The Long Eighteenth Century
The Pirate’s Wife
A title like The Pirate’s Wife makes promises to the reader: adventure, danger, betrayal, romance, and especially pirate treasure. Daphne Geanacopoulos* more than keeps those promises in this deeply researched and richly imagined exploration of the life of Sarah Kidd,** the little known wife of one of history’s most infamous pirates. Sarah’s marriage to Captain…
Read More
Sister Novelists
Recently I was talking with a group of writer friends about the question of accuracy in historical novels and movies. It was an intense discussion that began with The Woman King* and ultimately found its way to the film adaptations of Jane Austen’s movies. In the course of that discussion, I heard myself saying “That’s…
Read More
Rock Island Arsenal, Part 1: Colonel Davenport’s House, and a Couple of Long Digressions
Visiting “Colonel” George Davenport’s house on the Rock Island Arsenal* turned out to be more interesting than I expected, in part because of our knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide. And also because it turned out that “Colonel” Davenport was right at the center of things in the history of the the region. Something I also hadn’t…
Read More