Recommended reading: "Lady Clementine" by Marie Benedict

"The comforting scent of steeping tea rises to my nostrils, and I allow the steam to warm my face and hands."

"Miss Hall, why don't you join me for a cup of tea? It will calm you."

"… I had the uniforms tailored and paired them with the Red Cross berets. By the time I wore the uniform to my send-off tea with the queen, I almost felt like myself in the attire."

— From Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict

I rarely read an author twice, so I find it somewhat astonishing that I have just read and enjoyed my third novel by Marie Benedict. Lady Clementine, the most recent selection of my book group, is a fascinating imagining of the life of Clementine Churchill, the wife of Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

Churchill was merely a rising politician when they first met, and it was intriguing to read of how they both sensed some important political destiny in their future. Both were raised by wayward (to put it mildly) mothers, and Clementine herself admits to some deficiencies in the mothering department. Yet her important role in shoring up her husband—and influencing him regarding causes she cared about—makes it clear that Churchill's legendary leadership and successes were, very possibly, Winston and Clementine's leadership and successes. (The fictional Clementine notes, by the way, that her name rhymes with Josephine. For many years, I pronounced it the American way, to rhyme with valentine.)

Until I read this book, I wasn't aware that Clementine Churchill was very much the counterpart to our Eleanor Roosevelt, and I quite enjoyed the chapter of the book where the two ladies meet. Most women I know have had plenty of time to ponder their role(s) in life, and on that note, it was interesting to see Clementine navigating her self-forged role as her husband's equal, not mere political window dressing. (The tea mentions above, by the way, were fun to note, but don't imagine that this book is about Clementine taking tea. She's much more likely to be power-brokering a deal alongside her husband or personally serving as a fire watcher on a British rooftop during the Blitz!)

When my online book group met to discuss Lady Clementine, I wasn't surprised to learn that many of us, during our reading, stopped to google various accounts in the book to see if thus-and-so really happened. Usually, it did. Often, it at least could have happened that way.

I was supposed to hear Marie Benedict speak at our Carnegie Library here in Newnan in early 2020. But of course world events changed that spring, and the event was canceled. Will we get another chance to hear from her? I sure hope so! I also enjoyed her Carnegie's Maid and The Mystery of Mrs. Christie. Now I'm looking forward to reading her books about actress Hedy Lamarr and Mileva Maric, Albert Einstein's first wife. Have you read any of Marie Benedict's books? I'd love to know!