{"product_id":"the-french-consuls-wife-paperback","title":"The French Consul's Wife - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eJeanne Allen\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003ePatricia Clancy\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe vivid memoirs of a former Parisian courtesan and circus performer who scandalised Melbourne in the 1850s.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'What a subject for a film, but not, please, Meryl Streep ... Together with Dr Patricia Clancy (Melbourne University) and Jeanne Allen's (La Trobe University) elegant translation and able notes, the memoirs make for a piquant, informative, variegated and often startling read ... Miegunyah Press you've done it again.' (Derek Whitelock, Weekend Australian)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA former Parisian courtesan, circus performer and dancer, Céleste de Chabrillan scandalised Melbourne society when she arrived in 1854 as the wife of the French Consul. These memoirs give a vivid firsthand account of the two-and-a-half years she spent in gold-rush Victoria.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCéleste's arrival in Melbourne was preceded by the publication of her memoirs describing her illegitimate birth, miserable adolescence and celebrity career as a courtesan, bareback rider and polka dancer. As a result she was dubbed the consul's 'harlot spouse' and ostracised by society.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDespite this, Céleste did not avoid the public gaze and continued to employ her literary talents. Her memoirs are of a life spent in the village of St Kilda, the diplomatic and government house circle and the Ballarat gold fields. Her descriptions of a public hanging, Governor Hotham's 'beer ball' and her own Ball for the Victims of Crimea reveal her as a woman of great energy and wilful temperament.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDr Patricia Clancy\u003c\/b\u003e was for many years a senior lecturer in the French Department of the University of Melbourne. She is a winner of the Victorian Premier's Award for Literary Translation.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJeanne Allen\u003c\/b\u003e taught French at La Trobe and Melbourne universities and has published on the French in colonial Australia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 336\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.2 x 9.1 x 6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 14, 2024\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67537740923129,"sku":"9780522850666","price":35.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0789\/2782\/3097\/files\/ydjpn3-lvP9780522850666.webp?v=1793332318","url":"https:\/\/bookscloud.io\/products\/the-french-consuls-wife-paperback","provider":"BooksCloud Book Dropshipping","version":"1.0","type":"link"}