A Rage to Live: A Biography of Richard and Isabel Burton

Biography & Memoir, Historical
Cover of the book A Rage to Live: A Biography of Richard and Isabel Burton by Mary S. Lovell, W. W. Norton & Company
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Mary S. Lovell ISBN: 9780393344554
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company Publication: July 17, 2000
Imprint: W. W. Norton & Company Language: English
Author: Mary S. Lovell
ISBN: 9780393344554
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Publication: July 17, 2000
Imprint: W. W. Norton & Company
Language: English

An "extraordinary biography" (New York Times Book Review) of a brilliant pair of adventurers.

Their marriage was both improbable and inevitable. Isabel Arundell was a schoolgirl, the scion of England's most distinguished Catholic family. When she first saw him while walking at a seaside resort, Richard Burton had already made his mark as a linguist (he was fluent in twenty-nine languages), scholar, soldier, and explorer--at once a symbol of Victorian England's vision of empire and an avowed rebel against its mores. When she turned and saw him staring after her, she decided that she would marry him. By their next meeting, Burton had become the first infidel to infiltrate Mecca as one of the faithful, and, in an expedition to discover the source of the Nile, would soon be the first white man to see Lake Tanganyika. After being married, the Burtons traveled and experienced the world, from diplomatic postings in Brazil and Africa to hair-raising adventures in the Syrian desert. In later life Richard courted further controversy as a self-proclaimed erotologist and the translator of The Kama Sutra. Based on previously unavailable archives, Mary Lovell has written a compelling joint biography that sets Isabel in her proper place as Burton's equal in daring and endurance, a fascinating figure in her own right.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

An "extraordinary biography" (New York Times Book Review) of a brilliant pair of adventurers.

Their marriage was both improbable and inevitable. Isabel Arundell was a schoolgirl, the scion of England's most distinguished Catholic family. When she first saw him while walking at a seaside resort, Richard Burton had already made his mark as a linguist (he was fluent in twenty-nine languages), scholar, soldier, and explorer--at once a symbol of Victorian England's vision of empire and an avowed rebel against its mores. When she turned and saw him staring after her, she decided that she would marry him. By their next meeting, Burton had become the first infidel to infiltrate Mecca as one of the faithful, and, in an expedition to discover the source of the Nile, would soon be the first white man to see Lake Tanganyika. After being married, the Burtons traveled and experienced the world, from diplomatic postings in Brazil and Africa to hair-raising adventures in the Syrian desert. In later life Richard courted further controversy as a self-proclaimed erotologist and the translator of The Kama Sutra. Based on previously unavailable archives, Mary Lovell has written a compelling joint biography that sets Isabel in her proper place as Burton's equal in daring and endurance, a fascinating figure in her own right.

More books from W. W. Norton & Company

Cover of the book The Long Shadow: The Legacies of the Great War in the Twentieth Century by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book Killing a King: The Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin and the Remaking of Israel by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book The Business Side of Creativity: The Complete Guide to Running a Small Graphics Design or Communications Business (Third Updated Edition) by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book A Primer for Poets and Readers of Poetry by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book The Resurrectionist: A Novel by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe without Design by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book The Kiss: Intimacies from Writers by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book The God of Nightmares by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book A Mayan Astronomer in Hell's Kitchen: Poems by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book Thinking Like Your Editor: How to Write Great Serious Nonfiction and Get It Published by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book Servants: A Downstairs History of Britain from the Nineteenth Century to Modern Times by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book Love and Ruin: Tales of Obsession, Danger, and Heartbreak from The Atavist Magazine by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book Pretty Boy: The Life and Times of Charles Arthur Floyd by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book LGBTQ Clients in Therapy: Clinical Issues and Treatment Strategies by Mary S. Lovell
Cover of the book Gumbo Tales: Finding My Place at the New Orleans Table by Mary S. Lovell
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy