Aldous Huxley: A Biography (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: little maria, dearest father, nobler hypothesis, New York, Mme Nys, Los Angeles (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Bedford drew on firsthand experience while writing this 1974 biography of Huxley, with whom she was friends for 40 years. She also had access to his diaries and personal papers as well as the cooperation of family and other friends. Her novelist's style makes for a very readable account.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Her work is so singularly absorbing owing to the complete sympathy she somehow pairs with her characteristic detachment" -- Atlantic Monthly

One of the great classic English biographies...unforgettably profound and unsparing...as forbidding to competitors as Boswell's life of Johnson. -- Philip Hensher, Spectator

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 832 pages
• Publisher: Ivan R. Dee, Publisher; 1 edition (August 25, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566634547
• ISBN-13: 978-1566634540
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #930,337 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars sympathy and objectivity make a fine book, August 21, 2006

By	James A. Means - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I read this superb biography years ago, as part of a Summer's "free reading" (a luxury for an academic), for I had no particular interest in Huxley, having read only his "Chrome Yellow" and "Point Counter Point" at that time. Bedford, I discovered, is a glorious writer (she has written probably the best book in English on Mexico) and possesses rare insight into the minds of other artists. These gifts make her biography of Huxley a masterpiece. As you follow her narrative, you will be impelled, I predict, to read the Huxley novels you have thus far ignored.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Deftly probes Huxley's life and writings, January 11, 2003

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Syville Bedford's literary biography Aldous Huxley blends Huxley's remarkable life with his quite successful literary career, all wrapped in the familiarity of the author with Huxley's family over the decades. With such associations in hand, biographer and author Syville Bedford then deftly probes Huxley's life and writings, creating a memorable biography and a set of insights that deserves ongoing mention.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's a slog, June 12, 2008

By	F. noyes "f noyes bookworm" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is my latest read of Sybille Bedford's works and, I might add, I'm a huge fan of hers. In some ways this is a masterful effort on Sybille's part, the cradle to grave biographical tome, yet it will take a very dedicated reader to plow through this one without putting it aside. As the Sybille Bedford reader will attest, if you are not at least somewhat fluent beyond English (i.e. French, a bit of Spanish, Italian) she can be a somewhat distracting as she intersperses her paragraphs in foreign tongues. Of course, Sybille knew the Huxleys well for many years and can certainly paint the portrait. However, as she mentions, quite a bit of Aldous's own letters have been lost and she relies extensively on Maria's (his wife) lengthy letters to family and friends; to say she was a prolific letter writer is an understatement. Anyhow, I do believe this was a gallant effort to capture the life and times of Aldous Huxley and most probably Sybille Bedford was the best author to do so. At 700+ pages, just make the commitment!