In the first full-scale biography of Mary Stuart in more thanthirty years, John Guy creates an intimate, gripping portrait ofone of history's greatest women and depicts her world and her placein the sweep of history with stunning immediacy. Bringing togetherall surviving documents and uncovering a trove of new sources forthe first time, Guy dispels the popular image of Mary Queen ofScots as a romantic leading ladyachieving her ends through femininewiles and establishes her as the intellectual and political equalof Elizabeth I. Through Guy's pioneering research and "fabulouslyreadable" prose, we come to see Mary as a skillful diplomat,maneuvering ingeniously among a dizzying array of factions thatsought to control or dethrone her. An enthralling, myth-shatteringlook at a complex woman and ruler and her time, Queen of Scots"reads like Shakespearean drama, with all the delicious plottingand fresh writing to go with it" (AtlantaJournal-Constitution).
From the moment Bob Langmuir, a down-and-out rare book dealer,spies some intriguing photographs in the archive of a midcenturyTimes Square freak show, he knows he's on to something. It turnsout he's made the find of a lifetime--never-before-seen prints bythe legendary Diane Arbus. Furthermore, he begins to suspect thatwhat he's found may add a pivotal chapter to what is now knownabout Arbus as well as about the "old weird America," in GreilMarcus's phrase, that Hubert's inhabited. Bob's ensuingadventure--a roller-coaster ride filled with bizarre characters andcoincidences--takes him from the fringes of the rare book businessto Sotheby's, and from the exhibits of a run-down Times Squarefreak show to the curator's office of the Metropolitan Museum ofArt. Will the photos be authenticated? How will Arbus's notoriouslyprotective daughter react? Most importantly, can Bob, who alwaysmanages to screw up his most promising deals, finally make just onebig score?
