The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B.

A joy to read the book just fly's by with the story of Josephine B and her early life before Napoleon

When a friend presented Sandra Gulland's Josephine trilogy to me as a gift, I was somewhat dubious. But that night, I opened the front cover, read the first page, and was immediately drawn in to the world of Rose, the girl from Martinique who grew up to survive the Terror of the French Revolution and become Josephine, the wife of Napolean Bonapart. I understand Sandra Gulland is a complete Francophile and researched tirelessly to bring together the details of the events described in the book. Choosing the first person would have been an excellent narrative technique regardless, but to transform it into a personal diary is incredibly courageous. It is as if Gulland has channeled Josephine herself, convincing us(as well as Arthur Golden did in Memoirs of a Geisha) that the author is completely absent, and the story is quite possibly a genuine artefact. Gulland has weaved a spell on every page of the book, convincing us we are privvy to the private musings of one of the most famous women of all history. What's more, her conversational descriptive approach forms Josephine, her family, her friends and the events of the French Revolution in such a way that makes them entirely three dimensional. Each character is well defined, as if they dictated their conversations, their quips and their comments directly to Gulland for reproduction on the page. The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. is pacey, never boring, always compelling, an absolute page turner. When I finished it, I paused a few days to take in the magnitude of the events of the final pages - Josephine's marriage to Bonapart. I dared not even scan the cover of another book lest the spell I believed I had fallen under was broken. Then I plunged into book two...

A friend of mine read this book while on vacation in Hawaii. He loved it so much he immediately went to the bookstore to buy the second and third books in this trilogy. I had never heard of the book or the author, nor was I interested in the life of Josephine Bonaparte, but his enthusiastic praise was enough of an endorsement for me. He was right. This is a book you will lose yourself in. Sandra Gulland has done an enormous amount of research on her subject, Josephine Bonaparte, a.k.a. Rose. It is very entertaining, as well as educational. Gulland's Josephine is a classy, gracious diplomat who helped shape history. When faced with a dilemma after reading this book, you will find yourself asking "What would Josephine do?" The book is written in diary format, and spans the time from Josephine/Rose's adolescence in Martinique, through the French Revolution, and up until the beginning of her relationship with Napoleon. Each chapter leaves you eager for the next one, and growing more and more fond of Josephine along the way.

As a fan of historical fiction, I found this book extremely absorbing. It is written in very readable prose, the French in it is always correct, and the story a captivating one, sometimes it's hard to believe that the protagonist actually existed! Josephine is portrayed as a real woman who endures hardship and still manages to hold on to compassion and love for others less fortunate than herself, she is a woman whose influence is powerful, a "modern" woman to be admired today. I highly recommend this novel, especially for book clubs, and look forward to reading the sequel. This one is hard to put down!

Wow!!! What a wonderfully enjoyable book Sandra Gulland has written . . . I have always been quite interested in European History, but anytime I bought a book about any historical figure or period I felt as if I they were too . . . too . . . well I can't find the exact expression for what I felt they were like but they never suceeded in taking me, the reader, into the world of the story.Not so with Jospehine B. I was instantly swept up in her world - her fears, her troubles, her triumphs, her heartbreak. The diary format works like a charm!!!I could not put it down . . .My only adive besides buying the book is to wait until @ least the 2nd volume comes out - then you won't be suffering like I am waiting for the 2nd volume to come out and the 3rd? Forget about the 3rd - it's not slated until November 2000 - AARGH!!!!