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Paulette Jiles

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Enemy Women Paperback – January 21, 2003

by Paulette Jiles (Author)

4.2 2,747 ratings

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For the Colleys of southeastern Missouri, the War between the States is a plague that threatens devastation, despite the family's avowed neutrality. For eighteen-year-old Adair Colley, it is a nightmare that tears apart her family and forces her and her sisters to flee.

The treachery of a fellow traveler, however, brings about her arrest, and she is caged with the criminal and deranged in a filthy women's prison. But young Adair finds that love can live even in a place of horror and despair. Her interrogator, a Union major, falls in love with her and vows to return for her when the fighting is over. Before he leaves for battle, he bestows upon her a precious gift: freedom.

Now an escaped "enemy woman," Adair must make her harrowing way south buoyed by a promise ... seeking a home and a family that may be nothing more than a memory.

Print length

336 pages
Language

English
Publisher

HarpPeren
Publication date

January 21, 2003
Dimensions

4.75 x 1 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

0060938099
ISBN-13

978-0060938093
Lexile measure

890L
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Popular Highlights in this book

What are popular highlights?

We are in the middle of many changes, and this endless changing is become disorder and people cannot long endure disorder. They’ll do anything rather than put up with it. Desperate things. Things that they don’t want to remember later.
Highlighted by 130 Kindle readers
Adair had learned the specific gravity of possessions and how they weighed a person down.
Highlighted by 128 Kindle readers

Editorial Reviews

Review

“ENEMY WOMEN deserves the Pulitzer Prize.” (Toronto Globe and Mail)

“I loved…it provides the greatest suspense a story can offer: will someone we’ve come to love persevere and prosper?” (Anna Quindlen)

“…remarkable happens...it becomes inspired… Adair becomes a storyteller in order to survive. And so - triumphantly - does Paulette Jiles.” (New York Times Book Review (cover))

“This is a book with backbone, written with tough, haunting eloquence.” (New York Times)

“Jiles paints the struggles of the era with the same intensity as Charles Frazier’s 1997 bestseller Cold Mountain …” (People)

“Sure to be touted as a new COLD MOUNTAIN...stark, unsentimental, yet touching novel will not suffer in comparison.” (Publishers Weekly (starred review))

“A remarkable debut… Splendid.” (Kirkus Reviews (starred review))

“…beautifully written passages…a real page-turner.” (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

“...[G]ifted Missouri historian...acutely portrays Missouri’s logistic misfortune as a hotbed of both Union and Confederate violence.” (Booklist)

“Enemy Women is all strength and poetry, as are history’s grandest ordinary women and extraordinary writing.” (Kaye Gibbons)

“You know what it means when there is Paulette Jiles inside? Be smart. Open the book.” (Gordon Lish)

“ENEMY WOMEN...has a Homeresque feel to it. Like something written by an old soul.” (Carolyn Chute)

“Jiles has created an unsentimental yet tender world of destruction, despair, and hope that’s a joy to inhabit.” (Entertainment Weekly)

“Comparing Enemy Women to Cold Mountain doesn’t quite do Jiles’s novel justice.” (Washington Post)

About the Author

Paulette Jiles is a poet and the author of Cousins, a memoir, and the bestselling novels Enemy Women, Stormy Weather, and The Color of Lightning. She lives on a ranch near San Antonio, Texas.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarpPeren (January 21, 2003)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0060938099
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0060938093
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 890L
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.75 x 1 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #5,127,912 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #59,748 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction
- #217,319 in Historical Fiction (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.2 2,747 ratings

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Paulette Jiles

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My website is paulettejiles.com. I review books and say shocking things and include outrageous pictures.

Paulette Jiles was born in Salem, Missouri, in the Missouri Ozarks. Raised in small towns in both south and central Missouri, she attended three different high schools, an exhausting process of social dislocation and fashion wobbles, and with relief graduated from the University of Missouri (KC) in Romance Languages. After graduation she worked for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in Toronto and in the far north of Ontario and in the Quebec Arctic, helping to set up village one-watt FM radio stations in the native language, Anishinabe and Inuktitut. She became reasonably conversant in Anishinabe but Inuktitut was just too much. Very hard. Besides she was only in the eastern Arctic for a year. Work in the north lasted about ten years all told.

