A Woman of Substance by Barbara Taylor Bradford
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

LOVED IT!!
One of my all-time favorite books, IT CHANGED MY LIFE.
I read it 30 years ago in my bookclub and I am currently re-reading it. I read the series, each about the next generation of the Harte family, and enjoyed them immensely, but each book stands alone with satisfying endings.
A friend described it as a "delicious read," which is an apt description. Another friend refers to as "your biblical guide for attaining excellence."

I remember devouring every page as I learned more about the central character, Emma Harte, her focused commitment to experience success, her determined belief in herself, and her passionate ability to love. I had read Gone With The Wind, but this was the first novel I ever read that modeled not only what it was like to be a strong woman, but also someone I would recommend as a strong role model to any of my daughters or granddaughters.

A rags-to-riches story, it is about a British woman who begins as a simple maid to become the powerful head of a business empire in the early 20th century. It is a magnificent novel about the strength and commitment one woman has to pull herself out of poverty and the sacrifices she makes to survive and become powerful in an age dominated by men. However only her career ends happily ever after... her personal life was a mess (something many years after the fact, to which I can personally relate). Yet in the midst of numerous personal trials she found some of the best friends and business partners for life, and (again, as I am able relate) the book has a happy and upbeat conclusion. When the series ended I missed them as I did a dear friend.

Shortly after reading this I read a news article telling about the life of Estee Lauder and the rise of her eponymous cosmetics empire. It was so similar to Emma Harte's story I told my mother, a devotee of all things Estee Lauder, and she recommended A Woman of Independent Means, which I devoured and it was an equally wonderful novel which also changed my life. I believe I recommended both novels to my newly married daughter at the time.

I highly recommend this wonderful novel. Barbara Taylor Bradford is a master storyteller!

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