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pattydsf's review against another edition
3.0
I received this book through the giveaway program here at Good Reads. I especially appreciate this program because it introduced me to a wonderful book about a woman that I knew very little about.
I was aware that Jessica Mitford was a writer, whose book, The American Way of Death, had caused a great deal of fuss when it was published. I also knew that Jessica Mitford was somehow related to Nancy Mitford and they had several other famous or infamous relatives. My sense of history is not too well organized, so I don't always have my chronology in proper order.
Leslie Brody did a great job of helping me understand Jessica Mitford's life and putting it in perspective with both British and American history. I was pleased to have a better understanding not only of Mitford, but some other historical figures whose lives intersected with hers.
Irrepressible is a well-written biography of a fascinating woman. Brody fulfilled my desires of a good book - she taught me some new info, she helped me "live" in a new world for awhile and she brought a number of characters to life for me.
I would recommend this book to those who are interested in history, to folks who want to know more about a strong, interesting woman and to those who enjoy reading biographies. Brody has written a book that many people might find intriguing.
I was aware that Jessica Mitford was a writer, whose book, The American Way of Death, had caused a great deal of fuss when it was published. I also knew that Jessica Mitford was somehow related to Nancy Mitford and they had several other famous or infamous relatives. My sense of history is not too well organized, so I don't always have my chronology in proper order.
Leslie Brody did a great job of helping me understand Jessica Mitford's life and putting it in perspective with both British and American history. I was pleased to have a better understanding not only of Mitford, but some other historical figures whose lives intersected with hers.
Irrepressible is a well-written biography of a fascinating woman. Brody fulfilled my desires of a good book - she taught me some new info, she helped me "live" in a new world for awhile and she brought a number of characters to life for me.
I would recommend this book to those who are interested in history, to folks who want to know more about a strong, interesting woman and to those who enjoy reading biographies. Brody has written a book that many people might find intriguing.
persey's review against another edition
2.0
A Mitford book, how could I resist? This isn't a very satisfactory one, however. No sparkle, no insight, workmanlike prose, and sufficient errors of the type that cast doubt on the quality of the research (just as an example, the author thinks Evelyn Waugh converted later in life; he was 27). Still, it fills out the picture of Decca's later years; however, I'd go to the source rather than read this.
unabridgedchick's review against another edition
5.0
In a high school journalism class, I read some excerpts from Jessica Mitford's amazing book The American Way of Death, an expose and exploration of the American funeral business (her book was said to have influenced Robert F. Kennedy's coffin choice for his brother). It was much later that I learned this Mitford was related to that other Mitford I knew, Nancy.
Born in 1917, Jessica was the sixth of seven children born to an English baron and his wife. Jessica's childhood was influenced by the privilege of her family's wealth, status, and name as well as the wildly diverging personalities of her sisters. All were passionate and brilliant, determined to mark their place in society; Jessica's early liberal political leanings were in stark contrast to her sisters Unity and Diana, who were dedicated Fascists and supporters of Hitler. An impetuous elopement with her second cousin lead to Jessica being cut out of the family. After her first marriage ended, she married an American and became a Communist. She actively worked in the Civil Rights movement and wrote sharp, invective examinations of American society.
At less than 350 pages, this biography reads quickly albeit a tad dry. I tend to favor more 'relational' biographies, the ones where the biographer openly acknowledges her place in the story, but this is one of those more formal types where the biographer is invisible. As a result, the writing style is very precise, very sharp, almost journalistic in style. Many sentences are shaped by a direct quote of some sort (i.e., Decca reveled in being "busy, busy, busy.", page 135) but that isn't to say that Brody doesn't write well or without passion (Suddenly, they were in a psychosexual crucible, with all the vino and cheap gin they could drink. He had a bitter edge. She had a wicked mouth. Finally, they were just kids., page 19). Mitford's life -- already fascinating -- snaps along in Brody's hands, one fascinating episode after another, and so this felt like a considerably shorter book.
Even if you're unfamiliar with Jessica Mitford, give this book a try: she's a fascinating women whose life reads like an over-the-top historical novel. I think anyone interested in post-WWII Britain and America will enjoy following this radical and brilliant writer through some of the most influential events in 20th century history.
Born in 1917, Jessica was the sixth of seven children born to an English baron and his wife. Jessica's childhood was influenced by the privilege of her family's wealth, status, and name as well as the wildly diverging personalities of her sisters. All were passionate and brilliant, determined to mark their place in society; Jessica's early liberal political leanings were in stark contrast to her sisters Unity and Diana, who were dedicated Fascists and supporters of Hitler. An impetuous elopement with her second cousin lead to Jessica being cut out of the family. After her first marriage ended, she married an American and became a Communist. She actively worked in the Civil Rights movement and wrote sharp, invective examinations of American society.
