The Winthrop Woman: A Novel | Anya Seton | THE PURITAN LEGACY IN AMERICA...

The Winthrop Woman: A Novel | Anya Seton | Not entirely fictional

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The Winthrop Woman...

	The Winthrop Woman: A Novel Anya Seton Chicago Review Press, 2006 - 608 pages average customer review:based on 32 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

THE PURITAN LEGACY IN AMERICA...

This is a dazzling work of historical fiction that I first read as a young adult. Now, over thirty years after first reading it, I find that time has not diminished the power and passion of this exquisitely written work of historical fiction. At the heart of this fine novel, is Elizabeth Fones, an Englishwoman who would marry her first cousin, Harry Winthrop, and would go on to lead a life of which few of us would dream.

As a member of the austerely Puritan Winthrop family, Elizabeth would chafe under its restrictive influences. When the family fortunes abated in England due to the religious beliefs of the family patriarch, John Winthrop, Elizabeth's uncle and father-in-law, the entire family sets off for the New World to become founding members of the Massachusetts Bay colony, a theocracy under which Elizabeth was to know much heartache.

A passionate and vibrant woman, Elizabeth would have a number of personal situations that would cause her to become notorious amongst the Puritan colonists. She would be both reviled and admired for her actions, which were singular for those times. This is an absorbing, page turner of a book that takes a look at sixteenth century England during the tumultuous time that preceded the civil war that would see an act of regicide and the rise of Puritan Oliver Cromwell. It also relates the turmoil that underlay the government of the nascent Massachusetts Bay colony with all its factionalism, restrictive practices, and bigotry.

The novel, set against a historical backdrop filled with well known personages of the time, both English and Dutch, lovingly chronicles and explores Elizabeth's passage in life as a member of the illustrious Winthrop family, her troubled marriages, her relationship with the Siwanot Indians, and the trials and tribulations that she underwent as a compassionate, independent woman in a time when to be such was to destine oneself to become a pariah within the larger community.

This is a historical novel that is epic in its telling, beautifully written, and one to be savored until the very last page is turned. Bravo!

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Not entirely fictional

While technically this book is historical fiction, it tells the tale of a real woman and the people in her life. The names, dates and places are real, and only the details of events seem to have been invented.

Elizabeth Fones Winthrop Feake Hallet is a member of my family tree -- and my genealogy research has borne out the basic historicity of this book.

In addition to its depiction of historical events and people, it's also just a ripping good true story. You can't put it down!

IMPRESSIVE

I was impressed right off by the introduction explaining all the time and procedures done to create this novel. Being a lover of history,I had a high expectation that this book would be a good read. However, while reading it, I became MORE IMPRESSED, as the book surpassed my orginal expectations. It is fascinating to realize this was a real person's life, not a fictional one. It is even more impressive to realize the indomitable spirit of the early settlers.

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Profile in courage.

When I 1st signed on as an interpreter at Nathan Hale Homestead in CT, the curator offered to lend me her favorite book, The Winthrop Woman. I opened it to the first page and was immediately transported to the 17th century world of Puritan father John Winthrop and his niece, Elizabeth. Since that moment 20 years ago, I've read widely in the field of American history, both in fiction and nonfiction. Winthrop Woman is one of the few books I've returned to again and again, for its portrayal of this little known but highly courageous woman, her times, and the times of America's very beginnings. Writing, plotting, biographical treatment, characterization, and historical accuracy in this novel are superb. This is "time travel" at its best, the real thing. While some of Seton's novels have become a bit dated, this is her masterpiece, and it has stood the test of time.

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A woman to behold

I read Winthrop Woman before Katherine, so I have been prejudiced as far as which one is the best of her works, but on it own, Winthrop woman is very fascinating. Anya Seton specialises in weaving a story out of a woman's life - how its transformed through time, from beginning to the end. Winthrop woman has a plus, its also historically researched and close work (like Katherine). Its based follows the lead character from England to the new world and gives a unique insight into a puritan world. A must read for any woman who believes in liberty - in its true sense.

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reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, page 5, 6, 7

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