Customer Reviews

Madame du Barry: The Wages of Beauty

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a stunningly told story of the most beautiful Madame du Barry, the last mistress of the notoriously desolute Louis XV. The author really brings you back to those times so much so that one can picture the scenario in all its splendor. Its the little known facts and nuances regarding the grandeur of the court and its crippling etiquette that opened up this this slice of history never to be repeated again. I was surprised by the simple sweet nature of the incandescent Madame du Barry given her humble but sexually active young life prior to coming to the court. For those who want a great story, with exquisite detail, and an eye for history, Ms. Haslip's book fits the bill. Ms. Haslip and Nancy Mitford (who wrote about Madame du Pompadour, Louis XV's other grand mistress of 20 years) have raised the bar on biographies of women whose spicy tale would otherwise be lost in a maze of dull facts.

This book, especially when taken together with biographies of Marie Antoinette, Louis XV, and other of the king's favorites, creates a picture of a kind, generous woman, overwhelmed by a rapid cultural change she had no way of sensing. It was well-written; well researched and did not contain the annoying and outrageous "conclusions" reached by lesser historians.

I agree with the other reviewer. I am over half finished this book, and the author does not offer any translation for words written in French that would be usefull. She does refer to Madame du Barry in many different titles that are confusing in the begining, but as you read on they are less confusing. A hard book to get into but progresses quite well. A worthwhile read if you are genuinly interested in her life story.

I have not spent too much time studying French history so I didn't have a great deal of background knowledge to draw on as I read this. I think Haslip did an excellent job of explaining the times,and the people, especially given the short length of this book. I have read a bio of Marie Antoinette (I'm sorry but she bores me silly), so my expectations were low on having much interest in du Barry. Granted, in many ways, royal mistresses are rather trivial by nature, but I found it a very interesting portrait of the woman, as well as the times she lived in. I think I can understand her appeal for so many after reading the book. I agree with other readers about the name issues, it is a bit confusing, but I think, for me at least, that is probably simply because they are not American names and therefore harder to reference. I would most recommend it for people interested in that time period of French history, but anyone who likes reading history would probably enjoy this book.

Personally I found this book a wonderful biography of Jeanne. It gives a very understandable account of her life, with the use of fine wording!
I prefer to see Madame du Barry as described in this book. It is true, being human, that she was sour with Marie Antoinette. One must keep in mind that Antoinette, still very young, had a great amount of power which du Barry couldn't overcome alone.
18th century France was a completely different era. One has to remember that to be a peasantwoman whose beauty alone led to a life of luxury is a temptation very few people do not give in to!!!!
I suggest one purchases this biography for any sort of research, personal or academic!

So I am like 1/3 into this book and I am not too impressed. I am planning on finishing it since it is so short, but it will be a challenge. The writing is very haphazard. She will changes the names of the characters whenever. So one time she is address madame Du Barry as The countess and then the next page is is verbranier then the next page she is jeanne then the next she is Becu, without any real rhyme or reason to the name swapping. This is done to ALL the characters. I mean YES those are all names she did go by, but do it in context and in a way that makes sense. Then there are phrases and words in french that she gives NO notation as to the meaning. A simple glossary or notation section would of solved all of these problems.
I am hoping that Marie Antoniette: The Journey will be better.