promotional tool to educate the tv masses as to how little in their diet can compare to one great book.

I've bought a half dozen of them and sent them to the young'ens.

And they all caught the magic.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellently visual reading experience, October 26, 2007

By 

gg "gg" (WV) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madame Sarah (Paperback)

This author is incredibly talented in bringing the Divine Sarah back to life with a power and passion that makes it difficult to put the book down. After reading this book, and listening to the musical masterpieces written specifically for Sarah, I can completely believe that she is the greatest classical performer the world has known. What she chose to do with her life is inspirational, and even more incredible considering that as a female in that point in time, her power should have been limited. Her type of art is no longer seen in this world, at least not in the US. Cornelia Otis is an amazingly visual author with the ability to suck you into Sarah Bernhardt's world, and I cant say enough, if you love art and strong beautiful females, this book is worth reading.