She taught at David Thompson University in Nelson B.C. and grew to love the British Columbian ecosystems and general zaniness. She spent one year as a writer-in-residence at Philips Andover in Massachusetts and then returned to the United States permanently when she married Jim Johnson, a Texan. Has lived in Texas since 1995.

She and her husband renovated an old stone house in the San Antonio historic district and amidst the rubble and stonemasons and ripped-out electrical systems she completed Enemy Women. She now lives on a small ranch near a very small town in the Texas Hill Country with a horse and a donkey. If you want a free donkey, please let her know. She plays Irish tin whistle with a bluegrass group, sings alto in choir, rides remote trails in Texas with friends. Her horse is named Buck. News of the World (William Morrow) was a finalist for the National Book Award.

Customer reviews

2,747 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Customers say

Customers find the story well-researched and dramatic. They describe the book as riveting, wonderful, and thought-provoking. The protagonist is portrayed as strong and courageous. The emotional impact is described as captivating, intense, and hopeful. However, opinions differ on the writing quality - some find it beautifully written and sophisticated, while others feel it suffers from wordiness and graphic descriptions that are disturbing.

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Story quality Readability Insight Resilience Emotional impact Writing quality Pacing Character development

151 customers mention "Story quality"112 positive39 negative

Customers find the story engaging and well-crafted. They describe the plot as dramatic, suspenseful, and emotionally gripping. The book is described as historical fiction with interesting details about the war between the states.

"...Her journey is full of terror, adventure and wonder...." Read more

"A historical novel of survival about a young Southern woman who has lost everything at no fault of her own...." Read more

"...Adair Colley is an interesting character, and I could get behind her determination to survive in a world gone crazy...." Read more

"...But the end of the tale is not without hope, even if it does not blink at the horrible destruction of the South and of those who merely tried to..." Read more

84 customers mention "Readability"84 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and well-researched. They say it's a worthwhile read about the Civil War from an unusual perspective.

"...conveying Adair's fears and problem-solving and the beauty of the natural environment that envelops her in the forests, mountains and valleys of..." Read more

"...Okay as an appendix, though. 3 strong stars." Read more

"Enemy Women written by Paulette Jiles is an extraordinary, well researched historical fiction novel...." Read more

"...2 of her works and loved both; I find her prose and her style absolutely captivating...." Read more

33 customers mention "Insight"28 positive5 negative

Customers find the book insightful and thought-provoking. They appreciate the depth of research and quality writing. The book provides a vivid glimpse of life during the Civil War and the events that followed. Readers praise Adair's courage, determination, and independence. The story keeps them guessing and begging to know what will happen next.

"...Spirited, determined, wary and much put-upon, young Adair has to use her wits, with a big assist from her beloved horse Whiskey, to get through her..." Read more

"...It is also very thought- provoking. I liked that it could appeal to many different audiences; the intended audience is not specific...." Read more

"...than whatever the max is; "Enemy Women" is very good and very informative and I rate that 4 stars...." Read more

"...Although I applaud Adair’s courage, determination, and independence, I cannot connect with her because of her attitude...." Read more

23 customers mention "Resilience"23 positive0 negative

Customers find the book's story of resilience riveting. They appreciate the strong and authentic heroine, who is courageous despite circumstances out of her control. The book offers an interesting perspective on women and families in the Civil War with tragic situations.

"...But there is so much else in the book that is so strong and works so well I was able to get past my skepticism and was rooting for them both by the..." Read more

"...She exhibits uncommon courage and bravery in the face of numerous circumstances that test her physical endurance, her mental acuity and her..." Read more

"...Not a light read, but a book with filled resilience and determination to survive." Read more

"...Great characterizations. Interesting perspectives. Tragic situations." Read more

13 customers mention "Emotional impact"10 positive3 negative

Customers find the book emotionally captivating and intense. They describe it as a dark yet hopeful mood that keeps their hearts racing. The story inspires empathy for the people of the South and is brutal yet inspiring.

"...Spirited, determined, wary and much put-upon, young Adair has to use her wits, with a big assist from her beloved horse Whiskey, to get through her..." Read more

"...For its literary style and emotion impact, it's being compared to "Cold Mountain", a tremendously successful novel that also brought the realities..." Read more

"...a small vignette of the events of the time, it gave me a great deal of empathy for the people of the South...." Read more

"...It is a story of life and death, pain and sorrow and great happiness...." Read more

139 customers mention "Writing quality"96 positive43 negative

Customers have different views on the writing quality. Some find it beautiful and easy to read, with sophisticated language and beautiful phrases. Others feel the book is too wordy and difficult to follow, with disturbing graphic descriptions that make it hard to distinguish between spoken aloud words and character thoughts. Overall, opinions are mixed about the writing style and how well it fits the story's theme.

