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Benigna Machiavelli
Charlotte Perkins Gilman's compelling story of a bright girl becoming woman shows the restrictions and the possibilities of American life a hundred years ago. With ingenuity and persistence, Benigna Machiavelli maneuvres hers parents, her teachers, her friends, and herself toward a better life.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman herself is one of the forgotten heroes of the women's movement -as a writer, editor, tireless lecturer, she worked in the tumultuous years before American women got the vote. Gilman was a social critic and Utopian visionary, whose work was praised by G.B. Shaw, Theodore Dreiser, William Dean Howells, and H.G. Wells. Her Wowen and Economics went through nine printings.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman herself is one of the forgotten heroes of the women's movement -as a writer, editor, tireless lecturer, she worked in the tumultuous years before American women got the vote. Gilman was a social critic and Utopian visionary, whose work was praised by G.B. Shaw, Theodore Dreiser, William Dean Howells, and H.G. Wells. Her Wowen and Economics went through nine printings.
188 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1914
About the author
Charlotte Perkins Gilman
809 books1,734 followersCharlotte Perkins Gilman, also known as Charlotte Perkins Stetson, was a prominent American sociologist, novelist, writer of short stories, poetry, and nonfiction, and a lecturer for social reform. She was a utopian feminist during a time when her accomplishments were exceptional for women, and she served as a role model for future generations of feminists because of her unorthodox concepts and lifestyle. Her best remembered work today is her semi-autobiographical short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper", which she wrote after a severe bout of post-partum depression.
She was the daughter of Frederic B. Perkins.
She was the daughter of Frederic B. Perkins.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
April 9, 2022
Warning: this is one of the hardest reviews I've ever had to write. It doesn't do the book justice. It's not really a review either. It's the story of a book, and how it found me. No gifs (don't faint just yet), no formatting. I'm going back to basics here. Prepare to be bored to death.
*takes a deep breath*
Okay. I can do this. This is one of my favourite books EVER. And you know what happens when you try to review one of your favourite books EVER, right? You have absolutely NOTHING to say. Yay.
I guess I could go on and on and on about how absolutely brilliant and amazingly fantastic this book is. I could ramble on and on about how much I love Perkins Gilman's writing. I could also tell you what an incredible, ahead of her time character Benigna is. But I don't think I can. Because I love this book so much I wouldn't know where to start. I have almost every single page bookmarked and every sentence underlined. Sigh. What to do? No idea. Wait. Actually, I think I know. I'm going to tell you about the story of this book. And of how I discovered it. Or how it discovered me.
I'm pretty sure most of you have never heard of this little piece of awesomeness (only 14 ratings on Goodreads!). It was first published as a serial in 1914, in Perkins Gilman's magazine, The Forerunner. And then? Nothing. Nothing until Viviane Hamy, a French publisher, came across it in the late 1990s and decided to have it translated and printed. And that's how I first heard of Benigna.
I'm not sure how well-known Charlotte Perkins Gilman is these days. I was first introduced to her work in a Women's Studies class in college more than 20 years (dear shrimp I'm so ancient!), The Yellow Wallpaper being part of the required reading material for the class. I have to admit I was too young and clueless to appreciate the sheer brilliance of it at the time. But still, I was intrigued and kept my copy of the book (I read it again years later. Wow. Just wow.). Fast forward to 2000: here I was, browsing a bookstore in France, when I saw this (I lied, there is one gif in this non-review):
Perkins Gilman + "Machiavelli" + that kid on the cover? How could I resist this? I bought it. I read it. I loved it. Moved a few times. Lost the book. Couldn't find another copy. Completely forgot about it *gasps* Then suddenly remembered about it last Spring. Started searching for an English edition. And realized the only one in existence had been published for the first time in the US in 2013, a hundred years after its original publication! No wonder it's so little known. Anyway, I finally found a battered copy through Better World Books. And here we are.
So this is where I'm supposed to tell you about the book, right? Right. Okay, I'll try. I've already told you this wouldn't do the book justice, right? Right. Just thought I'd remind you. Here goes nothing.
This doesn't sound like much? It is. This is a story about empowerment. It's a story that tells you that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. No matter who you are, what you are, where you are or what situation you are in. This is a story about hope. Hope for a better life. It's out there for you to work towards and ultimately, make yours. And it's a story about mischief. The positive kind. Yes, this book is all this. And it was written in 1914. But you would never tell from Perkins Gilman's smooth, dynamic, witty, impeccable writing (yeah, you could say I'm a fan. I'd add more superlatives here but I wouldn't want to bore you more than you already are). This book? You could say I LOVE IT. Yeah, you could say that.
