Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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If you like lots of snark without too much information weighing it down

Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady's Guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners by Therese Oneill

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I have a very thoughtful husband who keeps his eyes and ears open for books he thinks I’ll enjoy. Often, these turn out to be winners, and I can see why he thought Unmentionable would be right up my alley. I love Victorian literature and history, having read and enjoyed Judith Flanders’s massive The Victorian City last year. I also like humor and have been known to engage in snarky commentary now and then. Unmentionable, then, seems like a safe bet for me. What I’m […]

Ye Olde Childrearing

Ungovernable: The Victorian Parent's Guide to Raising Flawless Children by Therese O'Neill

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I was a huge fan of O’Neill’s first book, Unmentionable, so when a friend sent along the link for her newest publication, I immediately ordered it from the library. Similar to Unmentionable, O’Neill tackles the crazy of the Victorian era with wit, sarcasm, and a dose of brutal honesty that both criticizes the dark parts of Victorian parenting culture while also contextualizing it in a way that makes it understandable, if not condonable. Where Unmentionable focused on sex, love, and marriage for young women, Ungovernable tackles the next stage […]

“It’s so much easier to accept your feminine role in this world if you don’t struggle.”

Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady's Guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners by Therese Oneill

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One of the questions I receive most often at my job as a educator at historic sites is “wouldn’t you love to live back then?” For reference, that encompasses a period of time roughly 1820-1920 and the answer is a resounding no. I am all about indoor plumbing, air conditioners, and not being considered property. This book Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady’s Guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners by Therese Oneill lays out all the ways life was downright terrible for women life was during that […]

“In conclusion, women are just awful, and periods prove it.”

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I wouldn’t have known about Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady’s Guide to Sex, Marriage and Manners if it hadn’t been for the reviews on this site, so a BIG thank you to all of the Cannonballers whose reviews placed it firmly on my radar, leading to much cackling and interruptions of my footie-watching boyfriend with a ‘Listen to this…’. Tackling all of the daily realities of Victorian ladies – an era that we’re visiting as relatively wealthy, European women so as to ensure things stay on […]

“It’s so much easier to accept your feminine role in this world if you don’t struggle.”

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“Have you ever wished you could live in an earlier, more romantic era?” — No. I promise you don’t want to do that. I picked up this book after a recommendation from The Bloggess, and we all know that The Bloggess can do no wrong. Unmentionable is a behind-the-scenes look at just about everything a woman could experience in Victorian times. It’s very funny, and full of all sorts of disgusting details that you probably (definitely) don’t need to know. For those of us (Mrs. […]

“Get that parasol out of your mouth, dear, you’re going to need it…”

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Jenny Lawson, our beloved Bloggess, mentioned this book. It sounded really awesome, so I had to check it out. It’s a look at what life was like for a woman back in Victorian times. It has quotes from medical journals and books of the time, as well as illustrations, all with hilarious commentary. Basically, it was a dirty, dirty time, and having a uterus made you crazy sick, or just crazy, unless you filled it with your husband’s babies. There are chapters on grooming, diet, […]



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