Born into the vastness of Pixton Park in Somerset, Auberon Waugh was drawn early into class warfare; he pretended he had seen evacuees and children of servants eat rat poison so they would all have their stomach pumped. His father despised him. Bron responded in kind, finding his father hypocritical and pretentious. Some of Evelyn's friends, such as John Betjeman and Graham Greene were kind to Bron, but it is those who snubbed him such as Cyril Connolly, Maurice Bowra and Anthony Powell who loom larger. Embarrassing early sexual fondlings, an inglorious early exit from Oxford, a failure to get into M15 and an army accident which left him confined to a hospital bed and unable to escape from a friend of his mother's who insisted on reading him Lawrence Durrell and a humiliating time spent writing captions for Page 3 girls, reduced the now declasse Waugh to friendships with journalists on the fringes of respectability - Richard Ingrams, Paul Foot, Peter Cook and Nigel Lawson. Now in his 50th year he sums up a literary achievement, asking the august creator of this being, "Will This Do?".
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'Both an exuberant chronicle of English literary life and a very funny sendup.' -- James Atlas, The New Yorker
'Terrifically entertaining...funny, acerbic, and a little sad.' -- Michiko Kahutani, The New York Times --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
'Terrifically entertaining...funny, acerbic, and a little sad.' -- Michiko Kahutani, The New York Times --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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30 of 32 people found the following review helpful
By "hurburgh"
Format:Hardcover
.
The death of Auberon Waugh in January 2001 marks the end of an era. Auberon and his father Evelyn were masters of the English language. Together they perfected the use of ironic wit.
"Will this Do?" is much more than an autobiography. It is an encapsulation of an era and a culture. His work covers that incredible period of British history (1960 - 1980) where the "old order" Establishment, with its upper class "born to rule" social structures were overthrown.
In that period political satire became part of popular culture. Witness the rise of "smart" young men like David Frost and the circle of comedians that arose from the Cambridge Footlights. The weekly newspaper "Private Eye" was one of the most influential outlets for Auberon Waugh where he wrote a column for many years. The "Eye" did more for exposing political and social scandal In Britain than any other forum.
Waugh's membership of both the "upper" class and influential, activist intellectual circles put he him in a unique position to observe and comment on the quirks and absurdities of his Britain.
Occasionally he was overtly a political activist. The most prominent example was his very public support of the Biafran cause in the Nigerian Civil War in the early 1970s. This put him at loggerheads with the British government.
In Waugh's biography his ironic tone is pervasive. Even those readers who know his work well, will at times struggle to figure out whether he is joking, serious or merely "going over the top".
Auberon's humour didn't travel too well across the Atlantic. He found American's far "too earnest", who take his words too literally. However the gulf in styles of humour between the Anglo and the American world must have been closed to some degree thanks to Waugh's writing.
Waugh's influence on the world of wine was huge. For many years he wrote a wine column in the English "Spectator". In the early 1980's he "discovered" New World (Australian and Californian) wine. Although the Spectator at that time had a subscription base of only 14,000, it was hugely influential. The cellars of the House of Lords were probably restocked on the advice of Waugh. When you look at the exponential growth of New World wine exports since that time we may have a perfect example of viral marketing, thanks to one man's words in an obscure journal.
Many people who are not familiar with the style and wit of Waugh may find his writing pompous and haughty. It is well worth persisting though. He was probably the first writer to do a demolition job on Political Correctness. His favourite targets were the self-righteous. If they happened to be humourless as well (a strong correlation?) they would get both barrels from Waugh.
The influence of both Evelyn and Auberon Waugh will be felt for many years. Any body who loves the English language should read Auberon's autobiography. His work is the ideal example of that old aphorism " The Pen is Mightier than the Sword".
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By Jonesy
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I can add little to Hurburgh's excellent review above without diluting it. I can say that in the early Nineties I was lunched by my editor at a particular basement literary club in London, and was seated next AW, another chap and Richard Ingrams from Private Eye. There were half a dozen empty claret bottles on the table and it was evident that a very good lunch had been demolished. My prawn cocktail arrived as Waugh puffed on a cigar, and the ash from it fell into my hors d'oeuvre. 'You shouldn't have ordered that,' dismissed Waugh. 'The soup is so much better'.
'Will this do?' carries almost as much about Waugh's father (whom he mainly refers to as Evelyn Waugh, not 'father), as it does of the son, and to reveal more would spoil the plot. It's a sometimes savage portrait of an age and class culture now all but gone.
My used hardback copy from Amazon's reseller came in a pristine book jacket. On the front fly leaf, under the title 'Will this do?' was written 'I hope so', followed by Waugh's signature. Almost twenty years later, Waugh has posthumously made amends for my prawns.
'Will this do?' carries almost as much about Waugh's father (whom he mainly refers to as Evelyn Waugh, not 'father), as it does of the son, and to reveal more would spoil the plot. It's a sometimes savage portrait of an age and class culture now all but gone.
My used hardback copy from Amazon's reseller came in a pristine book jacket. On the front fly leaf, under the title 'Will this do?' was written 'I hope so', followed by Waugh's signature. Almost twenty years later, Waugh has posthumously made amends for my prawns.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By peeweenorcs
Format:Hardcover
Waugh was a fine writer and could be insightful, a brilliant analyst and funny with it. How could such a talented and sensitive man be such a monster in the way he lived his life and treated his family (and almost anyone he came into contact with)? The snobbery and arrogance is breathtaking but, like Alan Clarke and his diaries, makes for a terrific read. Highly recommended to anyone interested in good writing and the social history of upper middle class post war English society.
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