Product Description
Finally, the writing of one of the century's most notorious lesbians is available in English. Though best known for hosting the avant garde of Paris for thirty years, Colette, Renee Vivien, Marcel Proust and Gertrude Stein, to mention a few, she was also a writer who challenged the male-dominated literary establishment both in the content and the form of her work.Now we can discover her views on the people, places and events of that exciting and stimulating era for ourselves. Here is a spirited translation of Barney's thought-provoking work by one of Britain's most interesting writers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

It could have been better!
I have to say it was worth buying for the price but I was disappointed with the book overall. There were no photographs of Natalie Clifford Barney or that life in Paris, France as an expatriate. Miss Barney had a led a more colorful life than the subject of the book itself. There are lots of writing in it but it lacks depth and emotion to me. I have to say I was disappointed because Natalie was such a colorful person who loved life in general. Her writings don't live up to it's expectation but is worth the purchase. ... Read more

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Born in 1876, Natalie Barney -- beautiful, charismatic, brilliant, and wealthy -- was expected to marry well and lead the conventional life of a privileged society woman. But Natalie had no interest in marriage and made no secret of the fact that she was attracted to women. Brought up by a talented and rebellious mother -- the painter Alice Pike Barney -- Natalie cultivated an interest in poetry and the arts. When she moved to Paris in the early 1900s, she plunged into the city's literary scene, opening a famed Left Bank literary salon and engaging in a string of scandalous affairs. For the rest of her long and controversial life, Natalie Barney was revered by writers for her generous, eccentric spirit and reviled by high society for her sexual appetite. In the end, she served as an inspiration and came to know many of the greatest names of twentieth-century arts and letters -- including Marcel Proust, Colette, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Isadora Duncan, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, and Truman Capote.

Customer Reviews (24)

I'm with the "couldn't put it down" crowd.
I've had biographies in my personal library for years about Djuna Barnes, Romaine Brooks and others of NCB's salon, but for one reason or another, never read them before. Then I found this book and now feel compelled to read everything I can on NCB, her work and all her contemporaries. Rodriguez does a wonderful job bringing this enigmatic, powerful woman to life and evoking the stifling social and political climate of America's Gilded Age she abandoned for the relative freedom and acceptance of Paris as the world lurched toward the First World War. I learned more about world and literary history in this one book than I did in a university education in the liberal arts.

One of the strong images I'm left with is of a dichotomous woman whose devotion to art and to the idea of love was complete, yet whose personal proclivities toward careless cruelty and self-absorption could devastatingly wound those she loved and who loved her most. This point is most tellingly borne out by the fact that her own mother, Alice Pike Barney -- an eclectically gifted and perhaps eccentric person in her own right -- painted a strikingly disturbing portrait of her daughter titled "Lucifer - Natalie." That Rodriguez doesn't gloss over these and other unfortunate character flaws in order to cast her subject in a better light makes me trust this profile.

The combination of a fast-moving, absorbing, well-written biography about a truly fascinating subject and a detailed portrait of an age that continues to color our own lives combine to make "Wild Heart" a page-turner that will stay with you long after you put it down. I often donate books after I've read them, but this one will stay in my library and be joined by hopefully many others by and about the literary characters I met in this eminently readable biography.

Best book about Natalie Barney
Great book with extensive amount of research. I loved the way Suzanne made the everything flow and keep it interesting so it wasn't like reading an encyclopedia!
A must for Natalie Barney fans and for those who are fans of the people she had in her life.

By the way, does anyone have an email address for the author, Suzanne Rodriguez? Would very much like to send her an email.

FASCINATING WOMAN AND FASCINATING READ!
This well written, well constructed and well researched biography of Natalie Clifford Barney was one of the more satisfying works in this genre that I have read in recent years.Ms. Barney, who is now unfortunately forgotten for the most part, was one of the more colorful, influential and interesting characters this country produced during the late 1800s until the time of her death in 1972.While some of her personal literary works might be called into question, although I must say, she was not half bad, the impact she had upon literary Paris during a crucial four or five decades cannot be ignored.

