Book Review: The Mistress of Nothing by Kate Pullinger

Missing the discussion of the novel The Mistress of Nothing by Kate Pullinger, yet reading the book while I was away left me wondering. Wondering about the rich discussion that I missed this afternoon while reading on the bus back from Vancouver. Then when I read that this story was based on a true story, I was more intrigued about discussion of the Mistress of Nothing.

The novel began with an ordinary, for the late 1800’s, trip to Egypt for the heat and the dryness for Lady Duff Gordon and her maid Sally Haldrett. Lady Duff Gordon had an illness that sounded supiciously like tuberculosis. The Lady and her lady’s maid were embarking on a trip that would turn out to be more than a trip for Lady Duff Gordon’s health.

The stark contrast between English customs, ways and ethics and those of the Egyptian communities they travelled and lived in was beautifully described. The story is the imagined life of Sally Haldrett, who had only known life as an orphan and cast-off due to the time and circumstances that befell her. It is the story of the many changes Sally under went and the cross cultural love that split apart the relationship between Sally and her Lady that had been built over  years of intimate service. Omar, a dragoman, was also in Lady Duff Gordon’s employ while she was in Egypt to serve as an interpreter, tranalator and official guide. He was Sally’s first ever lover and the father of her child.

Kate Pullinger had researched the book written by Lady Lucie Duff Gordon, Letters from Egypt that told of their life from Lady Duff Gordon’s side. Kate Pullinger told a believable story of Sally Haldrett’s side of the adventure they undertook. Betrayal, love, cultural mores, the status of women ~ these parts of discussion are what were missed today for me at book club.

“But I was not a real person to her, not a true soul 

with all the potential for grace and failure that implies,”

~ Sally Haldrett, from The Mistress of Nothing  by Kate Pullinger