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'Bigger, better and back on the shelves. Lord Moyne's lively account of the swishest society sextet has been updated. It's an oldie but it's a goodie'. (Camilla Long Tatler )
'This entertaining book continues to promote the Mitfords' historical interest' (The Times )
'This entertaining book continues to promote the Mitfords' historical interest' (The Times )
Product Description
Among the six daughters and one son born to David, second Lord Redesdale, and his wife Sydney were Nancy, the novelist and historian; Diana, who married fascist leader Sir Oswald Mosley; Unity, friend of Hitler; Jessica, who became a communist and then an investigative journalist; and Deborah, Duchess of Devonshire and mistress of Chatsworth. 'The Mitford Girls,' as John Betjeman called them, were one of the twentieth century's most controversial families; said to be always either in shrieks of laughter or floods of tears, they were glamorous, romantic and - especially in politics - extreme. Yet the teasing, often bordering on cruelty, the flamboyant contrasts and the violent disagreements, hid a powerful affection, subtle likenesses in character, and a powerful underlying unity.
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The story of the seven Mitfords begins in the 1890s with the acquaintanceship, and rather short-lived political collaboration, of two remarkable men: Algernon Bertram Mitford and Thomas Gibson Bowles. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
The story of the seven Mitfords begins in the 1890s with the acquaintanceship, and rather short-lived political collaboration, of two remarkable men: Algernon Bertram Mitford and Thomas Gibson Bowles. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A lot of inside information!,
By A Customer
This review is from: The House of Mitford (Mass Market Paperback)
Jonathan Guinness is Diana Mosley (neé Mitford)'s son, so he had access to all the inside information on the much written about Mitford girls. I found much more info in this book than in the Nancy Mitford biographies by Harold Acton or Selina Hastings, although I must say I enjoyed the latter very much. The girls' grandparents turn out to be very interesting people (especially the grandfathers). You get a deeper insight of a number of the members of the family (Farve and Muv, for example). The history of Unity M. in Germany seemed a bit long, and I got the impression Mr. Guinness tries too hard to explain Mr. and Mrs. Mosley's fascism. In all, I found this book very entertaining, and I recommend it to all Mitford fans.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Rather disappointing,
This review is from: The House of Mitford (Paperback)
The first part of the book spends a lot of time on the Mitford girls' grandfathers; rather too much time I felt. I was itching to get onto the Mitford family itself, but then when I did I realised the grandfathers' lives were actually far more interesting (although the portrayal was overly-positive, both men, Bertie in particular, were more or less portrayed to have no faults whatsoever).
Onto the main part of the book: some of the details of the Mitfords' childhood were interesting, and as a whole it's an interesting portratit of English landed gentry life in the early 20thC. However, as I read on the book irritated me more and more. The style is heavy-handed and disorganised. The relationships between the children and indeed between children and parents were badly drawn - that is, very little light was shed. But most annoying of all is the bias in this book. It is so obvious that Jonathan Guinness is trying to vindicate his mother, Diana Mitford (the Fascist). Despite his best attempts, Diana still comes across in a bad light (or at least did to me). You would have thought that, with all the writings the Mitfords left behind - reams of memoirs, letters and novels - as well as the personal insights one would assume the author has - this would be the definitive book on the Mitfords. Far from it. My advice - give it a miss. There's far better material out there on this subject.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Rounding out the Mitfords,
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This review is from: The House of Mitford (Paperback)
I think this is a book that is best approached after you are more familiar with the individual stories of the Mitford sisters because it really puts their unique lives and behaviours into a proper and understandable context. How did David and Sydney manage to raise that incredibly diverse and entertaining brood? What was it about the Mitford inheritance that almost made their life choices inevitable?All the answers are here in a densely packed format - not the sort of book you can dip in and out of but then its so well written you want to stay in it to the very last page.
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