The Assassin's Cloak: An Anthology of the World's Greatest Diarists [Paperback]

Irene Taylor (Author), Alan Taylor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2011

A remarkably wide-ranging anthology - laid out, day by day, like a diary - The Assassin's Cloak has been universally praised. With entries from Pepys, Boswell, Scott, Woolf and Adrian Mole; Kenneth Williams, Brian Eno, Jean Cocteau, Evelyn Waugh and Alan Clark, there are 365 opportunities to combine diarists of a distinctly different hue - from different ages and walks of life, with wildly different tones and agendas. The result is a studiously eclectic and gloriously serendipitous gathering that can be read selectively or continuously. In the most readable way, The Assassin's Cloak pays tribute to a fascinating genre.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Though production difficulties prevented full reviews of the young Scotland press's latest volumes, readers shouldn't miss Irene and Alan Taylor's doorstop-sized, decade-in-the-making assemblage of notable diary excerpts. The Assassin's Cloak: An Anthology of the World's Greatest Diarists gathers brief and often wonderful entries by poets and philosophers, businessmen and barons for each day of the year. On January 1st, for example, the "first real diarist" Samuel Pepys records how, on waking suddenly, he knocked his wife on the nose with his elbow; Katherine Mansfield deems her new diary "vile" but vows to keep it anyway; James Boswell relishes a romantic encounter; and the fictional Adrian Mole resolves to stop cleaning the tub with his mother's Buff-Puff. Spanning four centuries and addressing countless topics (from thoughtful reflections diary-keeping to gossip, politics and mundane musings) this book is for the expert and the dilettante, for the coffee table and the reference shelf.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Readers shouldn't miss Irene and Alan Taylor's doorstop-sized, decade-in-the-making assemblage of notable diary excerpts . . . Spanning four centuries and addressing countless topics (from thoughtful reflections on diary-keeping to gossip, politics, and mundane musings) this book is for the expert and the dilettante, for the coffee table and the reference shelf."  —Publishers Weekly

"A sumptuous feast. This inspired anthology of diverse diary entries, selected chiefly for their honesty, is relentlessly thought-provoking."  —Independent

"Such is the care lavished on the material that what emerges is not simply a single, chronological progress but a series of interior narratives capable of throwing unexpected detours and surprises along the way . . . The Taylors specialize in the canny juxtaposition . . . they seemed to have packed in practically everyone one had ever heard of, as well as a number of promising names."  —Times Literary Supplement

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 710 pages
• Publisher: Canongate UK (September 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841954594
• ISBN-13: 978-1841954592
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #607,821 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A treasure, August 7, 2003

By 

Matthew Krichman (Durango, CO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Assassin's Cloak: An Anthology of the World's Greatest Diarists (Paperback)

January 1, 2003: Bought this collection of diary and journal entries based on a review that said it would be a great book to leave in the guest bedroom for visitors. Have resolved to read a day's worth of entries each morning, and finish the book in one year.

February 16, 2003: Have discovered that this book is much more conveniently placed in the bathroom, where I am sure to spend five minutes each morning, rather than the guest bedroom.

April 13, 2003: What a remarkable collection of fascinating historical figures! The featured diarists are carefully chosen, as are the selected entries. Together they span four centuries and at least as many continents.

June 1, 2003: Have started to develop personal favorites among the many diarists. Pepys, for his unrepentant lasciviousness. Chips Channon, for his loveable pretentiousness. Kafka, for being Kafka. Warhol, for being Warhol. Coppola, for her intriguing insights into the life of her film-making husband. Woolf, for her introspective moodiness. Gide, for his sarcasm and arrogance.

July 5, 2003: Have become utterly addicted to my morning routine with this book, and have now started reading ahead.

July 29, 2003: Have only two minor complaints so far. One is that the diarists are predominantly British - perhaps a more diverse selection would have been better. The second is that there is a disproportionate number of entries during the WWII time period. Without doubt a fascinating and important time, historically, so I guess this is understandable.

August 7, 2003: Finished the collection, almost five months early. Will now return this book to my guest room, where friends and family will be sure to enjoy it for years to come.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why Isn't This Book Better Known?, May 7, 2002

By 

Ruth Edlund "dark goddess of replevin" (King County, Washington:) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Assassin's Cloak: An Anthology of the World's Greatest Diarists (Hardcover)

I don't recall hearing any press buzz when this book came out, and I can't understand why. This is a brilliantly edited collection of excerpts from diarists both famous and obscure. Some of the most interesting entries were written by total unknowns, including people of whom one would not even suspect literacy. One-paragraph biographies of all diarists appear at the end of the book, for reference.

The genius of the editors, which sounds like a gimmick but isn't, is their arrangment of the excerpts by the month and day that the entries were written. Within each day, the entries jump magnificently from century to century, and from author to author, so that the voices that the reader hears, and the perspectives on history and society that the reader gains, are constantly shifting. For example, entries of European Jews in the midst of the Holocaust are juxtaposed with British entries from the same era--and German entries from twenty years earlier.

The format makes for more richness of texture than any one diarist could. This book calls to mind Thomas Mallon's _A Book of One's Own_. Mallon's book groups diarists by type, however, not entries by day, and Mallon provides a great deal more commentary than the editors of _The Assassin's Cloak_ do. The Taylors let their own quirky choices of entries provide implied commentary.

Warning: this book is 600 pages long, and highly addictive. A must read for anyone interested in diaries and journals.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sumptuous feast for the diary-lover., January 11, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Assassin's Cloak: An Anthology of the World's Greatest Diarists (Hardcover)

This huge, juicy anthology is packed chock-full, in chronological order, of tasty tidbits from diarists of four centuries -- some the usual suspects (Pepys, de Beauvoir, Warhol), others you've probably never heard of, or at least not in this context (who knew Brian Eno kept a diary?). Some were writing for themselves alone, others knew darn well their journals would be published some day. All are eminently readable and completely intriguing. Expect to spend many happy evenings curled up in a chair reading May Sarton's opinion on why people under 40 shouldn't live alone, Liane de Pougy's memory of her wedding night, Noel Coward's description of a Beatles concert, Stendahl's observation that eating peas made him less lustful, and many, many more.