LOUISE MICHEL was one of the leaders of the Paris Commune in 1871, when workers took control of Paris.
A new title in the “Rebel Lives” series looks at her life. There are articles from Marx and Engels, as well as Paul Foot (whose brilliant talk on Michel is available on CD from Bookmarks for £7).
It includes her own writing, from “An Open Letter Defending the Seizing of the Guns at Montmartre” to her beliefs in women’s rights:
“Beware of the women when they are sickened by all that is around them and rise up against the old world. On that day the new world will begin.”
Also in the series is a profile of Helen Keller, who is best known by school children as the blind and deaf girl who learned to communicate.
Less well known is the fact that she was a Communist and an agitator all her adult life, campaigning against war and exploitation.
Louise Michel (£9.95) and Helen Keller (£8.95) are published by Ocean Press and are available from Bookmarks, the socialist bookshop, 1 Bloomsbury Street, London WC1B 3QE (Tottenham Court Road tube) Phone 020 7637 1848 or go to www.bookmarks. uk.com. Add 15 percent for postage and packing in the UK.
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