Michelle Moran's Madame Tussaud Book Giveaway and Guest Post!

As a huge fan of Michelle Moran, I am delighted to announce her latest book Madame Tussaud:A Novel of the French Revolution will be in stores sometime around or on February 15, 2011.  To kick-off her book release, I am hosting a book giveaway for a signed copy of Madame Tussaud and a pair of aristocratically delicate cupcake earrings. (Take a look below)

Michelle has submitted this synopsis of her book that will give you a little background about this amazing woman from history.  After reading the excerpt see the contest details. With eager anticipation I can't wait for my copy to arrive.   Congratulations Michelle!

MADAME TUSSAUD: The Woman

When most people hear the name Madame Tussaud, the first thing that comes to mind are the eerily lifelike waxworks which crowd her museums throughout the world. But who was the woman behind the name, and what was she like in the flesh?

Madame Tussaud’s story actually began in 18th century Paris. While most people know her from her famous museum in London, it was in France, on the humble Boulevard du Temple, where Marie first got her start as an apprentice in her uncle’s wax museum, the Salon de Cire. At the time, the Boulevard du Temple was crowded with exhibits of every kind. For just a few sous a passerby might attend the opera, watch a puppet show, or visit Henri Charles’ mystifying exhibition The Invisible Girl. The Boulevard was a difficult place to distinguish yourself as an artist, but as Marie’s talent grew for both sculpting and public relations, the Salon de Cire became one of the most popular attractions around. Suddenly, no one could compete with Marie or her uncle for ingenious publicity stunts, and when the royal family supposedly visited their museum, this only solidified what most showmen in Paris already knew — the Salon was an exhibition to watch out for.

But as the Salon’s popularity grew, so did the unusual requests. Noblemen came asking for wax sculptures of their mistresses, women wanted models of their newborn infants, and – most importantly – the king’s sister herself wanted Marie to come to Versailles to be her wax tutor. While this was, in many ways, a dream come true for Marie, it was also a dangerous time to be associated with the royal family. Men like Robespierre, Marat, and Desmoulins were meeting at Marie’s house to discuss the future of the monarchy, and when the Revolution began, Marie found herself in a precarious position. Ultimately, she was given a choice by France’s new leaders: to preserve the famous victims of Madame Guillotine in wax, or be guillotined herself.

Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution is the story of Marie’s life during one of the most tumultuous times in human history. Her survival was nothing less than astonishing, and how she survived makes for what I hope is a compelling read.~ Michelle Moran

Visit MichelleMoran.com

Check out Michelle's blog at michellemoran.blogspot.com

Contest Giveaway from January 21st-February 21, 2011

Prize: 

A  copy of Madame Tussaud signed by Michelle Moran and a pair of cupcake earrings.

Rules:

1. To be entered you must be a follower on my sidebar Google Reader, and post a comment about the above excerpt, or about Michelle Moran's novels and writing. 

2. Blog about this contest and leave a link to the post in the comments.  (2 additional chances) 

3. Twitter about this contest and leave a link to your tweet. (2 additional chances)

Open participants worldwide. :)

Disclosure: All book copies for review, and earrings for this giveaway are free copies sent by Crown Publishing.  Any review or guest post is submitted without monetary compensation with my opinion written and posted free from bias.  



© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

Review-Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

REVOLUTION
Written by Jennifer Donnelly
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780385737630
Our Price: $18.99
978-0-385-73763-0

Synopsis from Book Cover and Random House

"BROOKLYN: Andi Alpers is on the edge. She’s angry at her father for leaving, angry at her mother for not being able to cope, and heartbroken by the loss of her younger brother, Truman. Rage and grief are destroying her. And she’s about to be expelled from Brooklyn Heights’ most prestigious private school when her father intervenes. Now Andi must accompany him to Parisfor winter break.