Benigna Machiavelli is now widely available in both print and digital format. You have no excuse. Read it.
[Pre-review nonsense]
Some people would say this book is a gem and a treasure (how delightfully proper). I would say this book is bloody shrimping cool, bloody awesome and pretty damn fantastic. And one of my favorite booksever EVER.
Benigna Machiavelli: scheming villain with a good cause, at your service since 1914.
►► Full review to come.
[Pre-reread nonsense]
►► Benigna Machiavelli. One of the most fantastic female characters ever. And she's a kid. In a 1914 novel. How cool can you get?
►► I read this in French years ago and LOVED it, can't wait to reread it in English.
*takes a deep breath*
Okay. I can do this. This is one of my favourite books EVER. And you know what happens when you try to review one of your favourite books EVER, right? You have absolutely NOTHING to say. Yay.
I guess I could go on and on and on about how absolutely brilliant and amazingly fantastic this book is. I could ramble on and on about how much I love Perkins Gilman's writing. I could also tell you what an incredible, ahead of her time character Benigna is. But I don't think I can. Because I love this book so much I wouldn't know where to start. I have almost every single page bookmarked and every sentence underlined. Sigh. What to do? No idea. Wait. Actually, I think I know. I'm going to tell you about the story of this book. And of how I discovered it. Or how it discovered me.
I'm pretty sure most of you have never heard of this little piece of awesomeness (only 14 ratings on Goodreads!). It was first published as a serial in 1914, in Perkins Gilman's magazine, The Forerunner. And then? Nothing. Nothing until Viviane Hamy, a French publisher, came across it in the late 1990s and decided to have it translated and printed. And that's how I first heard of Benigna.
I'm not sure how well-known Charlotte Perkins Gilman is these days. I was first introduced to her work in a Women's Studies class in college more than 20 years (dear shrimp I'm so ancient!), The Yellow Wallpaper being part of the required reading material for the class. I have to admit I was too young and clueless to appreciate the sheer brilliance of it at the time. But still, I was intrigued and kept my copy of the book (I read it again years later. Wow. Just wow.). Fast forward to 2000: here I was, browsing a bookstore in France, when I saw this (I lied, there is one gif in this non-review):
Perkins Gilman + "Machiavelli" + that kid on the cover? How could I resist this? I bought it. I read it. I loved it. Moved a few times. Lost the book. Couldn't find another copy. Completely forgot about it *gasps* Then suddenly remembered about it last Spring. Started searching for an English edition. And realized the only one in existence had been published for the first time in the US in 2013, a hundred years after its original publication! No wonder it's so little known. Anyway, I finally found a battered copy through Better World Books. And here we are.
So this is where I'm supposed to tell you about the book, right? Right. Okay, I'll try. I've already told you this wouldn't do the book justice, right? Right. Just thought I'd remind you. Here goes nothing.
"A good villain. That's what we need!" I said to myself. "Why don't they write about them? Aren't there any?" I never found any in all my beloved story books, or in real life. And gradually, I made up my mind to be one.This is the story of a smartass. A 1914 smartass kid named Begnigna MacAvelly. Don't get me wrong, when I say she's a smartass I don't mean it in a know-it-all, brag-till-you-die, annoying-as-hell kind of way. She's a smartass because she's clever. And sharp. And cunning. And resourceful. And a manipulative, scheming mini-villain. I LOVE this kid. Because she's a mini-Machiavelli with a cause. A good cause. Always. Why does she manipulate the hell out of everyone? To make her mother and sister's lives better. See, she's a good kid despite her devious ways!
This wasn't disobedience, for no one had forbidden me to go. It was just enterprising.Enterprising she is. She starts small, experimenting with minor ploys and learning from her experiences in naughtiness. Her stratagems become increasingly elaborate until one day, she is faced with her greatest challenge: to get rid of her drunken, verbally-abusive, father. So she plots away and comes up with a complex scheme. Involving her grandfather. And his kitchen maid. And her neighbor. And her neighbor's daughter. And the neighbor's boarders, too. Among others. Unbeknownst to them, they are all pawns in Benigna's evil-for-good machinations. And seeing her manipulating all these poor, clueless people to achieve her goal is positively gleeful.
