Book of the Week: Doomed Queens

Joining us this week at Wonders and Marvels is Kris Waldherr. Kris is an author, illustrator, and designer whose books present women's stories, sacred and profane —she's written about goddesses as well as queens and courtesans.

Her latest book is Doomed Queens, which garnered some fine praise from The New Yorker:

"It isn’t often that one encounters a book that invites the reëmergence of childhood fantasies, then eviscerates them in a few words. Even less common is the book that manages to make the process utterly satisfying. Such is the rush I got from Kris Waldherr’s deliciously perverse Doomed Queens . . . a concise, humorous, and keenly observed history of women and power."

As for me, I love the illustrations in the book. And little wonder at that! Kris's art has been exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the United States and England, including the National Museum of Women in the Arts. She lives in Brooklyn, where she has a small gallery that doubles as her studio. You can take a peek at her stuff on her website and at the very cool DoomedQueens.com.

Really makes me wish that were half as creative! Boxes and unlife-like trees are about the best I can draw.

Kris will be joining us on Thursday to talk about--yes, folks--life at the guillotine. Now there's the fate of a few doomed queens or two, or three, or more.