Convent Girls

by Jackie Bennett (Editor)

** 'I think one of the reasons why I was never properly domesticated is because I was actually socialised by a gang of mad women in flapping black habits' Germaine Greer ** 'If you have ever stood on a chair in front of 200 girls with your green knickers showing, reading out loud from a holy book - nothing truly daunts you after that' Anne Robinson ** 'It was rather wonderful as a convent girl always to be with adults who knew a little less than you did. We were innocent, we were children but however poorly equipped we were, the nuns always had a little less information about life' Clare Boylan The mere mention of 'convent girls' is enough to elicit a welter of responses & stories abound, from the hilarious to the sombre. In this brave, witty, often scathing collection of personal accounts, these women talk about what most affected their early from spirituality to sexuality, this truly revealing collaboration both devastates and affirms the myth of the convent girl. Contributors include Maeve Binchy, Claire Boylan, Polly Devlin, Germaine Greer, Anne Robinson and Marina Warner.

Genres: Biography

264 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Jackie Bennett began her career in theatre production before moving into television and writing. She has co-produced several gardening and natural history series, including Channel 4's highly acclaimed Mushroom Magic.

Reviews

[Tracy Smyth · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting. Most of the stories stated the same things - they nearly all had guilty complexes. Some of days he stories were more interesting than others

[Juliette · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some parts brought back memories but not as engaging as I hoped for

[Glenys · Rating 4 out of 5]

Authors and tv celebrities talking about their time being educated at Convent Schools

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but repetitive. Like they gave everyone the same list of questions to answer ie about sex education. Liked reading the celebs bits and the male perspective part.

[Very Casual · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Thought it would be more anecdotal. But instead kept finding the short chapters all a bit airy fairy, theoretical, and suprisingly similar. Except Germaine Greer's. She's awesome :) Not what I thought it would be - unentertaining.

[Sherah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting and quick read full of anecdotal evidence of convent life.