This doesn't sound like much? It is. This is a story about empowerment. It's a story that tells you that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. No matter who you are, what you are, where you are or what situation you are in. This is a story about hope. Hope for a better life. It's out there for you to work towards and ultimately, make yours. And it's a story about mischief. The positive kind. Yes, this book is all this. And it was written in 1914. But you would never tell from Perkins Gilman's smooth, dynamic, witty, impeccable writing (yeah, you could say I'm a fan. I'd add more superlatives here but I wouldn't want to bore you more than you already are). This book? You could say I LOVE IT. Yeah, you could say that.
Benigna Machiavelli is now widely available in both print and digital format. You have no excuse. Read it.
[Pre-review nonsense]
Some people would say this book is a gem and a treasure (how delightfully proper). I would say this book is bloody shrimping cool, bloody awesome and pretty damn fantastic. And one of my favorite books
Benigna Machiavelli: scheming villain with a good cause, at your service since 1914.
►► Full review to come.
[Pre-reread nonsense]
►► Benigna Machiavelli. One of the most fantastic female characters ever. And she's a kid. In a 1914 novel. How cool can you get?
►► I read this in French years ago and LOVED it, can't wait to reread it in English.
October 18, 2018
3.5 stars. Can a devious, manipulative nature be a good thing? That's the interesting question posed by Benigna Machiavelli, a rather obscure 1914 novella written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, an early feminist best known for her short story The Yellow Wallpaper, about an oppressed wife's descent into madness.
Benigna is a far more cheerful story, told in personal journal form by a young woman who decides to use her intelligence and strength of character to overcome oppression and adversity. Benigna is extremely proud of her Machiavellian ancestry, and intentionally adopts the habit of manipulating others, but only for the purpose of good (although, like a good Corsican, she occasionally includes getting even with bad people as a sort of good).
It was a lot of fun reading about all of Benigna's devious machinations.
Thanks to Sarah for her wonderfully enthusiastic review that motivated me to go search for this book.
Note re ebook versions: Although this book is out of copyright, I couldn't find it on Project Gutenberg, but with a little searching I found it elsewhere. The best free ebook version I found - by far - was an epub version (readable on iBooks or Nook) at http://www.mobileread.com/forums/show.... The Kindle mobi version I found at Internet Archive/archive.org was riddled with proofing errors.
Benigna is a far more cheerful story, told in personal journal form by a young woman who decides to use her intelligence and strength of character to overcome oppression and adversity. Benigna is extremely proud of her Machiavellian ancestry, and intentionally adopts the habit of manipulating others, but only for the purpose of good (although, like a good Corsican, she occasionally includes getting even with bad people as a sort of good).
I mean to help people - all sorts of people, in all sorts of ways - without their knowing it!Benigna' biggest challenge is figuring out what to do with her overbearing, hard-drinking, verbally abusive father, who has ruined her mother's health and confidence and is driving her older sister to the point of eloping with the first willing man. It takes her some years to figure out what to do about him, but her final plan is gratifyingly complex and effective. And how Benigna then takes charge of her home, and sets events in motion to improve her family's life, is truly impressive.
It is easy to be hateful and do mischievous tricks. It is harder to be kind and serviceable and make friends - but much wiser.
It was a lot of fun reading about all of Benigna's devious machinations.
"This wasn't disobedience, for no one had forbidden me to go. It was just enterprising."I'm not sure this is great literature, but it is a great lesson in self-reliance, using your brain, and standing up for yourself - all lessons that Charlotte Perkins Gilman very much wanted to teach to the women of her day.
Thanks to Sarah for her wonderfully enthusiastic review that motivated me to go search for this book.
Note re ebook versions: Although this book is out of copyright, I couldn't find it on Project Gutenberg, but with a little searching I found it elsewhere. The best free ebook version I found - by far - was an epub version (readable on iBooks or Nook) at http://www.mobileread.com/forums/show.... The Kindle mobi version I found at Internet Archive/archive.org was riddled with proofing errors.
March 21, 2019
בניניה מקיאוולי גדלה בבית עני עם אב אלכוהליסט ומתעלל ואם חולנית וחסרת השפעה. מגיל צעיר היא מחשלת את רוחה וגופה באמצעות אימונים שונים בהם היא מאפשרת לעצמה לייצר סיבולת כנגד כאב, והצקה פיזיים ונפשיים. היא ילדה חכמה ומתוחכמת, ערמומית ביותר ובמהרה היא לומדת כיצד לנצל את חוכמתה וערמומיותה כדי לשכנע אחרים להתגייס למען מטרות הומניטריות שונות שהיא מוצאת בהן עיניין.