One of my primary literary interests centers upon the group of men and women known, per Gertrude Stein, as the "Lost Generation."To understand this group of writers, to understand the influences that guided their pens, it is imperative, in my opinion, to know of what occurred before their arrival on the scene. There is no doubt what so ever that that Natalie Barney was a major player in this epic, and therefore a major influence on what, again, in my opinion, was the Golden Age of the American novel.

Secondly, I have a fascination for odd historical characters, those that chose to follow a different drummer so to speak, and have added so much to our culture, even if we are not aware of it.As an example, I have spent years reading and collecting biographies of Sir. Richard Burton, the famed English explorer, linguist and professional rebel and reading his works.These characters attract and fascinate me.Miss Barney fits this category in spades.

Natalie Barney realized and became aware of the fact at a very early age that she was sexually attracted to women and not men.Her first major seduction was that of Eva Palmer, when she was seventeen and shortly after that she went to Paris where the popular and leading courtesan Liane de Pougy quickly became her next major conquest and her long time lover (among many, many others, many quite famous and well known).Throughout her life, Barney had literally hundreds of lovers; some were long time affairs, some short of duration lasting no more than one evening.The fact that she was a lesbian is important on at least two fronts. She seemed to have a hypnotic effect on women (and men to, for that matter), although being filthy rich, extremely good looking, and mentally brilliant, certainly did not hurt.First, she not only "came out" in an era where this type of behavior simply was not acceptable, but in addition, she actually flaunted it. Secondly, it is important because her lesbianism was a central aspect of her being.To understand her, we must understand this aspect of her life.

Miss Barney grew up in a very privileged family, i.e. she and her families were rich, very, very rich.This pretty much allowed her to do things and live a life style that was impossible for someone without almost unlimited wealth.This carried through until the day she died.She simply never had to worry about financial problems and in fact lead a life of extreme indulgence.It would be unjust of refer to her as a dilettante though. She did write, she did participate in the happenings of literary Paris during this period and did establish what can arguably be noted at the most influential literary salons in Paris during an age where these institutions were quite important to the art and literature of that time. This salon existed and was influential until the time of her death. She was also a very outspoken spokesperson for the woman's right movement which was beginning to grow legs at that time and gained much momentum.

Now take note:This work is got, despite what some may say, a gossipy book filled with little stories about lesbian affairs.It is a very scholarly work (thank goodness) and the author treats the subject matter with wonderful sensitivity and good taste.I found there to be little sensationalism to this work, so if you are looking for that type of reading, you had best go elsewhere.The book is also simply packed with references to authors and the works of authors, French for the most part, as that is where Natalie spent almost her entire life, which few remember today.I must admit that French literature and the history of French literature represents almost a black hole in my education. I simply have ignored it for years. Through this book I have been able to add at least 40 books and a like number of authors I want to read and explore before I run of time.I will never get it all done, but hey, as long as I have my list....who knows?

It should also be noted that Natalie Barney was a very flawed individual.Politically she was extremely naïve and she had a cruel cold streak in her for which she was famous and notorious.She was extremely sexually promiscuous and seemed to be absolutely incapable of being monogamous, even into here late seventies.She was a terrible snob, gave her many servants absolute grief, and was extremely class conscious, to the point of absurdity, even by the standards of those days.She could be thoughtless toward those she loved and actually ruined the lives of quite a number of women.

All in all, once I started this work, I simply could not put it down.Natalie Barney is one of those forgotten characters that should not be forgotten.She was unique, did contribute much to our culture and we really should not forget people like this.This is an excellent, well written and informative read and should be added to your own "list."

