Sarah Gristwood – författare

A smaller, cheaper edition of this acclaimed illustrated biography of Beatrix Potter. Respected biographer Sarah Gristwood discovers a life crisscrossed with contradictions and marked by tragedy, yet one that left a remarkable literary – and environmental – legacy.This illustrated biography of the beloved writer has been a strong seller and critical success. It is now available in a smaller, more affordable format. Interest in Beatrix Potter and her characters is undimmed, with the second Peter Rabbit film being released in summer 2021 and an exhibition at the V&A from February 2022, 'Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature'.Few people realise how extraordinary Beatrix Potter's own story is. She was a woman of contradictions. A sheltered Victorian daughter who grew into an astute modern businesswoman. A talented artist who became a scientific expert. A famous author who gave it all up to become a farmer, then a pioneering conservationist.Bestselling biographer Sarah Gristwood follows the twists and turns of Beatrix Potter’s life and its key turning points – including her tragically brief first engagement and happy second marriage late in life. She traces the creation of Beatrix’s most famous characters – including the naughty Peter Rabbit, confused Jemima Puddleduck and cheeky Squirrel Nutkin – revealing how she drew on her unusual childhood pets and locations in her beloved Lake District.A fitting legacy for a pioneering conservationist who helped save thousands of acres of the Lake District.’ – The Mail on Sunday‘Excellent, anecdotal text…’ – The Times Literary Supplement‘Beautifully illustrated.’ – The Sunday Express

The true story of the White Queen and more, this is a thrilling history of the extraordinary noblewomen who lived through the Wars of the Roses.The events of the Wars of the Roses are usually described in terms of the men involved: Richard Duke of York, Henry VI, Edward IV, Richard III and Henry VII. But these years were also packed with women’s drama and – in the tales of conflicted maternity and monstrous births – alive with female energy.In this completely original book, Sarah Gristwood sheds light on a neglected dimension of English history: the impact of Tudor women on the Wars of the Roses. She examines, among others, Cecily Neville, who was deprived of being queen when her husband died at the Battle of Wakefield; Elizabeth Woodville, the commoner who married Edward IV in secret; Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII, whose love and ambition for her son knew no bounds.Until now, the lives of these women have remained little known to the general public. Sarah Gristwood tells their stories in detail for the first time. Captivating and original, this is historical writing of the most important kind.

‘Entrancing, compelling, and beautifully written…a fabulous novel, bursting with integrity and authenticity, vividly eboking the court of Elizabeth I…I feel I know the characters and was mesmerised by their story. This is the historical novel as literary fiction – and damned good literary fiction at that.’ Alison WeirJeanne, a young French exile orphaned by the wars of religion on the continent, is brought to London as a young girl disguised as a boy. Growing up, the disguise has not been shed and she finds a living as a clerk, ending up in the household of Robert Cecil. As she witnesses the intrigues and plots swirling round the court of Elizabeth I in the last days of Gloriana's reign, she finds herself sucked into the orbit of the dashing and ambitious young favourite, the Earl of Essex. As the queen draws near to the end of her life, with no heir to follow, the stakes are high.As Essex hurtles towards self-destruction, Jeanne finds her loyalties, her disguise and her emotions under threat – in a political climate where the least mistake can attract dire penalties.This is a beautifully layered and textured book, rich with the details of life and politics of Elizabeth I's court. Jeanne's struggle for survival and love is interwoven with her passionate pull towards nature, a lovely and seductive backdrop to the novel.

The Wars of the Roses, which tore apart the ruling Plantagenet family in fifteenth-century England, was truly a domestic drama, as fraught and intimate as any family feud before or since. But as acclaimed historian Sarah Gristwood reveals, while the events of this turbulent time are usually described in terms of the men who fought and died seeking the throne, a handful of powerful women would prove just as decisive as their kinfolks' clashing armies. A richly drawn, absorbing epic, Blood Sisters reveals how women helped to end the Wars of the Roses, paving the way for the Tudor age,and the creation of modern England.

Discover the incredible, forgotten true story of England’s lost queen and in-depth account of a key figure in Tudor history, perfect for readers of Alison Weir.‘A powerful story of the dynastic insecurity of the Tudors and Stuart' The Sunday Times'This is historical biography at its best...Don't miss it' Alison Weir----------------------------Lady Arbella Stuart’s royal bloodline suggested a glorious future. A descendant of Henry VII, niece to Mary Queen of Scots, and granddaughter to the great Tudor dynast Bess of Hardwick, Arbella was brought up in the belief that she would inherit Elizabeth I's throne.When this did not become reality, she briefly gained the independence she craved at the heart of Jacobean society.But then she made the mistake of angering her cousin, the newly crowned King James I, by secretly marrying another distant heir, William Seymour, thus strengthening her claim to the throne.The consequences would be deadly.A tale of forbidden love, disguised escape and wild flight, to an agonizing imprisonment and death in the Tower in 1615, this is the beguiling biography of an extraordinary woman who became a pawn in the power struggles of her time.Meticulously researched and drawing on a wide variety of sources, Arbella brings to life a woman who, despite the turmoil in her life, strove to love freely, speak her wrongs loudly, and - rare for a woman of her time - take charge of her own destiny.----------------------------Praise for Arbella: England’s Lost Queen:‘An enthralling account of an extraordinary life' Spectator‘A Jacobean tragedy … Fresh, vivid and beautifully detailed … Gristwood conveys it with exactly the right mixture of suspense and sympathy.’ Independent'Well researched and stimulating...A sad but enthralling story' Evening Standard

