I thought the writing was superb, but I thought most of the women would make nasty role models. Many of them distinguished themselves by their dishonesty, willingness to sleep their way to the top, ability to take other women's husbands and extraordinary self-centeredness. I'd love to learn from older women, but most of these ladies would be my last choice. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the book. It's definitely a good read.

Marie Brenner has written a profound collection of essays of some incredible, profound, and dare I say, "great dames." I laughed at some of their exploits. I cried at the tragedies that touched each of their lives in some way, and I came away a better person able to deal with life with a bit more perserverance than I knew I had. The women in this book were not perfect...far from it at times, but neither are any of us! Great Dames is really wonderful! Especially enjoyable were the chapters about Marie's mother, Thelma Brenner.

Well, the jury seems to be split on this book. The cover and sales pitch for the book do make it seem more "serious" than it actually is. But once you decide to have fun with this book, it's quite enjoyable. I enjoyed the character sketches very much.