"...Jiles's descriptive prose in this section is just stunning, conveying Adair's fears and problem-solving and the beauty of the natural environment..." Read more

"...One of my favorite things about it was Adair’s character. She has so much depth for someone her age, and I loved how she changed throughout her..." Read more

"...be able to put the reader into a scene deftly, but she suffers from wordiness much too often which causes this reader to wonder from time to time, “..." Read more

"...Told with truth and honesty and with the stark reality of the evils of war and hatred especially during and after our horrific Civil War...." Read more

12 customers mention "Pacing"5 positive7 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the pacing of the book. Some find it engaging and moving quickly, while others find it slow and uninteresting. The storyline is good, but some readers find it hard to keep up with who was who and when.

"...Also, the romance between Neumann and Adair seems very rushed and forced. There is no build up between the two...." Read more

"...News of the World and The Color of Lightning, but it's fascinating and moving...." Read more

"...the narrative is more detailed, more interior, and therefore seems slow at times...." Read more

"...to the bone in its truth, leaving the reader feeling vulnerable, hurt, moved, and inspired...." Read more

10 customers mention "Character development"6 positive4 negative

Customers have different views on the character development. Some find the characters rich and colorful, while others think the development is lacking and the main character's adventures unrealistic.

"...The characters are rich and colorful, the story is tragic ... but well worth the time." Read more

"...of private citizens in general. However, I thought the character development was lacking and I didn't really care very much..." Read more

"This is a first effort for novelist Jiles. Her characters are well drawn and her descriptions richly textured and poetic (she is a poet), but the..." Read more

"...The writing style was awkward; some characters were extremely predictable, plus the sub stories were distracting fillers. And the ending?..." Read more

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Top reviews from the United States

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J. Jamakaya

Fabulous Story, Beautiful Writing

Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2013

Verified Purchase

I spent the better part of a weekend completely immersed in this powerful, beautifully written book. "Enemy Women" drew me into the world of Missouri during the Civil War with its contending armies and militias. It dramatized how the common people were buffeted between the various forces and bereft of their loved ones, homes and belongings. It conveyed this through the compelling story of a plucky young woman, who has been separated from her family, has to fight for her freedom, and endures a long odyssey to return to her "home place" even though her home and family may no longer exist.

In Adair Colley, author Paulette Jiles has created one of the most memorable heroines in recent fiction. Spirited, determined, wary and much put-upon, young Adair has to use her wits, with a big assist from her beloved horse Whiskey, to get through her many ordeals on her long journey home. It's also the story of US Army Major Will Neumann, who is touched by Adair's spirit and has to survive bloody battles and injuries before he can see her again.

Major Neumann is not a very well-developed character and his willingness to risk all for Adair was not credible to me at first. But there is so much else in the book that is so strong and works so well I was able to get past my skepticism and was rooting for them both by the end.

The entire second half of the book recounts Adair's journey, by foot and horse, from St. Louis hundreds of miles south to her home in the Ozarks. Her journey is full of terror, adventure and wonder. Jiles's descriptive prose in this section is just stunning, conveying Adair's fears and problem-solving and the beauty of the natural environment that envelops her in the forests, mountains and valleys of the Missouri wilderness.

"Enemy Women" is a character study. It's a love story. It's a war story. It's a survival epic. It's a beautiful hymn to nature. It's a helluva book. Highly recommended.