A BBC History Magazine Book of the Year‘One of the most important books to be written about the Tudors in a generation.’ Tracy BormanIn this groundbreaking history, Sarah Gristwood reveals the way courtly love made and marred the Tudor dynasty. From Henry VIII declaring himself as the ‘loyal and most assured servant’ of Anne Boleyn to the poems lavished on Elizabeth I by her suitors, the Tudors re-enacted the roles of devoted lovers and capricious mistresses first laid out in the romances of medieval literature, but now with life-and-death consequences for the protagonists. The Tudors in Love dissects the codes of love, desire and power, unveiling obsessions that have shaped the history of this nation.‘A riveting, pacy page-turner… the Tudors as you’ve never seen them before.’ Alison Weir

A BBC History magazine Book of the Year and an amazon.com Best Book of the MonthAs religion divided sixteenth-century Europe, an extraordinary group of women rose to power. They governed nations while kings fought in foreign lands. They ruled on behalf of nephews, brothers and sons. They negotiated peace between their warring nations. For decades, they ran Europe. Small wonder that it was in this century that the queen became the most powerful piece on the chessboard.From mother to daughter and mentor to protégée, Sarah Gristwood follows the passage of power from Isabella of Castile and Anne de Beaujeu through Anne Boleyn – the woman who tipped England into religious reform – and on to Elizabeth I and Jeanne d’Albret, heroine of the Protestant Reformation. Unravelling a gripping historical narrative, Gristwood reveals the stories of the queens who had, until now, been overshadowed by kings.

A BBC History Magazine Book of the Year‘One of the most important books to be written about the Tudors in a generation.’ Tracy BormanIn this groundbreaking history, Sarah Gristwood reveals the way courtly love made and marred the Tudor dynasty. From Henry VIII declaring himself as the ‘loyal and most assured servant’ of Anne Boleyn to the poems lavished on Elizabeth I by her suitors, the Tudors re-enacted the roles of devoted lovers and capricious mistresses first laid out in the romances of medieval literature, but now with life-and-death consequences for the protagonists. The Tudors in Love dissects the codes of love, desire and power, unveiling obsessions that have shaped the history of this nation.‘A riveting, pacy page-turner… the Tudors as you’ve never seen them before.’ Alison Weir

A captivating collection of women's writing – including poetry, letters, novels, memoir, and journals – that celebrates the joy of being a woman. This glorious collection takes a refreshing look at everything there is to enjoy about the experience of womanhood. Chapters include ‘Firsts’ with voices such as Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, and Marie Curie, the first female Nobel prize-winner; ‘Festivities’ which emphasises frivolity and pleasure; ‘Friends’ exploring the depth of connection experienced through female friendship; ‘Family’ on mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts and grandmothers; and other chapters celebrate women’s creativity, passion and love of life.From Amy Tan representing the uplifting comfort of parties with friends in The Joy Luck Club to Sylvia Plath considering the fierce and confusing love she feels for her mother, and Elizabeth I embracing her role as Britain’s first successful woman ruler, Celebrating Women includes a diverse range of voices from across the ages that explore the breadth of experience in different women’s lives.

’Totally addictive.'– Alice Loxton, The Daily Telegraph 'An intriguing, highly snackable guide to women’s experiences.'– Independent 'A modern classic.'– Alison Weir, author and historian 'The sort of book you return to again and again.'– Tracy Borman, author and historianA captivating collection of daily extracts from women's diaries.Organised around the calendar year, in this engaging anthology you’ll find Lady Anne Clifford in the seventeenth century and Loran Hurnscot in the twentieth both stoically recording the demands of an unreasonable husband. Joan Wyndham and Anne Frank, at much the same time but in wildly different settings, describe their first experiences with sex, and Anne Lister (TV’s Gentleman Jack) in eighteenth-century Yorkshire and Alice Walker in twentieth-century California both explore their love affairs with women. It looks back over four centuries to discover how women's experience – of men and children, sex and shopping, work and the natural world – has changed down the years. And, of course, how it hasn't.With several selections for each day, this book is a fascinating record of how women were thinking, feeling and reacting to historical events: Virginia Woolf relishes her new haircut and Oprah Winfrey meditates on her career, Emilie Davis chronicles the death of Abraham Lincoln and a teenage Ma Yan yearns for education in poverty-stricken China. Secret Voices contains a rich mix of well-known diarists and less familiar ones, and often the voices echoing down the centuries sound eerily familiar today.

