In today’s visit we dive into The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by the very talented Beth Brower.

“It takes a courageous man to marry a woman with a mind.” 

Emma M. Lion is definitely a woman with a mind! She lives in London in the house she inherited but is quarantined to just the garret thanks to Cousin Archibald.

In 106 pages you are swept back to 1883 England. One journal entry shows a wordsmith in the making.

“The scurry.

The scrape.

The scratch.

Followed by an all to earthly squeak.

The garret has mice.

I weep.”

Emma lost her parents at 13 and is now trying to survive and thrive in dire circumstances until she turns 18 in a few months.

She had to sell her father’s extensive library to pay for schooling, which turned out less than optimal. Her cousin delivers a trunk that contains her mother’s Bible and her father’s illustrated works of Shakespeare. (Her father annotated texts long before it was cool. Margins are made to record the thoughts of the reader. Emma treasures this book. “I will read them through slowly, stretching the delight as far as I can.”

Are you ready to meet the colorful Emma M. Lion? Please join us as we discuss the wonders of this witty wordsmith!