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sarahfonseca's review against another edition
4.0
Schenkar gets a bit repetitive at times, which works well if you're a reader who, like me takes awhile to absorb key details. Otherwise, this biography definitely could've been 200 pages shorter.
andforgotten's review against another edition
4.0
The fact that I read a hardcover for this speaks volumes -- and I really did enjoy the biography of Dolly Wilde (and with it the many glimpses into the Natalie Barney salon and other social circles). What bothered me with the book itself was that many chapters seemed to be written as stand-alones, which often led to a rather circular and occasionally superfluous recounting of certain events or quotes. The transitions could've been smoother and the whole thing made more of a uniform whole rather than the sum of its parts, but I appreciate that it was a stylistic choice.
freyavstheworld's review against another edition
dolly’s life is super interesting (and i urge anybody to read up about her) but this book was overly long & bizarrely structured so it wasn’t great technically, but wonderful for an insight into 1920s queer culture
jackieeh's review against another edition
4.0
A random used bookstore find comes through with the good gossip.
jennybeastie's review against another edition
1.0
Dear Joan Schenkar,
believe it or not, people who read biographies do anticipate a certain amount of imagining how things were. You don't need to tell us about it at length over and over again. The life of Dolly Wilde seems like it is full and fascinating -- lesbians, famous relatives, bewitching beauty and an unexplained death. How you've managed to make that boring is beyond me, but you sure did. Better luck next time.
believe it or not, people who read biographies do anticipate a certain amount of imagining how things were. You don't need to tell us about it at length over and over again. The life of Dolly Wilde seems like it is full and fascinating -- lesbians, famous relatives, bewitching beauty and an unexplained death. How you've managed to make that boring is beyond me, but you sure did. Better luck next time.
harvio's review against another edition
2.0
- Dorothy "Dolly" Wilde (Oscar Wilde's niece) was intelligent, witty, and enchanting, dying exactly as she had lived: vividly, rather violently, and at a very good address. She attracted people of wealth, taste, and talent as she burned up her opportunities in flamboyant lesbian affairs and numerous addictions.
- "She seemed to be re-living the life of her infamous uncle.
- interesting biography of an interesting individual, unfortunately poorly written
- "She seemed to be re-living the life of her infamous uncle.
- interesting biography of an interesting individual, unfortunately poorly written
nikkigee81's review against another edition
4.0
Like most people, you have probably never heard of Dolly Wilde, born three months after Oscar's demise. Although she never met her uncle, she seems to have been much like him. Seems like she was an interesting figure to know, involved in Natalie Clifford Barney's historical salon, among other things. She was also a money-grubber and a drug addict, and died rather violently. What really happened to her? An intriguing read, nonetheless. If you like biographies about unusual people, you won't be disappointed.
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