- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Chatto & Windus; illustrated edition edition (4 Jan 1996)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0701157534
- ISBN-13: 978-0701157531
- Product Dimensions: 23 x 16 x 3.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 952,763 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
"Beautifully written, warm and lively, with enough detachment for us to see Dodie for ourselves... Full of life and zip." -- Joanna Trollope
"A successful portrait of a powerful and original woman of devastating wit and intelligence." -- Elspeth Barker, "Independent on Sunday --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"A successful portrait of a powerful and original woman of devastating wit and intelligence." -- Elspeth Barker, "Independent on Sunday --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Joanna Trollope
‘Beautifully written, warm and lively, with enough detachment for us to see Dodie for ourselves…Full of life and zip.’
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I can't disagree more with the previous reviewer. I am currently online looking for copies of Dodie Smith's plays and autobiographies because I was inspired by this biography to read them. Valerie Grove faced a daunting task when taking on this challenge - Dodie Smith left thousands of pages of journals, thousands of letters and five large volumes of autobiography. To distill them into 300+ pages without seeming to compromise on detail is an incredible achievement. I was fascinated by Dodie's upbringing, her experiences as a playwright, her relationship with her husband, her attitudes towards sex and her love of dalmations (so cleverly juxtaposed with her obvious and increasing intolerance of humans). The impact of the war on British theatre is described through the experiences of Dodie, as her previously popular style of writing is discarded in favour of 'kitchen sink' drama. As with her other excellent biography (of Laurie Lee), Valerie Grove made me feel that she had known Dodie Smith at all stages of her life, that she had been there observing - not just that she had researched well. I don't read much biography as a rule - having experienced some tediously dry tomes in the past - but I have read both the Grove biographies this year and have loved them both.
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Although the author had access to a fair the amount of information and interviewees, she has not really produced a biography that does justice to Dodie Smith.
Dodie Smith, writer of 101 Dalmatians, its sequel Starlight Barking, and I Capture the Castle was also an extremely successful playwright. The writing style of the biography is not easy to follow, and at times you get the feeling that the author does not like her subject. I found this biography disappointing because there was not much emphasis on Dodie's work or how significant her achievements were. There is a lot of information in the book about Dodie but most of it can be found in Dodie's four-part autobiography (Look Back with Love, Look Back with Mixed Feelings, Look Back with Astonishment, and Look Back with Gratitude).
This book however, does provide the reader with odd snippets of new information, and a different viewpoint on Dodie's life. Although Dodie's memoirs are no longer in print, I would recommend that someone interested in her life look for, and read them BEFORE reading this book.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3 reviews
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
A life as fascinating as any in her books!
2 Dec 1998
Format:Paperback
Having come across Smith's utterly charming book,' I Capture the Castle', last year (see my review under that title!) and quickly reading everything I could get my hands on by this remarkable woman, I was curious as to how much of her fiction was thinly disguised autobiography. Grove's carefully researched bio., culled from literally thousands of pages of journals, scrapbooks, letters and Smith's own 4 volumes of autobiography answers that question (quite a bit, actually!) and provides a close-up view of not only Smith and her eccentric friends and family, but also a detailed portrait of an exciting time and place. Grove, for example, tells about Smith's own theatrical ambitions as an actress, her experieinces with various troupes in the 20's and '30's and how they led her to write about provincial theatre in 'It Ends With Revelations" and "The Town in Bloom". If you are a fan of Smith's fiction (and who among those of us who have read her is not!), I think you will find she is equally good company through this enlightening book.
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful
A disappointment
15 Mar 2000
Format:Hardcover
Perhaps I should have let dear Dodie remain a bit of a mystery. Ms. Grove's portrayal is anything but flattering - and seems just plain mean at times. For those of us who have loved Cassandra Mortmain, perhaps it's best just to continue reading (and re-reading) The Town In Bloom, It Ends with Revelations, A Tale of Two Families, and hope one day to latch on to one of the many volumes of her autobiography. Stick with the source to continue appreciating her true voice!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Literary biography at its best
16 Mar 2003
Format:Hardcover
Valerie Grove has written a supremely readable life of Dodie Smith. Recommended for anyone literate, and essential for Dalmatian owners (Smith wrote "The Hundred and One Dalmatians" and loved the breed).
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Biography > Novelists, Poets & Playwrights > Playwrights
- Books > Biography > Women
- Books > Music, Stage & Screen > Performing Arts
- Books > Poetry, Drama & Criticism > History & Criticism > Drama & Dramatists > 20th Century
- Books > Poetry, Drama & Criticism > History & Criticism > Novels & Novelists > 20th Century
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