PARIS: Alexandrine Paradis lived over two centuries ago. She dreamed of making her mark on the Paris stage, but a fateful encounter with a doomed prince of France cast her in a tragic role she didn’t want—and couldn’t escape.

Two girls, two centuries apart. One never knowing the other. But when Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she recognizes something in her words and is moved to the point of obsession. There’s comfort and distraction for Andi in the journal’s antique pages—until, on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words transcend paper and time, and the past becomes suddenly, terrifyingly present.

Jennifer Donnelly, author of the award-winning novel A Northern Light, artfully weaves two girls’ stories into one unforgettable account of life, loss, and enduring love. Revolution spans centuries and vividly depicts the eternal struggles of the human heart."

My Review

All Andi Alpers wants to do is forget. Forget that the tragic death of her brother ever happened. She believes it is her fault, that her parents blame her and that the reality is her brother is dead. She will never see him again, and the events leading up to his death haunt her each day. To cope with her loss, she functions, just barely at times due to her heavy reliance on anti-depressants.The depression zaps her energy, her drive, her will to live. Her father travels much of the time and her mother, an artist, fills her days painting, lost in her own world of pain. When her father shows up, he believes his solutions are the best for both Andi and her mother.

Andi, stuck in Paris with her non-communicative father is faced with an ultimatum. He agrees to her proposition to produce an outline for her final thesis, work she has so far neglected. If he accepts the project, he will agree to allow her to fly back to Brooklyn. She stumbles upon the diary of Alexandrine, a young girl who lived during the French Revolution. The events and lives of those in the ill-fated journal present a compelling mystery. Andi’s compulsion to finish her project is desperate and frenetic. Eventually, with a crash of kismet, her life collides with the past.

The beginning of the story was slow, rather banal and my interaction was passive. However, as soon as you emerge in Paris, the mysterious plight of Alexandrine, uncovered in the pages of her diary makes this book suddenly glow with a brilliant radiance. Andi begins to see life through death and a harmonious blend of the two characters creates a duet of tympanic rhythm that reveals a powerful message.

Donnelly presents an imaginative novel with a deeply penetrating view of the historical events that took place during the French Revolution. It’s important to note that the inconsolable numbness to life and the feeling of self-loathing and deep depression portrayed in the character of Andi Alpers is sadly heartbreaking. The timeless message of self-love and forgiveness makes this a highly recommended novel.


Disclosure: This was an ARC sent to me by Random House.


© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2010].

Madame Tussaud by Michelle Moran, Book Release-February 2011.

One of my favorite author's Michelle Moran has a new book soon to be released in February 2011. Can it really be only three months till February?

Madame Tussaud takes place during the French Revolution. I just finished reading Revolution, by Jennifer Donnelly (review forthcoming), also from that time period. The French Revolution has always fascinated me. I think my passion for this historical setting began when I read A Tale of Two Cities, by Dickens. I vividly recall scenes from this novel that I read in high school, and the impressions have remained with me all my life.

I was so thrilled to read that Michelle Moran has written a book about Madame Tussaud. I love the cover don't you? I have read Michelle Moran's other books, always exciting and educational. I am surprised she has journeyed away from Ancient Rome, but I am delighted. I can't wait to read Madame Tussaud.

Synopsis from Michelle's Blog

"The world knows Madame Tussaud as a wax artist extraordinaire…but who was this woman and how did she become one of the most famous sculptresses of all time? In these pages, her tumultuous story comes to life as only Michelle Moran could tell it. The year is 1788, and a revolution is about to begin…

Marie Tussaud has learned the secrets of wax sculpting by working alongside her uncle in their celebrated wax museum, the Salon de Cire. From her popular model of the American Ambassador, Thomas Jefferson, to her tableau of the royal family at dinner, Marie’s museum provides Parisians with the very latest news on fashion, gossip, even politics. Her customers hail from every walk of life, and when word arrives that the royals themselves are coming to see their likenesses, Marie never dreams that the king’s sister will request her presence at Versailles as a royal tutor in wax sculpting. Yet when a letter with a gold seal is delivered to her home, Marie knows she cannot refuse—even if it means time away from her beloved Salon and her increasingly dear friend, Henri Charles.

