The Mutual Admiration Society, Mo Moulton
The Mutual Admiration Society, Mo Moulton
List: $22.95 | Sale: $16.07
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The Mutual Admiration Society
How Dorothy L. Sayers and Her Oxford Circle Remade the World for Women

Author: Mo Moulton

Narrator: Lorna Bennett

Unabridged: 14 hr 29 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/11/2020

Synopsis

A group biography of renowned crime novelist Dorothy L. Sayers and the Oxford women who stood at the vanguard of equal rightsDorothy L. Sayers is now famous for her Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane detective series, but she was equally well known during her life for an essay asking “Are Women Human?” Women’s rights were expanding rapidly during Sayers’s lifetime; she and her friends were some of the first women to receive degrees from Oxford. Yet, as historian Mo Moulton reveals, it was clear from the many professional and personal obstacles they faced that society was not ready to concede that women were indeed fully human.Dubbing themselves the Mutual Admiration Society, Sayers and her classmates remained lifelong friends and collaborators as they fought for a truly democratic culture that acknowledged their equal humanity. A celebration of feminism and female friendship, The Mutual Admiration Society offers crucial insight into Dorothy L. Sayers and her world.

About Mo Moulton

Mo Moulton is a lecturer in the history department of the University of Birmingham. They earned their PhD in history from Brown University in 2010 and taught in the history and literature program at Harvard University for six years. Their book Ireland and the Irish in Interwar England was named a 2014 Book of the Year by History Today and was the runner-up for the Royal History Society’s 2015 Whitfield Prize for first book in British or Irish history. Moulton regularly writes for outlets such as The Atlantic, Public Books, Disclaimer Magazine, and the Toast.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Lesley

Hey all! Yup, this is my book and I gave it five stars because I'd have to be kind of a dope to work on a story for year and a half if I wasn't in love with it, right? There'll be a giveaway here at Goodreads as we draw closer to the release date, so be sure to visit often. Wishing you all the happie......more

Goodreads review by Tina

When I saw this book by Lesley Kagen on Netgalley, I jumped at the chance to read it! I read her book, "Whistling in the dark" (which I just loved) and the sequel, "Good Graces" which was very good too. I love the nostalgia of stories set in the 1950's/60's. Add two elementary sisters running around......more

Goodreads review by Cathy

Since Catholicism forms a subtext of this story, I feel it's appropriate to begin this review with a confession. I did not finish this book. Nay, I committed an even worse sin. I read about halfway through and then...skipped to the ending. Here's why. My opinion on this book vacillated wildly betwee......more

Goodreads review by Jules

This was such good fun to listen to. Tessie is a fun, adorable and quirky young girl. She had me smiling throughout this story. Although somewhat emotional in places, this is an overall funny feel good story, and definitely one I'd recommend if you enjoy a cosy mystery with a pair of entertaining si......more

Goodreads review by Barbara

THE MUTUAL ADMIRATION SOCIETY is a unique coming-of-age story filled with sister-promises, ‘sure signs of loony’, and amateur sleuthing. And the characters stole my heart from page one. Tess, Bird, and Charlie, three kids who have navigated such tragedy in their short lives, are a triumvirate of qui......more

Quotes

“Sheds new light on Sayers’s evolution as a writer, showing how some of her best work occurred in collaboration with her friend Muriel St. Clare Byrne.” New Yorker

“Shows us the importance of friendship and marginalization as spurs to ambition.” Times Higher Education (London)

“With real affection, the author amplifies the message that Sayers herself broadcast: ‘the friendship of which the female sex is said to be incapable.’” New York Journal of Books

“Well written and fascinating, it’s equally successful as a biography and social history.” Sunday Express (London)

“Moulton…affords the group’s members the same sober respect that they afforded themselves, painting a rich portrait of the enduring friendship between four of them.” Financial Times (London)

“Moulton, with a keen eye for humorous detail and moments of humanity, deftly captures not only the lives of these women but the enduring power of female friendship.” Booklist (starred review)

“What Moulton best accomplishes in this intimate and scholarly book is a re-creation of a world in transition…a vital juncture in history, a time of new opportunity for women.” BookPage

Awards

  • Edgar Award
  • Macavity Award
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