bgsmith's review
informative
slow-paced
1.0
The subject of this book is incredibly fascinating and the author did an amazing job researching Virginia Hall. Unfortunately, I could not stand by the informal way the information was written in.
resslesa's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
4.5
Wow this is fascinating and all true and author head done her research. My favorite aspect is the author’s modern day commentary on everything -so fun and feminist in nature. A great listen!
anjreading's review against another edition
2.0
I would guess readers will be sharply divided on the readability of this book. Yes, Virginia Hall was a remarkable woman, all-around badass, and heroine of WWII. Virginia Hall, the person, gets 5 stars. This super-informal, conversational, swear-laden, highly-speculative-at-times biography of her was refreshing for the first 10 minutes of my listening experience and then quickly veered into a very painful listen. I probably just should have DNF'd it, but it wasn't too long and I was driving for most of it, making it difficult to safely switch to another book. If you want your history/biography in the form of what you would imagine a tween text exchange to be, try this book, you might love it.
cassellwrites's review against another edition
5.0
This is a biography that doesn't feel like your typical biography. You feel like you're sitting next to Heather, drinking as she tells you these true stories about an amazing woman: Virginia Hall.
The immense amount of research that went into this book really shows and I especially appreciate that Heather seemed to capture some of Virginia's own tone, voice and unique turns of phrase (Cowardly salad!)
In this book, you'll also explore institutional racism, sexism and abelism in our society.
The immense amount of research that went into this book really shows and I especially appreciate that Heather seemed to capture some of Virginia's own tone, voice and unique turns of phrase (Cowardly salad!)
In this book, you'll also explore institutional racism, sexism and abelism in our society.
entropydoc's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
faeire_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
3.75
I usually don't like biographies but this one's alright
reesiecup7's review against another edition
I really wanted to like this, but the author's very conversational tone, gratuitous use of swear words, and juxtaposition of calling Virgina Hall a badass and a dame/broad at the same time just put me off. Perhaps, listening to the audiobook version intensified these issues, but overall the writing just didn't hold up for me. It felt like the author was pandering to teens and trying too hard to be cool with all her swear words and modern colloquialisms (reg, adorbs, etc). The teens I know would not appreciate this writing style and would have given up long before the end because of it.
Virginia Hall is a fascinating woman, but all of the daring things she did get lost in the writing style.
Virginia Hall is a fascinating woman, but all of the daring things she did get lost in the writing style.