At less than 350 pages, this biography reads quickly albeit a tad dry. I tend to favor more 'relational' biographies, the ones where the biographer openly acknowledges her place in the story, but this is one of those more formal types where the biographer is invisible. As a result, the writing style is very precise, very sharp, almost journalistic in style. Many sentences are shaped by a direct quote of some sort (i.e., Decca reveled in being "busy, busy, busy.", page 135) but that isn't to say that Brody doesn't write well or without passion (Suddenly, they were in a psychosexual crucible, with all the vino and cheap gin they could drink. He had a bitter edge. She had a wicked mouth. Finally, they were just kids., page 19). Mitford's life -- already fascinating -- snaps along in Brody's hands, one fascinating episode after another, and so this felt like a considerably shorter book.
Even if you're unfamiliar with Jessica Mitford, give this book a try: she's a fascinating women whose life reads like an over-the-top historical novel. I think anyone interested in post-WWII Britain and America will enjoy following this radical and brilliant writer through some of the most influential events in 20th century history.
whoroseb's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
5.0
A wonderful book about an absolutely remarkable woman
sophronisba's review against another edition
4.0
Thoroughly enjoyable, particularly if you have a fascination with the Mitford sisters (as I do).
pattydsf's review
3.0
I received this book through the giveaway program here at Good Reads. I especially appreciate this program because it introduced me to a wonderful book about a woman that I knew very little about.
I was aware that Jessica Mitford was a writer, whose book, The American Way of Death, had caused a great deal of fuss when it was published. I also knew that Jessica Mitford was somehow related to Nancy Mitford and they had several other famous or infamous relatives. My sense of history is not too well organized, so I don't always have my chronology in proper order.
Leslie Brody did a great job of helping me understand Jessica Mitford's life and putting it in perspective with both British and American history. I was pleased to have a better understanding not only of Mitford, but some other historical figures whose lives intersected with hers.
Irrepressible is a well-written biography of a fascinating woman. Brody fulfilled my desires of a good book - she taught me some new info, she helped me "live" in a new world for awhile and she brought a number of characters to life for me.
I would recommend this book to those who are interested in history, to folks who want to know more about a strong, interesting woman and to those who enjoy reading biographies. Brody has written a book that many people might find intriguing.
I was aware that Jessica Mitford was a writer, whose book, The American Way of Death, had caused a great deal of fuss when it was published. I also knew that Jessica Mitford was somehow related to Nancy Mitford and they had several other famous or infamous relatives. My sense of history is not too well organized, so I don't always have my chronology in proper order.
Leslie Brody did a great job of helping me understand Jessica Mitford's life and putting it in perspective with both British and American history. I was pleased to have a better understanding not only of Mitford, but some other historical figures whose lives intersected with hers.
Irrepressible is a well-written biography of a fascinating woman. Brody fulfilled my desires of a good book - she taught me some new info, she helped me "live" in a new world for awhile and she brought a number of characters to life for me.
I would recommend this book to those who are interested in history, to folks who want to know more about a strong, interesting woman and to those who enjoy reading biographies. Brody has written a book that many people might find intriguing.
expendablemudge's review
3.0
Rating: 3* of five
The Publisher Says: Admirers and detractors use the same words to describe Jessica Mitford: subversive, mischief-maker, muckraker. J.K. Rowling calls her her “most influential writer.” Those who knew her best simply called her Decca. Born into one of Britain’s most famous aristocratic families, she eloped with Winston Churchill’s nephew as a teenager. Their marriage severed ties with her privilege, a rupture exacerbated by the life she lead for seventy-eight years.
After arriving in the United States in 1939, Decca became one of the New Deal’s most notorious bureaucrats. For her the personal was political, especially as a civil rights activist and journalist. She coined the term frenemies, and as a member of the American Communist Party, she made several, though not among the Cold War witch hunters. When she left the Communist Party in 1958 after fifteen years, she promised to be subversive whenever the opportunity arose. True to her word, late in life she hit her stride as a writer, publishing nine books before her death in 1996.
Yoked to every important event for nearly all of the twentieth century, Decca not only was defined by the history she witnessed, but by bearing witness, helped to define that history.
My Review: A chronological retelling of the strange life and exciting times of America's finest 20th-century muckraker, from her aristocratic Fascist upbringing to her time in the Communist Party USA, then her years of fame and glory after writing The American Way of Death, her most lasting contribution to literature. Her heartbreaking family life is presented with as many warts as can be expected; her relationships with her equally famous sisters Nancy Mitford, Lady Diana Mosley, Her Grace the Duchess of Devonshire, and Unity Mitford the Nazi are discussed in some detail; her husbands and her children are woven through the story, perhaps less so than her birth family.
