Lady Caroline Lamb: A Free Spirit

Historian Fraser (The Case of the Married Woman) seeks in this concise and revealing biography to bring Anglo-Irish writer and socialite Caroline Lamb née Ponsonby (1785–1828) out of the shadows cast by her husband, William Lamb, who served as prime minister after her death, and her lover, the poet Lord Byron. “Elfin” and fond of dressing as a pageboy, Caroline was born into an aristocratic family and exhibited “a certain tempestuous quality” from a young age. Married at 19, she was by all accounts “enchanted” with Lamb, and even sneaked into the House of Commons dressed as a man to hear him deliver his first speech. But their domestic life was complicated by the health struggles and learning difficulties of their son, Augustus. In 1812, Caroline embarked on a tumultuous and very public affair with Lord Byron, many details of which made their way into her titillating debut novel, Glenarvon. Though Caroline remains somewhat of an enigma, Fraser shines a well-deserved spotlight on her literary ambitions and achievements and offers valuable insights on the political and religious rivalries of the era and the fraught question of Irish independence. It’s a worthwhile portrait of a woman who defied convention. (June)