בשלב מסויים היא בורחת מהבית לבית סבה, שהם היא מצליחה באמצעות ערמומיות ותחכום לסייע לסבה ולעסק שלו. באותו האופן כשהיא חוזרת לבית אביה, היא מצליחה בערמומיות רבה להביא לכך שאביה יצא מהבית ולשקם את אימה.
דמותה של בניניה שובת לב, היא מבריקה, ערמומית בצורה משעשעת ולא זדונית וטובת לב. אילולאי 2 הפרקים האחרונים שהם מעין מניפסט פמניסטי לנערות על האופן שבו הן יכולות להתקדם בעולם, הספר היה מקבל 5 כוכבים. אני מניחה שלתקופת כתיבת הספר, תחיחת המאה ה20, אכן היה בפרקים אלה מסר משמעותי לנערות ונשים בכלל. אבל, שני פרקים אלה לא מתיישבים עם המבנה של הספר שהוא מעין יומן אירועים.
בשלב מסויים היא בורחת מהבית לבית סבה, שהם היא מצליחה באמצעות ערמומיות ותחכום לסייע לסבה ולעסק שלו. באותו האופן כשהיא חוזרת לבית אביה, היא מצליחה בערמומיות רבה להביא לכך שאביה יצא מהבית ולשקם את אימה.
דמותה של בניניה שובת לב, היא מבריקה, ערמומית בצורה משעשעת ולא זדונית וטובת לב. אילולאי 2 הפרקים האחרונים שהם מעין מניפסט פמניסטי לנערות על האופן שבו הן יכולות להתקדם בעולם, הספר היה מקבל 5 כוכבים. אני מניחה שלתקופת כתיבת הספר, תחיחת המאה ה20, אכן היה בפרקים אלה מסר משמעותי לנערות ונשים בכלל. אבל, שני פרקים אלה לא מתיישבים עם המבנה של הספר שהוא מעין יומן אירועים.
February 12, 2019
אני אל כל כך יודעת מה לחשוב על הספר הזה.
מצד אחד גיבורה אקטיבית, מקסימה שמסמנת מטרות ומנתחת את הדרך אליהן. לא מפחדת לעבוד. גם הדרך שלה אל המטרות - לא עוברת דרך תככים ודריכה על אנשים אחרים. הו לא, היא תתיידד איתם ותעשה בשבילם דברים נחמדים עד שהם פשוט יעשו מה שהיא רוצה מרצונם החופשי. זה קונספט נחמד!
מצד שני, היא היתה קצת מעצבנת בפרגמטיות שלה.
הכל מצליח לה, הכל עובד, יש קצת מכשולים, אבל הם שם רק כדי שנדע שהיא התגברה עליהם. היתה חסרה לי איזו נקודת שיא...
ההקראה של טלי פולג מעולה.
מצד אחד גיבורה אקטיבית, מקסימה שמסמנת מטרות ומנתחת את הדרך אליהן. לא מפחדת לעבוד. גם הדרך שלה אל המטרות - לא עוברת דרך תככים ודריכה על אנשים אחרים. הו לא, היא תתיידד איתם ותעשה בשבילם דברים נחמדים עד שהם פשוט יעשו מה שהיא רוצה מרצונם החופשי. זה קונספט נחמד!
מצד שני, היא היתה קצת מעצבנת בפרגמטיות שלה.
הכל מצליח לה, הכל עובד, יש קצת מכשולים, אבל הם שם רק כדי שנדע שהיא התגברה עליהם. היתה חסרה לי איזו נקודת שיא...
ההקראה של טלי פולג מעולה.
May 22, 2020
Oh my gosh I loved this so so much! Charlotte Perkins Gilman is amazing, it's over 100yrs old and such a brilliant story of feminist empowerment with one of the best heroines ever! And it really motivated me to do more in life! Read it!
Read
January 20, 2021לא התחברתי. לגיבורה יש בלבול מסוים בין אנשים טובים, שנתפשים בעיניה כתמימים, לאנשים בעלי תושייה. את התושייה שלה היא מנצלת לפתרון בעיות יומיומיות, בלי להפעיל יותר מדי מניפולציות ובלי לראות תמורה למעשיה. היא לא הרגישה לי כמ�� נוכלת, אלא יותר כמו ילדה צדקנית.
