The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb

by Melanie Benjamin

[Whitney @ First Impressions Reviews]

There is a woman behind every man. An amazing woman. That's what The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb is about, Mercy Lavinia “Vinnie” Bump, the wife of Tom Thumb.

Most know of Tom Thumb through a cute fairy tale or a Disney production, but not the real story. That is what I like about Melanie Benjamin's writing/novels; as she did in Alice I Have Been, she took a well known fairy tale and gave the reader an "inside scoop" to the truth behind it, sometimes fact is stranger than fiction.

Vinnie is determined to be remembered, instead of her name being covered up in weeds. Thus, she is recruited by a "cousin" to preform on a Mississippi Showboat; with the conditions and treatment being heinous, devoid of the luxury one may associate with show business. I found this very interesting, not only for its depiction but because of where they stopped; two of their dockings, Davenport, Iowa and Galena, Illinois, I live about thirty minutes from Davenport and have visited Galena several times, so I found their descriptions interesting, fiction or otherwise; although I was particularly peeked by Ulysses S. Grant's appearance in the book.

Eventually, after some lude conduct Vinne comes back home and again is signed, this time to no other than P.T. Barnum. Everything before was just a prelude. Here Vinnie's story really begins, she gains the fame she has craved for and finds a partner in Charles Srattan i.e. General Tom Thumb , even if it is only a business move. This is where I started getting annoyed with Vinnie, she became self-centered and a little thoughtless always keeping her eye on the prize, by using people to further her career. There is nothing wrong with wanting to better yourself, but it did make me lose a little respect for her.

But there is one person she would do anything for, not her husband but her little sister Minnie the only sibling who is over the same height as she. Vinnie is an over-protective sister, shielding her from all the evil in the world and giving Minnie (almost) anything her heart desires.

By almost I mean a baby. After she and Charles marry, the world awaits a child from the dwarfed couple. Despite Vinnie inability to conceive Barnum creates a baby Stratton, replacing it each time the baby got too big. Like giving up a puppy, it killed Charles' and Minnie's heart every time a baby was taken from them; and this longing was the reason for Minnie's undoing.

The last quater of the book was a whirlwind, so much was crunched in the the last 75 pages that I was reading as quickly as I could take it in. Lives are threaten and lost, with business going sour. The last twenty pages, including a mass fire at a Milwaukee Hotel had me engulfed with curiosity to the end of the book, which I found to be all too tragic, but the show must go on.