[.ca] Great Maria (ISBN 0939149842)

One of my favorite historical fiction books:
I re-read this book regularly, and like another reader, wonder why this book has not been dramatized by the BBC. This is Cecelia Holland at her best. Maria and her world are real, humanely and accurately depicted. Despite the distance in centuries, I feel like I know Maria and the world that she inhabits. Check out "In Pursuit of the Robber: Baron Recreating the Journeys of Robert Guiscard Duke of Apulia and 'Terror of the World'" by Finch Allibone, and you will get some historical clues about Richard.

One of my favorite books!:
This book contains one of my favorite male heroes. He's arrogant, quick tempered, and stubborn. He has a vision for the future and uses marriage to Maria to establish and expand a kingdom. It's all told from her point of view so you only see him thru her eyes. So...you see the sometimes brutal husband who forces her to obey but also the man who sees right thru her and loves her anyways. It's endearing how he loves his children. Maria is a great fighter to keep what is hers from the kitchen keys to her place next to her husband, Richard. I read this book at least once a year and I'm always moved, not only by the story, but also by the style of Ms. Holland's writng. She is one of the best historical writers ever!

Another Gem from the Queen of Historical Fiction:
I had forgotten how good a novelist Cecelia Holland was until I picked up GREAT MARIA. Somewhere in Southern Italy, Maria, a young daughter of a Norman robber baron marries Richard d'Alene, an unprepossessing but ambitious young knight. Secretly, she prefers his more handsome younger brother Roger, but accepts her lot. Little by little, Richard increases his hold over the area by a combination of successful warfare and enlightened leadership. Maria gradually begins to share some of his power in Robert's absence and becomes indispensible to him. Finally, having defeated the local Saracens on the coast and his traitor brother Roger, Richard becomes a king and Maria his queen. As a history buff, I picked up my copy of John Julius Norwich's huge THE NORMAN CONQUEST OF ITALY and scanned the index for place names such as Iste, Agato, Mana'a (or Marna), and Castelmaria -- only to find that Ms. Holland invented them. As for Richard and Maria and Roger d'Alene, there was not a mention. Without being beholden to actual historical characters or locales, Holland gives you an excellent feeling for Medieval Italy. Richard and Maria are a contentious yet loving couple (though Richard sometimes comes across very like Charlotte Brontë's Rochester in JANE EYRE). Maria herself is a complete creation, totally grounded, yet as bold in her way as any of the Norman knights. This is a superb book and highly recommended to all.

A look back:
This was a good book. I thought that the descriptions throughout the book really brought it to live for me. Maria is a young woman forced to marry the man her father picks to be her husband--Richard. However, Maria has a fondness for Richard's brother Roger. She accepts Richard, and in my opinion, realizes over the course of the book that Roger would not have been a good match. The story is of their life together, with all its pitfalls and problems. One thing that was prevalent is the amount of abuse Maria takes. It may be shocking to some readers. Also, I liked how no one was really the "bad" guy or the "good" guy...they were just human. Maria may have had her faults, but you knew what they were and learned to deal with them. However, some things were just mentioned, and that was it--like Maria's tapestry work. It's mentioned a few times, but never goes anywhere--kinda makes you wonder why it was mentioned in the first place. There were sections of this book that were wonderful and fast to read, and there were sections that I just skimmed. However, the latter were far fewer than the former. Enjoy this book.

A Strong Medieval Woman's Life:
This is my favorite among Cecelia Holland's historical novels (tied with "Floating Worlds," which I consider historical fiction about the future). In both, a woman must find a way to survive in a male-dominated world. Here, Maria manages in some ways traditional to her time, and some she thinks up for herself. She would have prefered Roger to Richard, but having been married off, without anyone's consulting her, to Richard, she makes the best of it. Again, without any way to avoid it (and this time by her desire) she presents him babies, who cement the bond. Holland handles this bond beautifully, even the effect of the loss of children. The children provide a love between Maria and Richard that the thrill that remains with Roger simply cannot ever match. Is Roger's observation of that part of his eventual betrayal of them? I love the descriptions Holland gives in all her novels that provide a picture of day to day life of the period. She cannot tell us what is going on inside her characters' heads because that would require twentieth century consiousness by them. But she can describe what they said and what they did, and we can surmise. Thus, at the end, when Maria waits until the last minute before releasing Richard, and he respects her for it, this is not a response we understand. But it fits the context. A comment on the tapestry. Maria and her women work on it all the time. Tapestries were of huge importance at the time. They indicated high social status. They also gave women with servants to do the "real" work something to do. The resulting works were not small pieces to be framed, but were huge wall hangings which kept drafts out of stone buildings. Thus, the work of making tapestries, while it was "women's work," was of high value in the society. This work was also one of the few outlets for creativity. The tapestry also plays another part in the story at least once in "Great Maria," as she hides behind the tapestry to overhear what the men are plotting.