From the Prologue In his 1878 review of the first volume of her memoirs, Record of a Girlhood , Henry James calls Fanny Kemble "doubly remarkable": he relishes her performance as penetrating social observer and as participant in the cultural and political world she describes. Intuitively understanding that she was both a dramatic and a theatrical figure, James pronounces her "superb" for her fusion of "an extraordinarily brilliant career" as an actress and a vivid intellectual interest in "books, in questions, in public matters, in art and nature and philosophy." Actress, intellectual, poet, travel writer, abolitionist, idiosyncratic feminist, and mesmerizing reader of Shakespeare: James loved what he called this "abundance of being," Fanny's vivid occupation of the moment. This book pays tribute to that bright abundance. Excerpted from Fanny Kemble: A Performed Life by Deirdre David All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
