Customer Reviews

The Petticoat Affair: Manners, Mutiny, and Sex in Andrew Jackson's White House

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

 

 

This book is well-written and difficult to put down. The author did his research well. It is a good explanation of the Margaret Eaton Affair and of the social mores that women were expected to live by in the 1820s and 1830s. It is also a classic example of the theory that "men get their identity by what they do; women, by their family." Margaret Eaton could not escape that she was the daughter of a "tavern-keeper" and many of the slanders against her were merely based on the prejudices of the time concerning the stereotypical behavior of the daughters of tavern-keepers.

This book is first a description of a political scandal in the 1820s and 1830s in which a President threw his administration into turmoil over a woman. Secondly, there is a fine treatment of the role women were expected to play in the 1800s and the reasons Margaret Eaton and Rachel

Jackson did not fit in. It's a fine well written

story, very worthwhile.

The book was in excellent condition. I was very satisfied. Dr. Marszalek was one of my history professors at MS State & I enjoyed reading his take on the Eaton Affair.

My students, who detest reading with a passion, invariably enjoy reading this book. Full of "good guys" and "bad guys" it forces them to choose a side, which makes it great for essay assignments.

Though it's not the worst book I've ever read, I had the hardest time getting past the third chapter. With promises that this book was interesting I was quite disappointed. The book reads like you are reading a geneology chart instead of a book of scandals. It throws in a name, and then EVERY person they are related to, who they are related to and so on. The story is interesting...if you can get past all the [crud]. If you're looking for an interesting book with history you've come to the wrong place. If you are looking for a history book with a few interesting high spots...you'll love it.