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metamole's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book in my teens and then and then again on my late 20s. Both times it was a joy. It is a book about another age, but remains funny, poignant and thoroughly worthy of its reputation as a modern classic
veethorn's review against another edition
5.0
Easily the best book I’ve read in a long time. Irresistibly funny, self-deprecating and interesting, takes almost nothing seriously except prejudice and anti-fascism, and Mitford sketches her characters so easily that I’m desperately jealous. What an autobiography.
kate_in_a_book's review against another edition
4.0
This is Jessica, or Decca’s, memoir of the first portion of her life. She recounts her childhood, her political awakening and her relationship with Esmond Romilly. I laughed, I cried, I shook my head often in disbelief.
As she admits, her childhood was unconventional. They were old-fashioned upper-class toffs, distantly related to royalty and less distantly to Winston Churchill. Jessica and her five sisters received no formal education (though their brother was sent away to school). They instead enjoyed a series of private tutors whom they teased and tortured. This meant they reached adulthood in a state that was both wordly and hugely naive and sheltered. Perhaps this explains the extreme political allegiances of at least three Mitford sisters.
Jessica acknowledges early on that readers may recognise some of the events she covers from her sister Nancy’s thinly veiled autobiographical novel The Pursuit of Love. She deals with this in what could be a humorous offhand comment, or could be a savage swipe, depending on how you read it. As someone who has indeed read The Pursuit of Love and The Mitford Girls, I did know the bare bones of Jessica’s story, but that’s no replacement for hearing it in her own words, with the details she feels to be important.
Her words are, unavoidably, those of someone born into tremendous privilege. The “jolly hockey sticks” tone oozes from the earlier pages. It is almost comedic the number of false starts that Jessica has in breaking away from her family’s right-wing politics to pursue her own left-wing ideals. Adult Jessica is certainly a socialist, and that choice cuts her off from the bulk of her family’s money, but she still has plenty of rich family and friends to visit.
Read my full review: https://www.noseinabook.co.uk/2020/05/15/invisible-boundaries-kept-me-boxed-in-from-the-real-life-of-other-people-going-on-all-around/
As she admits, her childhood was unconventional. They were old-fashioned upper-class toffs, distantly related to royalty and less distantly to Winston Churchill. Jessica and her five sisters received no formal education (though their brother was sent away to school). They instead enjoyed a series of private tutors whom they teased and tortured. This meant they reached adulthood in a state that was both wordly and hugely naive and sheltered. Perhaps this explains the extreme political allegiances of at least three Mitford sisters.
Jessica acknowledges early on that readers may recognise some of the events she covers from her sister Nancy’s thinly veiled autobiographical novel The Pursuit of Love. She deals with this in what could be a humorous offhand comment, or could be a savage swipe, depending on how you read it. As someone who has indeed read The Pursuit of Love and The Mitford Girls, I did know the bare bones of Jessica’s story, but that’s no replacement for hearing it in her own words, with the details she feels to be important.
Her words are, unavoidably, those of someone born into tremendous privilege. The “jolly hockey sticks” tone oozes from the earlier pages. It is almost comedic the number of false starts that Jessica has in breaking away from her family’s right-wing politics to pursue her own left-wing ideals. Adult Jessica is certainly a socialist, and that choice cuts her off from the bulk of her family’s money, but she still has plenty of rich family and friends to visit.
Read my full review: https://www.noseinabook.co.uk/2020/05/15/invisible-boundaries-kept-me-boxed-in-from-the-real-life-of-other-people-going-on-all-around/
nim_me's review against another edition
4.0
I know very little about the mitford sisters but since reading love in a cold climate have been keen to find out more about them.
Written by Jessica it assumes familiarity with the sisters and with the role in society and I felt occasionally that I was missing things.
It is absolutely full of scandal, although I got the feeling that the biggest scandal for Jessia was her privaledged upbringing, these are the stories told with the most outrage. Her running away to spain and eloping are told so matter of factly it is easy to forget the scandal that would have ensued at the time.
tea is ready, will continue review later.
Written by Jessica it assumes familiarity with the sisters and with the role in society and I felt occasionally that I was missing things.
It is absolutely full of scandal, although I got the feeling that the biggest scandal for Jessia was her privaledged upbringing, these are the stories told with the most outrage. Her running away to spain and eloping are told so matter of factly it is easy to forget the scandal that would have ensued at the time.
tea is ready, will continue review later.
soph_blcklck's review against another edition
funny
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Racism, and Suicide attempt
bronwynmb's review against another edition
4.0
I read The Sisters a few years ago and have been wanting to read this ever since. The parts I loved in The Sisters were the parts I loved here, the parts I didn't care for the same. I like the early years, all the fun family stuff, hearing about the language they created and their pets. But then the pre-war stuff starts and I just don't care as much. Then towards the end it got a bit better again, when they're travelling in the US (also, the observations on America and Americans were great), but slowed down a bit again right at the end. Decca really lived an interesting life- past what's in this book too. I love reading about the Mitfords.