Barb Drummond

Frolicksome Women & Troublesome Wives offers fascinating insights into a practice I didn’t even realize had existed in England—that of wife selling. The book is well-researched and, while the writing is academic in tone, is also very engaging and understandable. I had expected to find feminist anger or at least a sneer toward a transaction that would seem to only benefit men and humiliate women, but I discovered a more nuanced and complex response which gave me a better understanding. In some cases women’s lives were made better because it allowed society a way to handle problems, such as infidelity, that if dealt with legally would have had more damaging consequences. Drummond’s book is the best historical non-fiction I’ve read in quite some time.… (altro)