6 people found this helpful

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Brian Butler

Enemy Women Review

Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2013

Verified Purchase

Enemy Women by Paulette Jiles is a historical fiction novel set during the Civil War. It centers mostly on the life of protagonist eighteen year old Adair Colley and another major character, Major Will Neumann. Adair’s home has been burned down by the Union Militia, her father is taken, and she is separated from her family when she is wrongly accused of disloyalty and put in jail. The reader goes along with her on her journey to piece her life back together. The novel has a serious tone, and it is told from a third-person point of view. Because it is based on real historical events in a difficult time in American history, it has a mournful and somber mood at times. It is also very thought- provoking. I liked that it could appeal to many different audiences; the intended audience is not specific. If you enjoy history, adventure, war, or even love stories, you will enjoy this book.
I enjoyed this novel overall. It was a great story and I actually learned a lot about what life was like for people during the Civil War. One of my favorite things about it was Adair’s character. She has so much depth for someone her age, and I loved how she changed throughout her journey. She is independent, sarcastic, and would do anything for her family. The only thing I disliked was the very ending of the story. For me, it left many questions unanswered and was not very satisfying. I wanted to know what happened when Adair and Major Neumann met again.
I think the author did a great job, especially in portraying the Civil war era. The primary sources at the beginning of each chapter were an added bonus; they made the story feel even more authentic. She made me realize how many people were affected by the war in America. I knew it destroyed many peoples’ lives, but Jiles conveyed this in a much more personal way. The novel could have been improved if the author had used quotation marks when a character spoke. Without them, it made it hard to differentiate between the characters’ thoughts and actual words. They make it easier to comprehend what is happening. Overall, Enemy Women was a fantastic novel and I highly recommend it.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Joe Boyd

A True Song of Lament

Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2024

Verified Purchase

A historical novel of survival about a young Southern woman who has lost everything at no fault of her own. Told with truth and honesty and with the stark reality of the evils of war and hatred especially during and after our horrific Civil War. Highly recommend!

One person found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

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Amazon Customer

A super love story like no other.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 12, 2022

Verified Purchase

I'm a Brit with an interest in the American Civil War, which led me to the Tom Hanks Movie. This is my second book by this writer, I enjoyed both the film and the book of The News of the World, so had to read her some more. This is so well laid out, it's easy reading, a believable storyline about a nasty war that she has worked up into a very credible novel with many twists and turns.
Up to now my reading of this war had been the sterile histories, heavy of facts and low on the awfulness of it all, the numbers lost meaning etc. This takes you to a different place in that war.
A great story, superbly told.

Michael W.

Neuer Blick auf den amerikanischen Bürgerkrieg

Reviewed in Germany on June 11, 2021

Verified Purchase

Der Roman spielt in den Südstaaten während des amerikanischen Bürgerkriegs. Frauen verlieren ihre Männer und oft genug auch ihr Heim. Grotesk werden sie pauschal verdächtigt, sie könnten den Feind durch Unterstützung und Spionage unterstützen: „Enemy Women“. Manche werden denunziert und verhaftet, viele sind obdachlos. Flüchtlingsströme entstehen. Parallelen zur Gegenwart werden deutlich, ohne dass man mit der Nase draufgestoßen wird. Neben der weiblichen Hauptperson tauchen immer wieder andere Frauengestalten auf, deren Schicksale und was der Krieg aus ihnen gemacht hat (im Guten wie im Schlechten) schlaglichtartig beschrieben werden. Keine Romanze! Der Stil der Autorin ist kraftvoll und berührend. Zugleich ist alles sehr gut recherchiert. Sogar ein Quellenverzeichnis ist vorhanden. Den einzelnen Kapiteln sind Zitate aus Quellen vorangestellt, die ein wenig wie ein griechischer Chor wirken.
Habe dies und andere Bücher von Paulette Jiles im englischen Original gelesen. Verstehe gar nicht, warum man noch keine deutschen Übersetzungen findet, anscheinend noch nicht mal von „News of the World“, kürzlich ja mit Tom Hanks verfilmt. Paulette Jiles: unbedingte Empfehlung!

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thegreenhillsofafrica

powerful, painful, a struggling through story

Reviewed in Canada on May 29, 2023

Verified Purchase

Adair survives the American Civil War in the Ozarks and this story is about how she survives it. Jiles is poetry in motion with her prose. Which doesn’t mean she can’t describe warfare or suffering or wounds or death. Just that she can carry you along through everything and bring you out more and not less on the other side and wishing there were just one more chapter to read.

brenpal

American Civil War

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 14, 2013

Verified Purchase

If you have read "The Last Runaway" by Tracey Chevalier, then, like me, you might be interested to also read "Enemy Women" to find out more background to personal struggles during some hard times in American history.

Client d'Amazon

Terrific - a tour de force of writing and storytelling

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 31, 2023

Verified Purchase

A passionate love story but for family, place and a person. The central female character is witty and resourceful and wronged. This relates a part of American history that is not well known - how Confederate women were treated as collaborators if they fed their husbands, brothers etc. Slightly inconclusive ending but life is not always neat.

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