January 26, 2019
[4.5*]
This was such a joy of a book! I think I have never smiled so much while reading a book that is not intended to be humorous. This is part ode to cleverness and resourcefulness, part feminist manifesto, part exploration of emotional abuse and part manual on how to succeed in life. I have never read anything of Perkins Gilman before, even the famous Yellow Wallpaper, but this is most definitely a good place to start and I am looking forward to reading more. She was certainly a woman ahead of her times.
The story is pretty unusual, even if straightforward. This is sort of an autobiography of a young woman called Benigna MacAvelly who may or may not be a descendant of Niccolo Machiavelli - she, for one, decided to think that she is and decided that she'd be just like him, but in a good way. She is kind and always does her best to improve lives of everyone around her. And since she is extremely clever, resourceful and eager to learn, she actually succeeds in her little and not so little schemes. Her biggest adversary is her own father who is emotionally abusing her mother and makes the lives of everyone in the household a nightmare. Benigna, however, is smarter than anyone around her so be sure that she will deal with this situation in due time.
This novel is just so very uplifting it makes me happy. It works great as a pep talk, too. So if you are in need of one, don't hesitate reading this.
This was such a joy of a book! I think I have never smiled so much while reading a book that is not intended to be humorous. This is part ode to cleverness and resourcefulness, part feminist manifesto, part exploration of emotional abuse and part manual on how to succeed in life. I have never read anything of Perkins Gilman before, even the famous Yellow Wallpaper, but this is most definitely a good place to start and I am looking forward to reading more. She was certainly a woman ahead of her times.
The story is pretty unusual, even if straightforward. This is sort of an autobiography of a young woman called Benigna MacAvelly who may or may not be a descendant of Niccolo Machiavelli - she, for one, decided to think that she is and decided that she'd be just like him, but in a good way. She is kind and always does her best to improve lives of everyone around her. And since she is extremely clever, resourceful and eager to learn, she actually succeeds in her little and not so little schemes. Her biggest adversary is her own father who is emotionally abusing her mother and makes the lives of everyone in the household a nightmare. Benigna, however, is smarter than anyone around her so be sure that she will deal with this situation in due time.
This novel is just so very uplifting it makes me happy. It works great as a pep talk, too. So if you are in need of one, don't hesitate reading this.
June 30, 2023
2.75
i'm such a stickler for precision!
in any case, a very thought-provoking book. the ideals that Charlotte Perkins Gilman held as those that free and happier women should aspire to, spelled out clearly in one of the chapters (economic independence, friends, health--obtained by exercise, plenty and not for wimps--and a project of their own) is a feminist creed in and of itself, especially combined with the thoughts of the protagonist on what is less important (family--if it comes, it will come, but women should not plan for it or seek it as a life-plan: they should plan for those other things, because if the man with whom one can make a family doesn't come, one still has a life worth living)...
at some point benigna reads and studies and trains to protect herself from male violence, which is not always physical violence but is a type of impertinence that women, particularly ladies, must learn to cut short...
this was a fun read, indeed it was, but Benigna Machiavelli is too smart and too successful to make a good character for a book. NOBODY in a book that is to be taken seriously is THIS smart and successful and lucky and absolutely good at everything that she undertakes and absolutely perfect the way Benigna is perfect. not even Diantha, and she became a wealthy business owner and capitalist!
and yet, in its earnest silliness, this is a very thought-provoking book. and if it had been translated to spanish, i would give it to my daughter to read. she wouldn't read it, of course, since it's not a stupid little video or a tutorial on lettering, but i'd give it to her anyway.
i'm such a stickler for precision!
in any case, a very thought-provoking book. the ideals that Charlotte Perkins Gilman held as those that free and happier women should aspire to, spelled out clearly in one of the chapters (economic independence, friends, health--obtained by exercise, plenty and not for wimps--and a project of their own) is a feminist creed in and of itself, especially combined with the thoughts of the protagonist on what is less important (family--if it comes, it will come, but women should not plan for it or seek it as a life-plan: they should plan for those other things, because if the man with whom one can make a family doesn't come, one still has a life worth living)...
at some point benigna reads and studies and trains to protect herself from male violence, which is not always physical violence but is a type of impertinence that women, particularly ladies, must learn to cut short...
this was a fun read, indeed it was, but Benigna Machiavelli is too smart and too successful to make a good character for a book. NOBODY in a book that is to be taken seriously is THIS smart and successful and lucky and absolutely good at everything that she undertakes and absolutely perfect the way Benigna is perfect. not even Diantha, and she became a wealthy business owner and capitalist!
and yet, in its earnest silliness, this is a very thought-provoking book. and if it had been translated to spanish, i would give it to my daughter to read. she wouldn't read it, of course, since it's not a stupid little video or a tutorial on lettering, but i'd give it to her anyway.
