Undefeated

by Marsha Hunt

When Marsha Hunt posed naked for Patrick Lichfield in January 2005, it wasn’t the first time. They were duplicating the shot he had taken of her in September 1968 after the opening of Hair. With its notorious nude scene, the show made Hunt, then 22, a household name and launched a notable music, acting, and writing career. What was so different about Hunt’s second sitting with Lichfield was that she had recently had a mastectomy and lymphectomy. In Undefeated, Hunt describes how she decided to treat her cancer like a dangerous adventure, transforming the crisis into an opportunity for others to change their perceptions of female sexuality and beauty. Along the way she describes her encounters with the Rolling Stones; discusses her battle with the hospital superbug MRSA; and recalls falling in love on the Internet. Hunt brings her skills as a novelist to this compelling story that shines with courage, humor, and indomitable spirit.

Genres: Nonfiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published October 25, 2005

About the author

American-born singer, actress and writer who grew up in Philadelphia, she studied at the University of California, Berkeley, during the student riots of the 1960s but shortly afterwards went to Europe. [...] In London she made her name in the hit musical Hair, Her celebrated career that followed includes fifteen years in rock music, work in radio, on stage and screen. She has been a member of the Royal National Theatre (1983-6) and the Royal Shakespeare Company (1989).

(from Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby)

Reviews

[Deirdre · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slightly disjointed look at one woman's fight with breast cancer, complicated slightly with MRSA but still she fights with zeal and inspiration. A courageous look at her ups and downs. There are chunks missing and I haven't seen the doccumentary that interweaves it's presence into the story but it sounds interesting. The cover shows her in her iconic naked pose in 1968 and 2005, still looking gorgeous.