- Hardcover: 336 pages
- Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books,US; first edition, edition (27 April 2007)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0312342365
- ISBN-13: 978-0312342364
- Product Dimensions: 22.6 x 16.3 x 3.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,245,556 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Peter Evans
Wendy Leigh's biography is a riveting, honest and wonderfully entertaining account of Kelly's life. As an author who went over some of the same ground while researching my book on Aristotle Onassis (Nemesis: Aristotle Onassis, Jackie O and the Love Triangle That Brought Down the Kennedys. Harper Collins, paperback, 2005) I can vouch for the thoroughness and dedication of Miss Leigh's research.
--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
Synopsis
Grace Kelly's story is the quintessential America saga - the story of a radiantly beautiful girl born of immigrants - the daughter of a self-made millionaire - who grew up to become the wife of a Prince of royal blood, the mother of two princesses, and a son who is the ruler of the glittering yet sinister principality that is Monaco. Beautiful, elegant and mysterious, Grace Kelly captivated the world for decades. But as Wendy Leigh records, her life - while sometimes magical - had more than its share of loss and unhappiness. Leigh recounts an era when a pretty girl could dream of becoming a movie star almost overnight and go on to be an honest-to-God Princess; she also records the dark side of Grace Kelly's life. From her premonition of her death in a car crash to her never-before-revealed affair with David Niven, Wendy Leigh approaches Grace Kelly's life with compassion and care, especially in light of Grace's human flaws.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Being a big fan of Grace Kelly, I pre-ordered this book and waited expectantly for its arrival.
The book itself is very elegant with a lovely typeface and, erm.....
Well, if you've never read another book on Grace, this book will be very interesting.
If you know something about her already or if you have read any of the other books written about her, this book will be a big disappointment.
We all know she felt hemmed-in in her marriage to Rainier and dreamt of going back to acting. This book talks to a couple of extra people and doesn't give any further real news.
We all know she had romances with her co-stars before her marriage. This book does give a bit of detail of one or two that I wasn't sure of/didn't know about, including after her marriage. (I won't spoil it for you here - it's the only new information in the whole book).
Instead, it seems a re-hash of all the other books, with constant quotes from Robert Lacey's excellent 'Grace' and Gwen Robyns' 'Princess Grace', among others.
For a better read, I would heartily recommend either the afore-mentioned book by Robert Lacey, or J Randy Tamborelli's 'Once Upon a Time...'
After reading all the blurb on this book before it was published, I can't help but feel let down..
The book itself is very elegant with a lovely typeface and, erm.....
Well, if you've never read another book on Grace, this book will be very interesting.
If you know something about her already or if you have read any of the other books written about her, this book will be a big disappointment.
We all know she felt hemmed-in in her marriage to Rainier and dreamt of going back to acting. This book talks to a couple of extra people and doesn't give any further real news.
We all know she had romances with her co-stars before her marriage. This book does give a bit of detail of one or two that I wasn't sure of/didn't know about, including after her marriage. (I won't spoil it for you here - it's the only new information in the whole book).
Instead, it seems a re-hash of all the other books, with constant quotes from Robert Lacey's excellent 'Grace' and Gwen Robyns' 'Princess Grace', among others.
For a better read, I would heartily recommend either the afore-mentioned book by Robert Lacey, or J Randy Tamborelli's 'Once Upon a Time...'
After reading all the blurb on this book before it was published, I can't help but feel let down..
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is at least the 6th biography of Grace Kelly that I have read and I felt that it was easily the weakest. In fairness to Wendy Leigh, she had clearly conducted her own research and she did present some new stories and anecdotes. However it felt like she was more pre-occupied with digging up new scandals than with presenting a cohesive picture of who Grace was. She glosses over significant events such as Grace meeting Rainier, why she decided to marry him and barely mentions Grace's death. Instead we get an obsession with every sexual relationship that Grace may or may not have had.
While the book gives the impression of being well researched, when I actually looked up some of the footnotes it appeared that at least some of these claims were based purely on the word of someone who was the friend of a friend of someone who was now deceased. In a case like that, I feel that a reputable biographer should make it more evident that these are alleged rather than proven facts.
Leigh implies that Grace had a fling with a Paris Match photographer on the ship sailing to Monaco for her wedding. Putting aside the fact that the evidence that this ever occurred is more than weak, if it were true (as Leigh insinuates), it raises all manner of questions about what that says about Grace's feelings towards Rainier and her upcoming wedding. None of those questions are dealt with. The implication throughout is that Grace never particularly loved Rainier and that she was unhappy in her marriage from start to finish. Based on the other books that I have read, this is an over-simplified and unlikely version of events.
Here's a summary of the book: Grace Kelly was a successful actress who had a lot of affairs, sometimes with more than one person at a time. She looked very pretty in all her movies, even though she didn't like her jawline. She decided to marry Prince Rainier even though she didn't love him and she had a last fling only days before the wedding. She was very homesick after the wedding and Rainier started cheating on her almost immediately. She had several more affairs herself, including one with the husband of a friend. She was very unhappy. Some people thought she was icy and some people thought she was warm and friendly. She always believed she'd die in a car crash but she drove her car anyway and then she died.
While the book gives the impression of being well researched, when I actually looked up some of the footnotes it appeared that at least some of these claims were based purely on the word of someone who was the friend of a friend of someone who was now deceased. In a case like that, I feel that a reputable biographer should make it more evident that these are alleged rather than proven facts.
Leigh implies that Grace had a fling with a Paris Match photographer on the ship sailing to Monaco for her wedding. Putting aside the fact that the evidence that this ever occurred is more than weak, if it were true (as Leigh insinuates), it raises all manner of questions about what that says about Grace's feelings towards Rainier and her upcoming wedding. None of those questions are dealt with. The implication throughout is that Grace never particularly loved Rainier and that she was unhappy in her marriage from start to finish. Based on the other books that I have read, this is an over-simplified and unlikely version of events.
Here's a summary of the book: Grace Kelly was a successful actress who had a lot of affairs, sometimes with more than one person at a time. She looked very pretty in all her movies, even though she didn't like her jawline. She decided to marry Prince Rainier even though she didn't love him and she had a last fling only days before the wedding. She was very homesick after the wedding and Rainier started cheating on her almost immediately. She had several more affairs herself, including one with the husband of a friend. She was very unhappy. Some people thought she was icy and some people thought she was warm and friendly. She always believed she'd die in a car crash but she drove her car anyway and then she died.
Format:Paperback
The most interesting fact revealed in this book is that Grace's brother John, when running for mayor of Philadelphia, was romancing a beautiful blonde named Rachel Harlow who turned out to be a post-op transsexual who as a 19yr old had featured in the 1968 drag pageant film 'The Queen'.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Gossip girl
This isn't a good biography of Grace Kelly. Doesn't seem like the author has done her homework. The sources are questionable, there is a lot of hinting and very little facts that... Read more
Published 16 months ago by metropolis27
Great book about an enthralling woman
Arguably the most beautiful woman who ever lived, she has several phases to her life which you will enjoy.Buy it !
Published 19 months ago by B. M. Walker
goods delivered
As usual - the high standard of amazon delivery was unquestionable and what you come to expect each time an order is placed.
Published on 8 May 2009 by Deborah Barth
Utter Garbage
Further proof that if you repeat gossip over and over...........it becomes fact. This book is utter nonsense. Oh, but Ms. Read more
Published on 23 Oct 2007 by Elizabeth Drexel
A RIVETING READ
Wendy Leigh's biography of Grace Kelly is a riveting, honest and wonderfully entertaining account of Kelly's life. Read more
Published on 14 April 2007 by Peter Evans
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