Nonfiction Annotation: How to be a Renaissance Woman by Jill Burke

"It takes hard work to have a socially acceptable body and, as many feminist writers have pointed out, this work is - and was - harder and more exacting for women than for men."

Author: Jill Burke

Title: How to be a Renaissance Woman

Genre: Non-Fiction, History

Publication Date: January 2, 2024

Number of Pages: 336

Geographical Setting: Europe

Time Period: Renaissance

Series: n/a

Plot Summary: Historian Jill Burke takes readers back in time to the Renaissance and details what it was to be a woman at the time, in its beauty, frustrations and creativity that are so often lost in history. From businesswomen of the beauty industry in the streets of Renaissance Italy to the palaces and villas of the nobility, no stone is unturned to present a full picture of how to be a Renaissance woman. 

Burke begins with an overview of the world at the time and the powers (or lack thereof) that women possessed. She then evaluates different beauty trends, some rooted in racism such as whiteface, others acts of rebellion in their own right, and even touches on "bodywork" of the time such as labiaplasty. Ending with recipes for lotions, rouges and more that Renaissance women would have concocted, "How to be a Renaissance Woman" is just what the title states, and so much more.

Subject Headings:

• Women
• History
• Body image in women

Appeal:

Learning/Experiencing: "It is...a particular and notable part of nonfiction that many authors set out to teach readers and many readers pick up a book to learn" (Wyatt, 2007, p. 19). It's very clear that the intent of this book is to teach readers about a little talked about facet of history. Readers will learn much about the beauty standards and practices of the Renaissance, as well as recipes for cosmetic products.

Detail: "Details are the canvas on which a book is set; they bring out a richness in the book and create a backdrop to the reading experience" (p. 18). The book is very detailed and gives readers a good sense of the practicality of the subject matter. Wyatt also mentions illustrations, recipes, appendices and more as important components of the detail appeal in nonfiction, all of which this book has to augment the subject matter.

Setting: "Almost all nonfiction takes place at some point in time and in some location, and readers need to feel that they are grounded in the setting to fully experience the book" (p. 21). This book has a very strong sense of place in the Italian Renaissance. It takes readers from the streets and markets of the poor to the villas and palaces of the rich, relaying beauty practices at all levels of society within this specific time and place.

3 terms that best describe this book: 

•  Witty
•  Informative
•  Feminist

3 Relevant Fiction Works:

• Leonardo's Swans by Karen Essex
• Born into wealth amid the political and artistic foment of the Italian Renaissance, worldly and ambitious Isabella and naive Beatrice d'Este, sisters and rivals, compete for the attentions of Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan. (From Novelist)
• Relevancy: Renaissance, Women, Culture

• The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant
• Turning fifteen in Renaissance Florence, Alessandra Cecchi becomes intoxicated with the works of a young painter whom her father has brought to the city to decorate the family's Florentine palazzo. (From Novelist)
• Relevancy: Renaissance, Women, Culture

• Disobedient by Elizabeth Fremantle
• Artemisia Gentileschi, growing up in a family of all-male painters, dreams of becoming a great artist in 1611 Rome and completes lesson after lesson until a mysterious tutor threatens her honor and virtue and she is put on trial. (From Novelist)
• Relevancy: Feminist, Renaissance, Historical

3 Relevant Non-Fiction Works:

• The Tigress of Forli by Elizabeth Lev
• The astonishing life of a long-misunderstood Renaissance virago. A rich evocation the Renaissance,The Tigress of Forlì reveals Caterina Riario Sforza as a brilliant and fearless ruler, and a tragic but unbowed figure. (From Goodreads)
• Relevancy: Renaissance, Women, Historical

• A Rome of One's Own by Emma Southon
• A history of women who caused outrage, led armies in rebellion, wrote poetry; who lived independently or under the thumb of emperors. Told with humor and verve as well as a deep scholarly background, A Rome of One’s Own highlights women overlooked and misunderstood, and through them offers a fascinating and groundbreaking chronicle of the ancient world. (From Goodreads)
• Relevancy: Feminist, Historical, Untold History 

• Survival of the Prettiest by Nancy Etcoff
• In Survival of the Prettiest, Nancy Etcoff, a faculty member at Harvard Medical School and a practicing psychologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, argues that beauty is neither a cultural construction, an invention of the fashion industry, nor a backlash against feminism—it’s in our biology.  (From Goodreads)
• Relevancy: Feminist, Beauty Standards, History

References

Wyatt, N. (2007). The readers’ advisory guide to nonfiction / Neal Wyatt. American Library Association.