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

A Spellbinding Biography on a Literary Original
If you are looking for a deep, penetrative, and thorough look at a woman described as a "genius" by fellow writers, you have found the perfect biography. However, if you can't tolerate a detailed look at history, or you are looking for a brief, gossipy read, then you may be disappointed.
This biography was intensely satisfying for me; it is a rare gem that takes an objective look at the mind, lifestyle, and work of a sadly forgotten icon of Parisian literature. It takes you through two world wars, and gives you an insightful look into the rise and fall of Natalie's literary salon. The research is unbelievably thorough, drawing the reader into the life of a woman who proudly lived a life of openness: She shamelessly flaunted her lesbian relationships, and proudly lived a life of eccentricity and achievement.
The author is completely fair though, and does not try to hide the negative aspects of this Belle Époque icon- She was described as "politically stupid" even by friends (she blindly supported Hitler during the beginning of his rise to power), and she could be cold and ruthlessly cruel to a lover she had "moved on from." Often she would flaunt her new relationships in the face of her last lover, who would still be in total adoration of her. For example, the writer Renée Vivien famously killed herself slowly through starvation, and alcohol and drug abuse after being disposed by the love of her life: Ms. Barney.
Besides her faults however, you will begin to truly cherish and love this brave and unique woman, and by the end, you may just begin to feel a great loss for the life of a woman whose name has faded away into a literary myth.

From fascinating to dull and repetitive
Suzanne Rodriguez is a terrific author.Her attention to research and detail is remarkable.She had the ability to keep me spellbound for the first 100 pages of this book.

Then, due to no fault of her own, the story of Ms. Barney's life became dull, repetitive, and predictable.I certainly do not blame the author.She did make the best out of what she had to deal with.

A person can read of Natalie's affairs for so long.After a while the obvious pattern develops.She spots her prey.Then she chases and wears them down by her attention and affections.Once she has her, things go poorly.Then she moves on to find another woman to lick her wounds.She spots another trophy woman to chase down and therefore put another notch on her bedpost, so to speak. It was the hunt, chase, and the kill that she loved, not the poor women whose hearts she had broken.

I almost felt sorry for her.She was an intelligent woman, but too stupid to realize that her patterns of living and loving were not only destructive to her but also to all of those that she hunted, chased, bed, and had relationships with. ... Read more

Product Description
Every Friday, for half a decade beginning in 1909, whenever she was in Paris, Natalie Clifford Barney hosted the one of the most brilliant international salons of its day. Barney received in her home such literary, artistic, musical and intellectual beacons of the 20th century as James Joyce, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein, Colette, Isadora Duncan, Auguste Rodin, Romaine Brooks, William Carlos Williams, Paul Valery, Renee Vivian, Edna St. Vincent Millay and Truman Capote. In 1929, she shared her life, in and out of the salon, through the publication of the first of three volumes of reminiscences. Here Barney explores her family tree, chronicles her friendships and associations through reprinted correspondence and recreated conversations, and evokes the golden age of her salon in a gallery of literary portraits. The first half of the volume features a baker's dozen of the male writers she kneow, from Oscar Wilde, whom she literally ran into at the age of five, to Pierre Louys, who encouraged her fledgling writing career and Paul Valery, an "Immortal" in the Academie Francaise.Barney dedicated the latter half of her diary to the Academie des Femmes, which she founded in 1927, as a counterpart to the male bastion of the French Academy. The book preserves the proceedings of meetings between such figures as Lucie Delarue-Mardrus, Colette, Gertrude Stein, Djuna Barnes and Mina Loy, in the distinctive voices of their speakers. ... Read more

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fiction ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Natalie Barney At Her Best
Sometimes, it is difficult to follow the narrative, but Barney's sentences are sublimely beautiful. Writers don't write like this anymore. Barney wrote in a 17th century style of French, so the writing is formal but as well, poetic. ... Read more

