Rating: 5/5 stars
Blurb:
“Empress Elisabeth of
Austria, known to her family as Sisi, belongs to a famous love story of
European royalty. In 1853, the Emperor Franz Josef, the most eligible bachelor
in Europe, fell in love with her at first sight when she was fifteen; they were
married the next year. On the surface, it was a fairytale marriage, all the
more poignant, with hindsight, because her death signalled the twilight years
of the Habsburg Empire.
At the time of its first
publication in 1988, Brigitte Hamann's biography, which tells Elisabeth's story
from her birth as a member of the Bavarian nobility to her assassination at the
hands of an Italian anarchist, led to a revised and deeper understanding of
Elisabeth. During her lifetime she was idolised solely for her grace and
beauty; now, for the first time, the Empress was portrayed as a stronger
character, bitter at her marriage, seeking independence, and struggling against
the powerful influence of her mother-in-law, the Archduchess Sophie. Researched
by a respected historian, this is the definitive account of Elisabeth's life,
death and legacy.”
Review:
There are some people in
history, and indeed in modern life, whose stories beg to be told, and to be
read. They led such interesting lives, had such trials and tribulations that
their lives could almost be a work of fiction. Elisabeth, Sisi, is probably one
of those people.
Married to an Emperor at
a young age, famous for her beauty, notorious for her whims, it would be easy
to turn Elisabeth into a real life Disney princess. Indeed, when Sisi’s own
poetry, one of the only surviving sources into the Empress’ real mind, compares
her world to mythology and fantasy it’s not easy to construct a ‘real’ view of
the woman.
Brigitte Hamann attempts
to do just this, however. I say “attempts” because I question how possible it
is for any person to give a full account of another rather than because Hamann
falls short. Indeed, Hamann is quite clearly a skilled historian and
biographer, balancing sources from various people, times, and political
leanings, combining this with Elisabeth’s own poetry to try and form a picture
of the Empress’ life, how she preserved her life, and her mental state
generally. Hamann herself does not romanticise the story and nor does she
emphasise the tragedy of the Empress’ life but she does include quotes from
those close to Elisabeth that do just that. Indeed, the inclusion of such
quotes strengthen the biography greatly as they are often highly emotive and
add a human aspect as well as helping to provide a more rounded view.
The structure of this
book also worked well for me. It’s split into themed sections around different
aspects of her life. These sections are arranged as to be vaguely chronological
but this order is not strict by any stretch of the imagination. I do feel that
the ‘sectioning’ approach works well as it means that one can get a deeper
insight into themes within the Empress’ life without losing track. However, it
is quite easy to get lost as to when things are happening which can lead to
some confusion, if you’re not careful. This layout could also mean that there
are possible difficulties in forming a causal view of Sisi’s life as one cannot
easily look at it as a developing sequence of events. This is the only possible
complaint I have of the novel, personally, and it is very minor.
As for the writing style
itself, I read this book in the English translation by Ruth Hein. Although I
haven’t read the original German (choosing to take the easy route for once!), and
therefore am unable to compare for exact accuracy and for tone, it is clear
that this is a fantastic translation. There are no awkward moments where language
jars and there are no moments where it’s obvious that the concept has been lost
between English and German, something that can often happen with translations.
Hein’s translation is clear and enjoyable therefore I feel she deserves as much
praise for the work as its original author!
Overall, I think that
this biography could be enjoyed by almost anyone due to the unusual nature of
Sisi’s life and temperament making it an interesting read even if one had no
real prior interest in the Empress. This, combined with the easy to read style,
makes it a highly accessible biography which can serve as an introduction to
the woman or as a more in depth study, depending upon the reader’s interests and
knowledge.
To buy a physical copy
of this novel from the official ‘Sisi shop’, which is cheaper than elsewhere
even with shipping, click here and for the kindle version on amazon here.