As Marie becomes acquainted with her pupil, Princess Élisabeth, she is taken to meet both Marie Antoinette and King Louis XVI, who introduce her to the glamorous life at court. From lavish parties with more delicacies than she’s ever seen, to rooms filled with candles lit only once before being discarded, Marie steps into to a world entirely different from her home on the Boulevard du Temple, where people are selling their teeth in order to put food on the table.

Meanwhile, many resent the vast separation between rich and poor. In salons and cafés across Paris, people like Camille Desmoulins, Jean-Paul Marat, and Maximilien Robespierre are lashing out against the monarchy. Soon, there’s whispered talk of revolution…Will Marie be able to hold on to both the love of her life and her friendship with the royal family as France approaches civil war? And more importantly, will she be able to fulfill the demands of powerful revolutionaries who ask that she make the death masks of beheaded aristocrats, some of whom she knows?

Spanning five years from the budding revolution to the Reign of Terror, Madame Tussaud brings us into the world of an incredible heroine whose talent for wax modeling saved her life and preserved the faces of a vanished kingdom."

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2010].

ABC Historical Fiction Challenge, Mistress of the Revolution

I am slowly working my way through this challenge, but I have to admit, I'm not doing so well on the deadlines. When the letter is posted, you have a fortnight to read and post the review. Well, I am trying, but so far I have only read letters, E, F and G. My review for Etta will be late posting, and so will the letter G. For the letter G, I read The Confessions of Catherine de Medici, by C. W. Gortner. I'll post this after the print review is published, so sorry for that delay.






However, I do have a posting for the letter F. The book is Mistress of the Revolution by Catherine Delors. The location is of course France which will fulfill the requirement for this letter.


MISTRESS OF THE REVOLUTION
Catherine Delors, Dutton, March 2008, $25.95,HC,464pp, 978-0-525-95054-7.


Mistress of the Revolution is the story of Gabrielle de Montserrat, a survivor of the French Revolution. Gabrielle, although of noble birth, is raised in a convent as her own mother turned her away. At the age of fifteen she is taken home to live with her brother and mother and although her mother loathes her, it soon becomes clear that her brother is enamored by her. During this time she loves to ride and during an outing meets Pierre-Andre Coffinhal a local commoner. They fall in love and plan to marry but when her brother the Marquis discovers the mismatch he is furious. As her guardian, without recourse, she is forced to marry a much older, cousin who beats her and treats her as nothing more than a common whore. He dies suddenly leaving her and her young daughter with no means of support. Desolate and alone, she accepts a generous offer to live in Paris with the Dutchess d’Arpajon who becomes her mentor, protector and confidant. She becomes a kind friend, but fearing her own death and what would certainly cause financial hardship for Gabrielle, the Dutchess encourages her to seek male companionship. Her future is bleak for a woman without means in Paris, but her beauty attracts many men with numerous proposals, although without a dowry, marriage is not an option.

Delors recounts compelling horror with terrifying details of this unsettled revolutionary period of time in France. The political turmoil of the day is the backdrop of Gabrielle’s story and it is through her eyes we witness this bloodbath known as The Reign of Terror.
The real historical figures in Gabrielle’s story are many including Marie-Antoinette, Louis the Sixteenth, Pierre-Andre Coffinhal, Robespierre, Lafayette and countless others. Gabrielle did not live, but her character is full of spirit and has a tenacious will to survive. Gabrielle’s existence is fragile at best and Delors uncovers the drama and tenuous journey women had to tread during the late 18th to early 19th century through her pathetic and unhappy story. This is a heartbreaking, tear brimming story with well researched details of the French Revolution which shouldn’t be missed.

Disclosure: I purchased Mistress of the Revolution for my own enjoyment.