September 23, 2019
אחד הספרים הכי טובים שנתקלתי בהם איי פעם.
איני יודע בדיוק כיצד להגדיר את הספר/הדמות חוץ מאשר לומר "ילדת/נערת/אישה פלא".
הדמות, בניניה, מלאה ביצירתיות ובניתוח אנשים/מצבים ולהשמיש אותם לתועלתה האישי ולתועלת משפחתה.
וזאת היא עושה בחכמה ובקסם אישי, אך גם בחריפות ובנחישות גדולה. שואבת את עיקר ידיעותיה מהספרים, אנציקלופדיות ומאמרים שהיא קוראת בכל נושא שמעניין אותה בכל רגע נתון (סוד הקסם של קריאת הספרים!). אך, גם שואבת השראה מאנשים הסובבים אותה (ובעיקר לומדת מהטעויות שלהם [וגם שלה]).
אפשר למצוא רלוונטיות ממשית ועכשווית ברורה גם בימינו אנו לספר זה על אף שהוא נכתב ב-1914.
אני לא אתפלא אם הסי. אי. איי, ק.ג.ב. (סוכנות הביון הרוסית), המוסד או כל סוכנות ביון אחרת לקחה רעיונות מהספר הזה!
רוצה לציין לטובה גם את הקריינית, טלי פלג, שעשתה עבודה נהדרת. היא פשוט החייתה בשבילי את דמותה של בניניה מקיאוולי.
ספר מומלץ ביותר!
איני יודע בדיוק כיצד להגדיר את הספר/הדמות חוץ מאשר לומר "ילדת/נערת/אישה פלא".
הדמות, בניניה, מלאה ביצירתיות ובניתוח אנשים/מצבים ולהשמיש אותם לתועלתה האישי ולתועלת משפחתה.
וזאת היא עושה בחכמה ובקסם אישי, אך גם בחריפות ובנחישות גדולה. שואבת את עיקר ידיעותיה מהספרים, אנציקלופדיות ומאמרים שהיא קוראת בכל נושא שמעניין אותה בכל רגע נתון (סוד הקסם של קריאת הספרים!). אך, גם שואבת השראה מאנשים הסובבים אותה (ובעיקר לומדת מהטעויות שלהם [וגם שלה]).
אפשר למצוא רלוונטיות ממשית ועכשווית ברורה גם בימינו אנו לספר זה על אף שהוא נכתב ב-1914.
אני לא אתפלא אם הסי. אי. איי, ק.ג.ב. (סוכנות הביון הרוסית), המוסד או כל סוכנות ביון אחרת לקחה רעיונות מהספר הזה!
רוצה לציין לטובה גם את הקריינית, טלי פלג, שעשתה עבודה נהדרת. היא פשוט החייתה בשבילי את דמותה של בניניה מקיאוולי.
ספר מומלץ ביותר!
July 29, 2023
3.4 though it has a good voice it took me time to get into this book. It felt at the beginning as a long monolog and less as a prose. I can see its power considering the time it was written and it can certainly pass as a book written these days trying to be historical fiction.
It has sparkling jewels in it and it is a cute book . Its not entirely my cup of tea and I’m not sure I’m its destination crown ( if there is such ), but i liked it and glad I read it. I can understand why it was recently translated ( audio in Hebrew ) though being a classic.
It has sparkling jewels in it and it is a cute book . Its not entirely my cup of tea and I’m not sure I’m its destination crown ( if there is such ), but i liked it and glad I read it. I can understand why it was recently translated ( audio in Hebrew ) though being a classic.
August 5, 2018
Benigna is a delightful, scheming, and driven female character. Most important, she is a good person, and her over arching goal in life is to help others by learning all that she can. I wish this book had a sequel
September 5, 2022
Started out brilliant, but the end faltered and was disappointing. I understand why, given the times she was writing in, she had to give it that ending, which is why I'm not docking it too much for that...