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Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Liste de Personnalités Américaines D'origine Française, Alice Guy, Natalie Clifford Barney, Franco-Américains, Jean-Jacques Audubon, Claire Lee Chennault, Alice Heine, Ève Curie, Lucien Ballard, Max Baer, Paul Belloni Du Chaillu, Kate Chopin, René de Chambrun, Charles Bedaux, René Dubos, Daniel Wildenstein, Tina Aumont, Kathleen Blanco, Edgar de Evia, Renée Adorée, Corey Beaulieu, Claire Huchet-Bishop, Cheyenne Silver, Robert Lefevre, Paul D'amour, China Forbes, James Blanchard, Anthony Bourdain, Jean Chalopin, Charles Joseph Bonaparte-Patterson, James Domengeaux, Pierre Omidyar, Brooke Burke, Georges Doriot, Soshy, Gérard Louis-Dreyfus, Yvon Chouinard, Philip Armour, Michel David-Weill, André Meyer, Jérôme Napoléon Bonaparte Ii, Claude Marie Dubuis, Tom Bergeron, Paul Prudhomme, Daniel Moreau Barringer, Jacques D'amboise, Xavier Fourcade, Leah Dizon, Wellman Braud. Non illustré. Mises à jour gratuites en ligne. Extrait : Ceci est une liste de Franco-américains. Pour être inclus dans cette liste, les personnes doivent avoir un article de Wikipédia montrant qu'ils sont français (entièrement ou en partie) et citoyens des États-Unis. Ils doivent avoir des références montrant qu'ils sont américains et d'origine française. Un Franco-Américain est un citoyen des États-Unis d'héritage ou d'ascendance français. La majorité des familles franco-américaines ne sont pas directement arrivées de France, mais plutôt des anciennes colonies françaises du Nouveau Monde (du au siècle) avant de partir plus tard aux États-Unis (voir la Déportation des Acadiens). Près de 13 millions de résidents américains ont des ascendants français, et près de 1,5 million de ceux-ci parlent le français chez eux. Du fait de leur isolement, de leur mixage ...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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This digital document, covering the life and work of Natalie (Clifford) Barney, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thompson Gale. The length of the entry is 3372 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author

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Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Marguerite Yourcenar, Julien Green, Jack Kerouac, Elie Wiesel, Natalie Clifford Barney, Jonathan Littell, John-Antoine Nau, Ève Curie, Martin Gray, Josaphat-Robert Large, Zachary Richard, Anaïs Nin, Stuart Merrill, Alfred Mercier, Charles Gayarré, Alan Seeger, Judith Cabaud, Victor Séjour, Henry Vignaud, Beverly Matherne, George F. le Feuvre, Sidonie de La Houssaye, Charles Testut, Alexandre Latil, Édouard Dessommes, Robert Olen Butler, Georges Dessommes, Barry Jean Ancelet. Non illustré. Mises à jour gratuites en ligne. Extrait : Jack Kerouac (prononcez ) (né le 12 mars 1922 à Lowell, dans le Massachusetts, mort le 21 octobre 1969 à St. Petersburg, en Floride) est un écrivain et poète américain. Considéré aujourd'hui comme l'un des auteurs américains les plus importants du siècle, il est même pour la communauté beatnik le ». Son style rythmé et immédiat, auquel il donne le nom de « prose spontanée », a inspiré de nombreux artistes et écrivains et en premier lieu le chanteur américain Bob Dylan. Les œuvres les plus connues de Kerouac, Sur la route, considéré comme le manifeste de la beat generation, Les Clochards célestes, Big Sur ou Le Vagabond solitaire, narrent de manière romancée ses voyages à travers les États-Unis. Le genre cinématographique du road movie est directement influencé par ses techniques et par son mode de narration. Jack Kerouac a passé la majeure partie de sa vie partagé entre les grands espaces américains et l'appartement de sa mère à Lowell dans le Massachusetts. Ce paradoxe est à l'image de son mode de vie : confronté aux changements rapides de son époque, il a éprouvé de profondes difficultés à trouver sa place dans le monde, ce qui l'a amené à rejeter les valeurs traditionnelles des années 195...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Pauline Betz, Natalie Clifford Barney, Martin Sheen, Bill Justice, Tom Aldredge, Dean Roll, Kim Deal, Mike Schmidt, Ron Harper, Don Meineke, Charlie Bassett, Kelley Deal, Bud Shank, De'angelo Wilson. Non illustré. Mises à jour gratuites en ligne. Extrait : Pauline May Betz épouse Addie (née le 6 août 1919 à Dayton, Ohio) est une joueuse de tennis américaine des années 1940. En seulement dix participations et sans jamais se rendre en Australie, elle a remporté cinq tournois du Grand Chelem en simple, atteignant en outre trois finales, soit l'un des tous meilleurs ratios de tous les temps. Devenue professionnelle en 1947, elle a alors joué des matchs d'exhibition avec Sarah Palfrey Cooke puis différents galas jusqu'en 1962. Elle est membre du International Tennis Hall of Fame depuis 1965. Si l'expression « Grand Chelem » désigne classiquement les quatre tournois les plus importants de l'histoire du tennis, elle n'est utilisée pour la première fois qu'en 1933, et n'acquiert la plénitude de son sens que peu à peu à partir des années 1950. ...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Natalie Clifford Barney (31 October 1876 - 2 February 1972) was an American playwright, poet and novelist who lived as an expatriate in Paris.Barney's salon was held at her home on Paris' Left Bank for more than 60 years and brought together writers and artists from around the world, including many leading figures in French literature along with American and British Modernists of the Lost Generation. She worked to promote writing by women and formed a "Women's Academy" in response to the all-male French Academy while also giving support and inspiration to male writers from Remy de Gourmont to Truman Capote.She was openly lesbian and began publishing love poems to women under her own name as early as 1900, considering scandal as "the best way of getting rid of nuisances"(meaning heterosexual attention from young males). In her writings she supported feminism and pacifism. She opposed monogamy and had many overlapping long and short-term relationships, including on-and-off romances with poet Renée Vivien and dancer Armen Ohanian and a 50-year relationship with painter Romaine Brooks. ... Read more

