Abundance a novel of Marie Antoinette

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Summary

Marie Antoinette was a child of 14 when her mother, Empress of Austria, arranged for her to leave her family, her country, and her home to become the wife of 15-year-old Dauphin, the future King Louis XVI of France. Far from home and thrust into the role of wife, and queen, Marie Antoinette lived a brief--but astounding--life. Naslund reveals a Marie Antoinette who rebelled against the formality and rigid protocol of the court; an outsider who became the target of a revolution that ultimately decided her fate. Naslund has created a portrait of a woman very different from the figure we think we know.

Published Reviews

Publisher's Weekly Review: "Appropriately, Burney begins her performance in the adorable upper registers of the 14-year-old Marie Antoinette, shipped to France by her mother, the Empress of Austria, to marry the 15-year-old Dauphin and peacefully conjoin France and Austria. Unfortunately, Burney continues in this insipid tone throughout her reading, which is understandable as Naslund (Ahab's Wife) portrays Marie as Little Mary Sunshine until the moment of her death by guillotine at age 38. Her love affair with a Swedish diplomat is strictly platonic and her inability to empathize with the French people is laid to her paternalistic advisers. All this may or may not be historically true, but it leaves listeners with Marie's diary-style descriptions of her personal and court life: the Dauphin's sexual limitations, the birth of her children, her clothes and hairstyles, girlish friendships and expensive banquets. The abridgment reinforces this focus by cutting little early on, then skipping quickly from one incident to another as the revolution evolves. Naslund's writing is clear and vivid, but offers little for those seeking a deeper understanding of the reign of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Simultaneous release with the William Morrow hardcover (Reviews, May 29). (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved"
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Additional Information

Subjects	Marie Antoinette, Queen, consort of Louis XVI, King of France, 1755-1793 Fiction Biographical fiction Queens Fiction Fiction Biographical fiction. Audiobooks. 1755-1793
Publisher	Ashland :Blackstone Publishing2006 2006
Contributors	Burney, Susanna. OverDrive, Inc.
Participants/Performers	Read by Susanna Burney.
Language	English
System Details	Mode of access: World Wide Web. Format: OverDrive MP3 Audiobook Format: OverDrive WMA Audiobook Requires OverDrive Media Console 3.0 (Windows) / 1.0 (Mac) / 1.0 (Windows Mobile) or OverDrive Media Console 1.0 / 1.0 (Windows Mobile)
Description	1 audio file : digital
ISBN	9780792745914 0792745914
Other	Classic View