Fanny Burney: A Biography

One of the better examples of a biography that I've read lately, Harman's book examines not only Fanny Burney's life, but gives us a wonderful glimpse of the wider world in which she found herself. It's well-written, with some lovely clear prose. I think the aspect of the book which I liked the most, however, was that Harman displayed a clear empathy with Burney, and a respect for her, but at the same time didn't allow that to blind herself to other aspects of the woman's personality. Harman has a very deft and concise way of exposing the contradictions, weaknesses and distinctive elements of Burney's personality which make her so fascinating to read about.

A warning, though, that this is not the book to read if you don't want to hear show more about the details - and very in-depth details at that - of a mastectomy as performed in an era before the advent of anaesthesia or pain killers. *winces* show less

Interesting biography about the woman commonly considered the first English language female novelist, the predecessor to Jane Austen and the Brontes. Claire Harman does a very good job of detailing both the personal and the literary sides of this singular woman and does her best to illustrate how she fit into the literary world of the late 18th/early 19th century. Burney may not now be as well known as those who came after her, but she could be said to have made later women writers able to write and publish.

from Library Journal: "This is the second scholarly biography of Frances (Fanny) Burney to appear within the last two years (following Janice Farrar Thaddeus's Frances Burney: A Literary Life, LJ 7/00). A forerunner of Jane Austen, novelist Burney (1752-1840) was one of the first women in England to earn her living as a writer. Resourceful and resilient, she witnessed many historical events and associated with an array of Georgian literary and political notables. In addition to her fiction, she left thousands of pages of journals and letters, which have served as a rich but untrustworthy source for her biographers. When it was published in Great Britain last year, this study by the Oxford-based biographer Harman was considered one of show more the most readable, perceptive, and balanced portraits to date, and indeed it is. Compared with Thaddeus's erudite "literary life," with its dense, scholarly focus and emphasis on the textual analysis of Burney's work, Harman's work is more readable and reveals the personal side of the less-than-truthful author. Harman skillfully uncovers inconsistencies in Burney's memoir while accurately and vividly depicting her life as a middle-class woman in the turbulent 18th century. This accomplished and accessible biography is highly recommended for both academic and public libraries. Carol A. McAllister, Coll. of William and Mary Lib., Williamsburg, VA" show less