’Totally addictive.'– Alice Loxton, The Daily Telegraph'An intriguing, highly snackable guide to women’s experiences.'– Independent'A modern classic.'– Alison Weir, author and historian'The sort of book you return to again and again.'– Tracy Borman, author and historianA captivating collection of daily extracts from women's diaries, looking back over four centuries to discover how women's experience – of men and children, sex and shopping, work and the natural world – has changed down the years. And, of course, how it hasn't.Organised around the calendar year, in this engaging anthology you’ll find Lady Anne Clifford in the seventeenth century and Loran Hurnscot in the twentieth both stoically recording the demands of an unreasonable husband; Joan Wyndham and Anne Frank, at much the same time, but in wildly different settings, describing their first experiences with sex; and Anne Lister (TV’s Gentleman Jack) in eighteenth-century Yorkshire exploring her love affairs with women alongside Alice Walker in twentieth-century California.With several selections for each day, from the 1st January to the 31st December, this book is a fascinating record of how women were thinking, feeling and reacting to historical events. From Virginia Woolf relishing her new haircut and Oprah Winfrey meditating on her career to Emilie Davis chronicling the death of Abraham Lincoln and teenage Ma Yan yearning for education in poverty-stricken China, Secret Voices contains a rich mix of well-known diarists and less familiar ones, and often the voices echoing down the centuries sound eerily familiar today.

“Sumptuous…a fitting legacy for a pioneering conservationist who helped save thousands of acres of the Lake District” – The Mail on Sunday, August 2016To this day, Beatrix Potter’s tales delight children and grown-ups around the world. But few people realise how extraordinary her own story is. She was a woman of contradictions. A sheltered Victorian daughter who grew into an astute modern businesswoman. A talented artist who became a scientific expert. A famous author who gave it all up to become a farmer.In The Story of Beatrix Potter, Sarah Gristwood follows the twists and turns of Beatrix Potter’s life and its key turning points – including her tragically brief first engagement and happy second marriage late in life. She traces the creation of Beatrix’s most famous characters – including the naughty Peter Rabbit, confused Jemima Puddleduck and cheeky Squirrel Nutkin – revealing how she drew on her unusual childhood pets and locations in her beloved Lake District. She explores too, the last 30 years of Potter’s life, when she abandoned books to become a working farmer and a pioneering conservationist, whose work with the National Trust helped to save thousands of acres of the Lake District – a legacy that, like her books, continues to enrich our lives today.Main text: 30,000 words. Approx 3,000 words for captions and index.

A double biography of Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West, their friendship and love affair. Virginia Woolf is one of the world's most famous writers - a leading light of literary modernism and feminism - and a British icon. During the 1920s she had a passionate affair with a fellow author, Vita Sackville-West, and they remained friends until Virginia's death in 1941. The hero of Virginia's novel Orlando was modeled on Vita and the book has been described as `one of the longest and most charming love letters in history'. That's on top of the more than 500 letters they wrote to each other.Vita & Virginia is the extraordinary account of the work, friendship and love affair of two prolific novelists, who came to redefine conventions of femininity, sexuality, art and politics for the modern world. The cultural legacies of these formidable women, enduring icons of sexual equality and female emancipation, proliferate around us today - in fashion and television, film and literature. In this scrupulously researched examination of the pair's long friendship, the National Trust draws on their poetry and treasured correspondence to tell the story of this thoroughly modern affair.Both novelists have become closely associated with the National Trust. Vita is most famous today as the co-creator of Sissinghurst, one of the most influential and visited gardens in the world, while Monk's House, Virginia's retreat and inspiration, was a celebrated haunt of the Bloomsbury Group, that influential set of artists, thinkers and writers who lived in squares and loved in triangles.

An internationally admired figure Queen Elizabeth II is the most high-profile monarch in the world, and her enduring popularity is tantamount to her wide-ranging supporters. Spanning from 1927 to present day, Elizabeth reveals the details of Britain's longest-reigning monarch's extraordinary life.Sarah Gristwood follows the twists and turns of Elizabeth Windsor's life and its key turning points – including her teenage years during the war, meeting and marrying the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Phillip Mountbatten, and her ascension to the throne in 1952.Split into chapters each covering 30 years, we plot the extraordinary events in the Queen's life alongside the everyday duties of her role as monarch. Later chapters Being Queen and Change and Celebration outline what it means to be Queen, her pastoral work and official duties, and finally examines the Queen’s Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilee, the Royal Wedding and what is to come next for the royal family.This will be the most up-to-date biography of the Queen available, illustrated with archival photography that make it as beautiful to own as enjoyable to read.