Newsletter #59 — The Wife of Bath
June 1, 2023
Newsletter #59 — The Wife of Bath
The Wife of Bath — Wasn't it just a few months ago that I quoted Chaucer in this newsletter? In relation to a book on T.S. Eliot, I believe. And now I refer to Chaucer again, in regard to a new book, The Wife of Bath: A Biography, by Marion Turner. You can listen to or read a podcast interview with Turner here.
I remember the Wife of Bath from my college days. She was by far my favorite character in The Canterbury Tales. And, as Turner points out, the Wife of Bath has been the favorite character of Chaucer readers throughout the last 650 years.
I've just finished reading Turner's book and value it highly for its exploration of the depths of misogyny, and for its love of the Wife of Bath.
Mule Book Title! — At last, a working title for the mule book — Some Will Make It Through: Ballad of the Horse and Mule. The first half is, I hope, an attention getter, interest arouser, and empathy attracter. The subtitle gives a bit of necessary information about the subject matter, telling the reader the story is a ballad and the subject matter is a horse and mule. I think the title has a slight hint of poetry to it because of the near-rhymes of through and mule, and because the five-syllable main title and the seven-syllable subtitle are both written in trochees (stressed syllable followed by unstressed, as in SOME will MAKE it THROUGH).
Whether a potential publisher would keep this title is anybody's guess. Often the marketing department has a heavy say in what the title of any given book will be. But in order to attract an editor's interest, a manuscript needs a strong title. I'm hoping this one works.
American Library Association Conference —Last year the ALA Conference was held in Philadelphia. This year it will be in Chicago, at McCormick Place. I've been to the Chicago ALA conferences before, maybe once every seven or eight years. Last year my editor went, but I did not. This year we'll both be there, talking about The F Words to librarians and teachers who attend.
The Fear of F — In my June 1 blog I talk about fear of words.