Customer Reviews

Anais: The Erotic Life of Anais Nin

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A scholarly biography need not be boring, and one written of the life of Anais Nin cannot be. Fitch's work is creditably balanced in an attempt to sort fact from fiction in Nin's writings. Though some considered her a pathological liar, Nin considered herself simply the creator of her own life. Her Diaries, the most widely known of her writings, suffered, some believe, from her extensive editing. Though Nin claimed the editing was for the purpose of protecting the many players in her life, there is evidence that much of it was simply so that she could be remembered as she wished to be. Sculptor Isamu Noguchi was among her New York circle, and legendary writer Henry Miller was her lover in youth and dear friend in age. These were only two among perhaps hundreds of important figures of her time in literature, art, and psychotherapy, whom she counted as friends and acquaintances and who give a broad appeal to a study of her life. Artists, writers, and those in the various ! fields of psychology and psychiatry can be informed by the way she lived her life and the people she drew into it.

This book is a thoroughly delicious read for the Nin fan. Noel Riley Fitch's fine scholarship, deft analysis, and solid writing make vivid what is surely one of the most fascinating lives of the 20th century. As the title indicates, this books focuses on Nin's love/sex life, but it uses all available diaries and fictional works to piece together what can sometimes be a real puzzle. And, unlike the biography by Deirdre Bair, Ms. Fitch has an obvious affection, admiration, and appreciation for Nin which does not compromise the objectivity of her analysis.

The one possible problem in Fitch's analysis is that she makes the presumption that Nin was physically violated by her father. There is no doubt whatsoever that Nin was emotionally abused by the man, but Fitch is the first to suggest actual sexual molestation. Though she makes an excellent case for this possibility, her daring thesis caused a bit of an uproar amongst Nin's family and close friends who believe Fitch played fast and loose with the facts. I can understand their concern; it is a serious thing to accuse someone of such a crime. Still, Fitch's argument is so compelling that I don't believe it can be easily overlooked.

For anyone interested in understanding Anais Nin, this book posits a provocative theory while also pulling together the facts of her life.

I've read several biographies of 20th century female writers, and this was the worst.

This was a frustrating read because the biographer seemed to dislike Nin, and I felt that Fitch somehow blamed her poor biographical work on Nin's so-called "double life." Fitch reacts to Nin's life as if it were far more pathological and complicated than any other artist a biographer ever had to deal with.

Fitch's telling of events is confusing. The story goes back and forth between decades, enemies, versions of what may or may not be truth- it's a mess. It goes on for pages mentioning this lover and that lover, and then there's little more than a tiny paragraph about a major career step Nin achieves, but little, if any credit, is given to Nin for her work and effort. Fitch never misses an opportunity to explain why Nin was not talented, not a true artist, not a good wife, not a true Parisian, not a true American, not a good daughter, and just does not deserve to be known, appreciated, published or even remotely liked.

The only redeeming point that Fitch can be proud of is sort of investigating a possibly incestuous relationship Nin experienced with her father. Even this uncovering is a half-baked attempt at taking a feminist point of view about sexual abuse and female artists and popularizing it into something salacious and one dimensional. Fitch's inclusion of this relatively new information about Nin is a transparent attempt at making this biography seem scholarly. Biographers who have delved into the lives of Anne Sexton, and other writers who may have been sexually abused should be offended by Fitch's treatment of this information.

Despite the fact that Nin helped and nurtured many artists, this book is full of catty swipes from several of those people. Robert de Niro's mother (a student who typed for Nin), for example, may well have meant her comments to be neutral, but hers and several others comments read as a mid-20th century, Greenwich Village, literary scene "Mean Girls." Gore Vidal is often quoted, without any mention to the fact that Nin helped his early career or even the slightest admission by the biographer that Vidal himself is one of the tallest tale-tellers and self-aggrandizers in American literature. Vidal's agenda was never noted. Fitch does not seem to try to balance them out with a different point of view or interpretation for the reader to try and understand why or what would make some so hateful of Nin. If you read this book, it seems you must blindly accept that Nin had overwhelmingly bad traits, and few, if any, good, or even neutral ones.

