Emily Midorikawa

This history of female authors and their friendships offers something new to the well-known stories of several writers. Rather than writing in isolation, friendships with other women writers sustained and propelled authors like Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, George Eliot, and Virginia Woolf to their success. I was especially intrigued to learn about the correspondence between George Eliot and Harriet Beecher Stowe. Overall, a great read for better understanding these pivotal writers.

This is a lively and intelligent exploration of female friendships between prominent British writers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. I certainly learned something new from reading the book!

This is an engaging book, if a bit earnest for my taste. I didn't find the central thesis--that little-known women's friendships played pivotal roles in the writing of four famous female writers--particularly compelling; at least I felt that the authors overstated their case. However, the narrative parts of the book were well-written, and I'm not going to complain about time spent with Charlotte Bronte or Harriet Beecher Stowe.