That Woman

The Life of Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor

By: Anne Sebba

Narrated by: Samantha Bond

Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Here is the first full-scale biography of Wallis Simpson to be written by a woman, exploring the mind of one of the most glamorous and reviled figures of the 20th century, a character who figured prominently in the blockbuster film The King’s Speech.

This is the story of the American divorcée notorious for allegedly seducing a British king off his throne. "That woman", so called by Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, was born Bessie Wallis Warfield in 1896 in Baltimore. Neither beautiful nor brilliant, she endured an impoverished childhood, which fostered in her a burning desire to rise above her circumstances.

Acclaimed biographer Anne Sebba offers an eye-opening account of one of the most talked about women of her generation. It explores the obsessive nature of Simpson’s relationship with Prince Edward, the suggestion that she may have had a disorder of sexual development, and new evidence showing she may never have wanted to marry Edward at all. Since her death, Simpson has become a symbol of female empowerment as well as a style icon. But her psychology remains an enigma.

Drawing from interviews and newly discovered letters, That Woman shines a light on this captivating and complex figure, an object of fascination who has only grown more compelling with the years.

©2011 Anne Sebba (P)2012 Orion Publishing Group Ltd

A bit dry

Not as intriguing as I would have thought, not bad but was too heavy on her early life and not enough details about the juicy bits

Total twist on the Duchess of Windsor

If you could sum up That Woman in three words, what would they be?

Loved, loved it!

Have you listened to any of Samantha Bond’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Loved it! Thanks for putting a familiar voice on, I loved listening to Lady Rosamund. It really put an interesting spin on the book.

Any additional comments?

I totally enjoyed this book. It helped round out my information on the Duchess. I had only heard what other people wrote, and so this really brought ground to who she actually was. I totally recommend it.

Enjoyed Tremendously

I just finished That Woman & I loved it. The research & writing of the story was excellent & the narrator had an expressive & appealing voice. I can highly recommend this book.

Be Careful What You Wish For

This book is a cautionary tale if there ever was one. Be Careful What you Wish For is the message that comes through loud and clear.

Because I have never been particularly interested in gossipy enquirer type articles I had never looked very closely at either the Duke or the Dutchess of Windsor. But lately I have been doing quite a bit of reading about WW2 and several of the books I have read mentioned that they were both suspected of having pro Nazi sympathies I decided to search out a biography of the Duke. I didn't find one on audible.com but did find this book. My goodness, what a to-do!

The conclusion that I came up with is that probably neither the Duke or the Dutchess had pro Nazi sympathies. In fact I got the impression that both of them were so self absorbed that it was impossible for them to connect with or even understand any concept beyond their own personal desires at any given moment. That is not to say they wouldn't has assisted the Nazi cause- but only if they perceived that by doing so they would advance their own interests.

I felt a little sorry for the Duke because if the facts of what happened were represented accurately then a real good argument could be made for him having a developmental disability of some sort. Perhaps autism. He really did seem to be unable to understand cause and effect throughout his life. In the end he got exactly what he pushed so hard for and gave up so much to get and then spent the rest of his life unhappy because he was never able to understand why when he shed all responsibilities all his perks went away as well. I thought he was honestly bewildered by that.

As for the Dutchess, well I have less sympathy for her. I don't think she ever wanted Edward "for keeps" but thought she could carry on an affair where she could enjoy royal patronage, snub her nose at Brittain's society types, advance her husbands career and then when Edward inevitably tired of her like he did all the mistresses that came before her go back to her long suffering second husband that she truly loved and her life would go back to normal. Instead she found herself in way over her head and ended up losing the husband she loved and stuck with an obsessively clingy husband that she didn't love.

The only ones who came out ahead in this mess were the British people who ended up with a much better king at a time when they had enough to deal with without having to put up with a King who displayed all the maturity of judgement of a six year old brat.

A Powerful Woman saves an Empire from Disaster

I was brought up in England in a pro Royalist family. My Grandma was born in the Victorian age so there were certain expectations when it came to the Royals. Leaving your Crown for a 'twice divorced Yankie floozy' was definately not a part of the job description according to my family and many Brits. Don't forget that Wallace Simpson would have been on the Royal payroll which also meant that the British public had to pay for her and her jewels and pearls!
She was painted as one of the most hated women in history. It was also, for those romantics out there 'the love affair of all time'. Oh how little did we know!
As soon as I saw this book I was curious as I had read everything that I could get my hands on about the 'loving' couple. Boy oh boy was I WRONG!
In retrospect I feel that Edward was a weak willed man who just wanted to 'play'. He really never wanted to be King. He was merely looking for an excuse to get out of the 'Top Job'. Lucky for the Empire that Mrs. Simpson showed up when she did. In fact it is us that owe her a debt of gratitude. Nothing worse than a weak and dilute monarch during wartime. I also was so surprised that Churchill was so late in seeing the light over the 'little man'.
Frankly everything worked out for the best. Poor Wallace lost Ernest and gained a 'wet fish' and bucket of jewels.
Was there love there? Who knows. More parasitic on his part I fear. 
An interesting and enlightening read and a warning to those who may be looking through those "rose colored glasses".
A jolly good read well narrated.

That Women

More like a history read with her own diary entries and some of her friends. Definitely similarities to a current female Royal member, Wallis is a strong opinionated woman who knew what she wanted but had a hard time achieving her goals. Her true love was not the Duke of Windsor, but her second husband Ernest which made you feel a bit sorry for her. She got herself into a situation and couldn’t get out. I really enjoyed this book! Loved the narrator!

names and dates...

Though very well written, I couldn't help being disappointed in that the book did not delve as deep into the aftermath of the abdication as it did before it.

A piece of history

After a very slow and tedious first introduction to the life of Wallace I was captured by her intensity and the way she was able to manipulate so many people with out ever finding the peace and acceptance she was seeking.

In Depth Look at the "Life and Time"

Would you listen to That Woman again? Why?

No

What other book might you compare That Woman to and why?

This is similar to the account of the life of Pamela Harriman in "Life Of The Party". However, Pamela Harriman was certainly more interesting and accomplished.
Both of these memorable characters seem to have mastered the art of enchanting
a large number of men. Both women insinuated themselves into a ring side seat
for the most important happenings of the last century.

What does Samantha Bond bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Samantha did well with projecting the various characters through masterful simulations of voice timbre.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The life and times of one of the most powerful and memorable women of the 20th Centrury

A fascinating read...

This is a story that I thought I knew... conniving American social-climber fools noble-minded British king into leaving his throne. I'm now not sure that's a fair assessment. Neither King Edward VIII or Wallis Simpson were going to win a "most-likable" contest, but the book makes a reasonable case that Wallis actually got in over her head, not expecting the king would go so far to keep her. Wallis appears to have been an intelligent and interesting woman, troubled by her own insecurities, who found herself the focus of an obsessive love. The period detail is wonderful and the insights into the various personalities involved in this "greatest love story of the 20th Century" are enlightening. This, plus an excellent job of narration by Samatha Bond makes for a book well worth any listener's time.