And yet...and still...Flat. Lacking fizz. Champagne the next day.
It felt to me like the book was the proposal for the book and not the whole enchilada. Taking on a larger-than-life personality like Mitford is always challenging. She's not a person whose dimensions are easy to grasp! This daughter of privilege was unquestionably sincere in her rejection of the world she was born into, and she was completely consistent in making her anger and disdain at the family she left behind clear. (I relate.)
But a biographer who dedicates a mere 344pp to this Force of Nature risks reporting the facts but leaving the feelings behind. I felt that it was too short, so the book was frustrating...I want to know more about *her* and yet I can't imagine a book more thorough than this one is factually.
So what happened? Jessica took the place of Decca (her family nickname)? Mmmaybeee...but no, not entirely. What I think happened is, the balance between Decca and Jessica shifts dramatically after Mitford's first husband Esmond Romilly dies in 1942. We get more Jessica and less Decca. And it ends up not being a satisfying trade-off.
So should you read this fact-stuffed tale of one of life's hellions, a scamp and an imp from the get-go? Yes. She's interesting enough to make familiarity with her life an overall good thing. But don't come in expecting your notions (if you had any) about her to change, they won't. She'll still appeal to you or not based on the well-known and hand-crafted image of a rebel and a scalawag already known.
Still and all, in today's political climate, I want lives like Mitford's to be exhumed and exhibited in front of the entire reading public. Once there were giants, once there were privileged little girls who grew into fierce, antagonistic, brave, *necessary* women who knew fuck-all about fear. Let's grow more of them!
The Publisher Says: Admirers and detractors use the same words to describe Jessica Mitford: subversive, mischief-maker, muckraker. J.K. Rowling calls her her “most influential writer.” Those who knew her best simply called her Decca. Born into one of Britain’s most famous aristocratic families, she eloped with Winston Churchill’s nephew as a teenager. Their marriage severed ties with her privilege, a rupture exacerbated by the life she lead for seventy-eight years.
After arriving in the United States in 1939, Decca became one of the New Deal’s most notorious bureaucrats. For her the personal was political, especially as a civil rights activist and journalist. She coined the term frenemies, and as a member of the American Communist Party, she made several, though not among the Cold War witch hunters. When she left the Communist Party in 1958 after fifteen years, she promised to be subversive whenever the opportunity arose. True to her word, late in life she hit her stride as a writer, publishing nine books before her death in 1996.
Yoked to every important event for nearly all of the twentieth century, Decca not only was defined by the history she witnessed, but by bearing witness, helped to define that history.
My Review: A chronological retelling of the strange life and exciting times of America's finest 20th-century muckraker, from her aristocratic Fascist upbringing to her time in the Communist Party USA, then her years of fame and glory after writing The American Way of Death, her most lasting contribution to literature. Her heartbreaking family life is presented with as many warts as can be expected; her relationships with her equally famous sisters Nancy Mitford, Lady Diana Mosley, Her Grace the Duchess of Devonshire, and Unity Mitford the Nazi are discussed in some detail; her husbands and her children are woven through the story, perhaps less so than her birth family.
And yet...and still...Flat. Lacking fizz. Champagne the next day.
It felt to me like the book was the proposal for the book and not the whole enchilada. Taking on a larger-than-life personality like Mitford is always challenging. She's not a person whose dimensions are easy to grasp! This daughter of privilege was unquestionably sincere in her rejection of the world she was born into, and she was completely consistent in making her anger and disdain at the family she left behind clear. (I relate.)
But a biographer who dedicates a mere 344pp to this Force of Nature risks reporting the facts but leaving the feelings behind. I felt that it was too short, so the book was frustrating...I want to know more about *her* and yet I can't imagine a book more thorough than this one is factually.
So what happened? Jessica took the place of Decca (her family nickname)? Mmmaybeee...but no, not entirely. What I think happened is, the balance between Decca and Jessica shifts dramatically after Mitford's first husband Esmond Romilly dies in 1942. We get more Jessica and less Decca. And it ends up not being a satisfying trade-off.
So should you read this fact-stuffed tale of one of life's hellions, a scamp and an imp from the get-go? Yes. She's interesting enough to make familiarity with her life an overall good thing. But don't come in expecting your notions (if you had any) about her to change, they won't. She'll still appeal to you or not based on the well-known and hand-crafted image of a rebel and a scalawag already known.
Still and all, in today's political climate, I want lives like Mitford's to be exhumed and exhibited in front of the entire reading public. Once there were giants, once there were privileged little girls who grew into fierce, antagonistic, brave, *necessary* women who knew fuck-all about fear. Let's grow more of them!