I learned nothing about Nin's true philosophy and ideas. Nin's explanations are even filtered through comments and actions by those who clearly dislike her.

What Fitch cannot account for is why Nin became so popular and beloved, yet the biographer does admit Nin had a following. There is no social context, no cultural context, nor objectivity to this biography.

This badly researched and poorly written bio left me with one thought: I must try to find a good, objective biography about Anais Nin.

I have to agree with some of the other reviews here that Fitch's work can be cumbersome at times. It is a little confusing in spots, mostly due to the tricky present-tense and Fitch's tendency to make giant, intuitive leaps from one reference to another. I do not, however, feel that this detracts one bit from the subject matter.

I can't imagine another biography addressing Nin's complicated life and neurosis with the same unflinching honesty and compassion. Nin was an extremely complex woman who spent most of her time and energy trying to compartmentalize her life, then painfully pushing against the boundries of those compartments with her life and work. Fitch pulls from multiple sources to draw a more cohesive picture of Nin's life than Anais herself ever did. Though that's rather the point, isn't it? The original published diaries are now understood to be a construct of Nin's talented metaphorical writing: true in a sense, but bearing little resemblence to hard facts. One doesn't read Nin's rich, feminine, lyrical prose for an accurate histoical record. And although it's difficult to be accurate about history under the best of circumstances, Fitch does a fine job piecing together the available clues not only for an accurate timeline, but for some kind of insight into Anais Nin's motivations.

Overall, Fitch portrayed Nin without prejudice, balancing the horrors of childhood abuse and neglect against the adult Nin's conscious betrayals of lovers and friends. Ultimately, she shows Nin to be a very flawed, very passionate artist without excuses. She neither condemns Nin, nor places her on a pedastal. I prefer this way... it's like seeing Nin through the eyes of a true friend;one that loves her for who she was, with no excuses.

Granted, Anais Nin, having spent her life veiling and concealing truths, is a most difficult individual to research. This fact, however, offers no excuse for the writing style of this book. The use of the present tense serves to obscure the meaning of references to the present day. In the text, does "today," mean the year being discussed, or the year of writing? In additon, Fitch mercilessly peppers a paragraph with names, only to use an imprecise pronoun in attributing a quotation. Who was it that said that again? Random comparasions to other writers, (i.e. anne Sexton) spring up in one sentence, neither led up to nor substantiated. Bare facts are laid down side by side with purple prose and phrasal flights of fantasy.
In short, the self-consciousness, name-dropping, and obscuring of facts makes this book only slightly less obsfucating than the writing of Nin herself.

If you are fascinated by Anais Nin's diaries, you will find this biography even jucier! Fitch uncovers all in a way that further illuminates what was behind the woman who once said, "Erotica is like a veil."
After reading this book, I felt I'd witnessed Nin in a way no one could have by just knowing her. To me, this is what biographies are all about. It made me see Nin in a new way, and allowed me to finally see what drove her mysterious behavior, talent, obsessions, and extreme privacy. In fact, this book made me more interested in biographies than reading diaries.
If you like this, you might also try the biography of Clara Bow, "Runnin' Wild," as well as the biography of Katherine Ann Porter.

There are many things that are just factually wrong in this book. I recommend reading "Anais Nin : Literary Perspectives" by Suzanne Nalbantian. This is a book that is actually written by people who studied and/or knew Anais Nin.

This biography, written in the present tense, begins with Anais Nin's arrival in New York City when she was eleven and beginning her diary--a diary that gave birth to herself. The Afterward presents the ironic fall-out after her death--the appearance of her obituary in the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times, each naming a different husband and exposing her bigamy and disceptions.

I agree that this is not the best biography of Anais Nin. Yet, we have to realize that she is not the easiest person to write a book about. I admire Noel Riley Fitch for attempting. I love reading about Anais--she was an amazing woman. And I think she knew more about the TRUTH then we think she did. She created atmosphere and breathable relationships. This biography tells of her friends and enemies alike---her success and failures.

I have enjoyed two of Anais Nin's diaries but wondered how reliable a narrator she was....this book shows how Nin lied to the world and herself. Not a hatchet job but a fair look into her chatoic painfull life.