The Burning Glass

Jenni Calder; Fore. Ajay Close

ISBN 10: 1912240661 / ISBN 13: 9781912240661

Published by Sandstone, 2019

About this Item

First published during its subject?s lifetime, this updated biography of the Scottish writer Naomi Mitchison (1897?1999) tells of her privileged upbringing, and how, like her brother JBS Haldane, she was originally set on a scientific career. It explores her prolific output of novels, non-fiction and poetry, her open marriage and many love affairs, and her tireless campaigning for socialist and feminist causes. Seller Inventory # 518872

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Burning Glass

Publisher: Sandstone

Publication Date: 2019

Binding: Paperback

Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis:

'It is always a bore being ahead of one's time.'

Naomi Mitchison was a novelist, socialist, feminist and tireless campaigner for sexual freedom. She lived through the entire twentieth century and wrote more than seventy books. Her political activism took her from the Soviet Union to her adopted Botswana as a champion of liberty and equality. The Burning Glass draws a fascinating portrait of a truly inspiring life.

Review:

Jenni Calder's biography of Naomi Mitchison is a well-paced journey through a fascinating life which is difficult to put down. Calder approaches Mitchison's various idiosyncrasies with a clear-eyed affection and a total lack of judgment. Her experiences should be the start of many feminist conversations about the dynamics of love affairs and sexual politics, and how women are treated as they age. --Holly Baxter, The Independent

Exhilarating. --The Herald

A warm and sympathetic biography of a full and wonderfully varied life... very good. --The Scotsman

Jenni Calder captures the essence of this extraordinary woman in an engrossing biography. --Scottish Field

Born into privilege, she was nonetheless a committed socialist and feminist and worked all her life to give voice to the voiceless. [Mitchison] was not afraid either to challenge convention or to use her social position to overcome obstacles and get things done. --James Robertson

An outstanding example of the biographer's art... 'The Burning Glass' is the story of a life that deserves to be told: and which is told extremely well. --Undiscovered Scotland