That Churchill Woman by Stephanie Barron
Reviewed by: Melissa Friedlund, Reference Assistant
Genre: Historical Fiction
Suggested Age: Adults
What is the book about? This book is based on the life of Jennie Churchill, the American mother of Winston Churchill. It starts at the time of her death and follows her life in flashbacks that are not in chronological order. From her childhood in New York as the daughter of a wealthy family to her hob-knobbing with royals and aristocrats in Europe and Great Britain, Jennie Churchill lived a life of privilege and notoriety. Her world was filled with politics, rumors, and extra-marital affairs. This book leans heavily on the theory that one of her lovers, Count Charles Kinsky, was the love of her life. While her sons, Winston and Jack, do get incorporated into the story, they are only rarely major characters in the narrative.
My Review: While I was interested in learning more about Jennie Churchill, I couldn’t help feeling skeptical about some of the scenarios that the author details in this book. I didn’t always feel that the proposed motivations behind the characters’ decisions were believable. For example, Jennie is portrayed as an aloof mother in most early scenes with her sons. However, when her social role dictates that she attend a high-society party while Winston is deathly ill with pneumonia, she supposedly spends the entire party worried sick about him. That seemed like too great a contradiction to me. If read as historical fiction and not biographical fiction, I would say it was more of an account of an aristocrat in the late 19th century that lacks some much-needed depth.
Three Words That Describe This Book: Non-linear, Ambiguous, Fickle
Give This a Try if You Like…American Duchess: A Novel of Consuelo Vanderbilt, American Princess: A Novel of First Daughter Alice Roosevelt, Dear George, Dear Mary: A Novel of George Washington’s First Love
Rating: 3.5/5