Carole's Sunday review: The lost diaries of Elizabeth Cady Stanton - Sarah Bates

Author: Sarah Bates

Title: The Lost Diaries of Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Genre: Historical Fiction & YA

Pages: ebook

First Published: February 22nd 2016

Where I Got It: My Shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

Johnstown, New York, 1823: It is a time when a wife’s dowry, even children, automatically becomes her husband’s property. Slavery is an economic advantage entrenched in America but rumblings of abolition abound. 

For Elizabeth Cady to confront this culture is unheard of, yet that is exactly what she does. Before she can become a leader of the women's rights movement and prominent abolitionist, she faces challenges fraught with disappointment. Her father admires her intellect but says a woman cannot aspire to the goals of men. Her sister’s husband becomes her champion–but secretly wants more. Religious fervor threatens to consume her. As she faces depression and despair, she records these struggles and other dark confidences in diaries. When she learns the journals might fall into the wrong hands and discredit her, she panics and rips out pages of entries that might destroy her hard-fought reputation. Relieved, she believes they are lost to history forever.

I've always been a fan of Elizabeth Cady. Yes, yes, she helped women get the right to vote and helped slaves be free. Those things make her a force to be reckoned with. However, I really find her an interesting and intriguing. I've read and seen many videos/movies about Elizabeth as a suffragette, but there is pretty much nothing about her early life. 

This book covers the early life of this great woman. It was wonderful to read. Very entertaining. The beginning was a little slow, but it did get really interesting and even though I knew what was going to happen next, I was curious to see what was going to be happening next. 

Her husband annoyed me. Meh. He was okaaaaaaaaaaaay - but I always thought she could've done a hair better. The pickings back then were slim....so I guess that was the best in her area. 

There were some chronological oopsies and "stretches" from the historical facts that had killed my history-nerd soul a bit, but like any historical fiction has creative license. However, the author did an excellent job bringing the time period alive and didn't make it sound like a history book. So this is good for those who are not crazy about historical-type books. 

I do wish that it would've followed more of her later life, because I find that even more interesting. I can't imagine living a life like that! Fighting for a simple right like to vote? SMH. 

Anywaysssss....

This was a fun story about an interesting story about an influential person. I want to read some more about her. Some historical inaccuracies and slow parts, but overall this was pretty good. I do recommend this for those that want to learn more about the brave women who helped change the history of the US and the world. In the end, I shall stamp this with 4 stars.