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January 13, 2021Lovely, proto-feminist coming of age story, inspiring to manipulate and cheat but in a good way.
December 27, 2014
Une jeune fille, plus futée que la moyenne, qui décide d’utiliser ses talents de manipulatrice pour faire le bien autour d’elle, une « méchante gentille » en somme, voilà le point de départ de ce court roman, qui raconte la jeunesse de Benigna Machiavelli.
C’est le genre de roman qui fait du bien à lire. C’est franchement bien écrit, sans être lourd. C’est drôle, malin et assez jubilatoire. Le personnage principal, malgré un côté je-sais-tout est franchement attachant, peut-être parce qu’on aimerait comme elle pouvoir manipuler notre entourage à notre guise. Ou peut-être parce que, malgré son machiavélisme, Benigna est une authentique gentille, qui ne désire que faire le bonheur de sa mère et de sa sœur (même si ça implique d’envoyer son père en Écosse pour réussir).
J’ai vraiment passé un bon moment, j’ai adoré suivre Benigna dans ses manigances et la voir réussir, triompher des obstacles. À chaque chapitre, on se demande ce qu’elle va pouvoir inventer et l’on est rarement déçu.
Écrit en 1914, j’ai été assez surprise par la modernité du texte, notamment au niveau de la tonalité de l’écriture, mais aussi des thèmes abordés, notamment sur la condition des femmes. Enfin, pas étonnant quand on sait que Charlottes Perkin-Gilman est aussi l’auteur de la nouvelle « the yellow wallpaper », charge contre le traitement des maladies nerveuses féminines.
En résumé : un très bon moment de lecture, un roman malin et intelligent.
C’est le genre de roman qui fait du bien à lire. C’est franchement bien écrit, sans être lourd. C’est drôle, malin et assez jubilatoire. Le personnage principal, malgré un côté je-sais-tout est franchement attachant, peut-être parce qu’on aimerait comme elle pouvoir manipuler notre entourage à notre guise. Ou peut-être parce que, malgré son machiavélisme, Benigna est une authentique gentille, qui ne désire que faire le bonheur de sa mère et de sa sœur (même si ça implique d’envoyer son père en Écosse pour réussir).
J’ai vraiment passé un bon moment, j’ai adoré suivre Benigna dans ses manigances et la voir réussir, triompher des obstacles. À chaque chapitre, on se demande ce qu’elle va pouvoir inventer et l’on est rarement déçu.
Écrit en 1914, j’ai été assez surprise par la modernité du texte, notamment au niveau de la tonalité de l’écriture, mais aussi des thèmes abordés, notamment sur la condition des femmes. Enfin, pas étonnant quand on sait que Charlottes Perkin-Gilman est aussi l’auteur de la nouvelle « the yellow wallpaper », charge contre le traitement des maladies nerveuses féminines.
En résumé : un très bon moment de lecture, un roman malin et intelligent.
February 13, 2013
A treasure. Gilman's intention with this deceptively simple tale of a teen-ager who takes control of her dysfunctional family was to show people, and especially women, that there is ALWAYS a solution to any problem. Benigna is fed up with her father who drinks too much, abuses his wife verbally and lords it over everybody on the grounds that he might one day inherit a fortune from his Scottish relatives. Benigna uses this fantasy of his to her advantage and persuades the petty tyrant to travel to Scotland to reclaim his inheritance. While he is gone, she restores her mother's confidence in herself by helping her to turn the family home into a prosperous boarding house. The mother makes new friends, Benigna's sister blossoms, and when the father comes home and expects to reestablish the old regime, he is in for a big surprise. Gilman was a Utopian thinker who used her considerable gifts for satire to denounce the patriarchy and encourage women to find alternative solutions at a time when most of them felt they were at the mercy of men economically. Her vigorous style and sharp wit make this book a fantastic read that has lost none of its appeal or relevance today.
March 8, 2015
Elle s'appelle Benigna MacAvelly, mais préfère se présenter comme Benigna Machiavelli, "une enfant prodige en bon sens...avec bien sûr une pointe de machiavelisme", comme elle se décrit elle-même. Benigna est un personnage très attachant, plein de malice et d'espièglerie. Ce roman très amusant, écrit en 1914, est tellement en avance sur son temps quant aux idées que cela en est surprenant. Un petit bijou !
August 19, 2013
"Good" deeds dispatched via "villainous" tactics? YES, FINALLY. I only had to time travel across centuries to find it.
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