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Chapters: Johanna Schopenhauer, Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, Mathilde Bonaparte, Natalie Clifford Barney, Françoise de Graffigny, Marie Thérèse Rodet Geoffrin, Anne Louise Bénédicte de Bourbon, Sophie de Condorcet, Madame Roland, Thérésa Tallien, Hedvig Taube, Anna Maria Lenngren, Rahel Varnhagen, Jeanne Quinault, María Del Pilar de Silva, 13th Duchess of Alba, Maria Agata Szymanowska, Sophie D'houdetot, Madame D'aulnoy, Dorothea Von Medem, Marie Anne de Vichy-Chamrond, Marquise Du Deffand, Maria Kalergis, Juliette Récamier, Anna Charlotta Schröderheim, Madeleine de Scudéry, María Josefa Pimentel, Duchess of Osuna, Catherine de Vivonne, Marquise de Rambouillet, Marguerite Steinheil, Hester Thrale, Jeanne Julie Éléonore de Lespinasse, Hedvig Charlotta Nordenflycht, Anne-Catherine de Ligniville, Madame Helvétius, Princess Izabela Czartoryska, Louise D'épinay, Hedvig Catharina Lillie, Claudine Guérin de Tencin, Sophia Elisabet Brenner, Suzanne Curchod, Malla Silfverstolpe, Vendela Skytte, Misia Sert, Johanna Kinkel, Sophie Swetchine, Lucyna Ćwierczakiewiczowa, Amalia Von Helvig, Fanny Mosselman Du Chenoy, Apollonie Sabatier, Henriette Herz, Marianna Marquesa Florenzi, Berta Zuckerkandl, Clara Maffei, Cecília Wohl, Fredrika Limnell, Madeleine de Souvré, Marquise de Sablé, Conradine Birgitte Dunker, Henrika Juliana Von Liewen, Christina Charlotta Cederström, Mariquita Sánchez, Maria Cantemir, Charlotte Schimmelmann, Sophia Magdalena Krag Juel Vind, Christine Sophie Holstein, Alexandra Mavrokordatou, Charlotta Aurora de Geer, Marie Anne Doublet. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 259. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Natalie Clifford Barney (31 October 1876 2 February 1972) was an American playwright, poet and novelist who lived as an expatriate in Paris. Barney's salon was ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=179513 ... Read more