Sarah Bernhardt

May 1, 2020

Gr 7 Up-The 19th century has been called the "Century of Sarah Bernhardt." The French stage actress (1844-1923) was more than just a performer-Bernhardt was a genuine celebrity, cultivating her persona with virtuoso performances (she was renowned for her death scenes), acts of great charity (converting her theater into a hospital during the Franco-Prussian War), and outrageous stunts (wearing a stuffed bat on her head and keeping wild animals as pets). The daughter of a French courtesan, her start in the theater industry was rocky, but Bernhardt built a devoted following that catapulted her into international fame. Reef traces her beginning years as small child being raised by a nurse in the early 1840s to her death in 1923. She provides interesting historical and cultural context to help readers understand Bernhardt's world. Some of the more intriguing details of the actress's personal life, like her difficult relationship with her mother and her tendency to embellish (and sometimes flat-out lie) about her past, are mentioned repeatedly, but never really dwelt on. Indeed, additional character insight may not be necessary; the events of Bernhardt's life are fascinating on their own. The easy-to-read text paints a striking picture of 19th and early 20th century Paris. VERDICT A strong addition to any biography collection, particularly one looking to add biographies of women.-Bobbi Parry, East Baton Rouge Parish School System, LA

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May 11, 2020
Much of what is known about this legendary French actress (1844–1923) is recognized as colorful hearsay—which was fomented by Bernhardt herself. In this concise, well-researched biography, Reef faithfully separates the documented from the speculative in tracing Bernhardt’s life from her birth as the daughter of a Jewish courtesan to the three days when “life in Paris halted” to mourn the death of the “Divine Sarah.” After education at boarding school and a convent, where she was baptized into Catholicism and yearned to become a nun, the temperamental 15-year-old was reluctantly admitted to study drama at the Comédie-Française. Headstrong and tempestuous, she was initially an unremarkable actress with an erratic career; by the time she was 24, however, she had become “the star everyone wanted to see,” mesmerizing audiences around the globe. Reef details Bernhardt’s wide-ranging career, acts of patriotism during the Franco-Prussian War and WWI, and intriguing personal life, including idiosyncrasies such as sleeping in a coffin, in prose that alternates between conversational and melodramatic. Well-recounted, if falling short in rendering the drama of Bernhardt’s magnetic performances and extraordinary charisma, this is a solid introduction to an unconventional feminist and international idol. Ages 12–up.

June 1, 2020
Grades 7-10 Born to a French courtesan, raised apart from proper society, and prone to wild stories from an early age, spirited Sarah Bernhardt was never destined for an ordinary life. In straightforward prose, this lively biography lays out the details of her life, beginning with her childhood as a tempestuous young acting student, plagued by stage fright, who tried unsuccessfully to win her mother's approval. Chapters document her early failures and eventual successes, her many loves, her close relationship with her son and grandchildren, and her tendency toward impulsive behavior and dramatic embellishment?because of the latter, many facts about her life aren't known for sure. Reef, a veteran nonfiction writer and biographer (Mary Shelley: The Strange True Tale of Frankenstein's Creator, 2018), expertly sets the scene, painting a vivid backdrop of the political unrest that influenced Bernhardt's career and the contemporaries?and rivals?who shared her stage. Teens interested in the theater will doubtless be entranced by this, but Bernhardt's transformation from underdog to icon will intrigue readers of all kinds.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

Starred review from May 1, 2020
A scintillating portrait of the stage legend. Reef brings to life for teen readers Bernhardt, a 19th-century icon and paragon of the French theater--and a single mother who went on to earn France's highest recognition, the Legion of Honor. Industrious, multitalented, and wildly eccentric, this self-made artist had an exceptional gift for creating multiple personae. The author convincingly argues Bernhardt was indeed the world's first superstar, wooing audiences of thousands on multiple continents with her ability to command the stage and capturing the devotion of fans with her indefatigable spirit and take-no-prisoners attitude. A biographer's dream, Bernhardt the actor, patriot, world traveler, mother, sculptor, motion-picture star, and author packed countless professional and personal feats into her 78 years. Henry James also noted she had "in a supreme degree what the French call the g�nie de la r�clame--the advertising genius," pulling stunts such as having herself photographed sleeping in her coffin (to remind herself of "the mystery of death") and acquiring scores of exotic pets, among them a lion cub, tortoises, chameleons, and--when on tour in New Orleans--an alligator named Ali-Gaga. Thoroughly researched and enhanced by illuminating illustrations, Reef's account pulls out all the stops in showing both Bernhardt's struggles and triumphs as the daughter of a Jewish courtesan who attained dizzying heights of success. A captivating biography possessing as much verve as its inimitable subject. (author's note, endnotes, bibliography, timeline, picture credits, index) (Biography. 12-18)

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