My Golden Spoon: Memoirs of a Capital Lady [Hardcover]

Eleanor Ditzen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1997

The captivating story of a woman who has led an extraordinary life of privilege, power, and pleasure.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 496 pages
• Publisher: Madison Books (July 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568330960
• ISBN-13: 978-1568330969
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,562,548 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Reading!, August 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: My Golden Spoon: Memoirs of a Capital Lady (Hardcover)

Who would think a book of long-ago political figures could be so interesting. Chocked full of behind-the-scenes, in-depth portrayals of past presidents, ambassadors, foreign dignitaries, family and friends. Gives an excellent window on the political scene and how with "one hand washing the other", the work of government is accomplished. Well Done!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Beautiful People of Washington, March 27, 2011

By 

Glen Blesi (Stanton, MO USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: My Golden Spoon: Memoirs of a Capital Lady (Hardcover)

Yes, the portrayals of political figures are interesting, albeit a little one-sided. Most of the dirt that is pulled up is on Republicans. The author admits to a friendship with Dwight Eisenhower. She and her second husband try to get him to run for President. But when he does so but opts for the "wrong" party, they can no longer support him. Eleanor even bargains with her third husband to become a Democrat if she becomes a Presbyterian.

I read the book because the author's third husband, Lowell Russell Ditzen, was a first cousin of my grandfather, so my first cousin twice removed. I had hoped to learn more about this relative that I had never met. Rev. Ditzen doesn't get mentioned until the very last chapter, which was a disappointment. Yet she did have some interesting things to say about him and managed to give me a couple of details for the family tree that I did not have.

A major theme of the biography seemed to me to be that Eleanor was a privileged lady who enjoyed having beautiful and handsome people in her life. A couple of times she did mention someone who was not attractive but these types were not given a big part in her story. It seemed that beauty was a prerequisite for Eleanor to enjoy their friendship. Beautiful people were mentioned far more often than her "golden spoon".

Except for a lack of editing for punctuation and grammar, the book is fairly well written. It is written as a novel and one wonders if the author's memory or diary was as tuned to details as it would appear. It is done chronologically with no deviations for reflecting, scarcely any flashbacks.

It does no doubt give an accurate portrait of life in Washington in the time from FDR to Kennedy. As the book was finished when the author was past 90, it indicates that it was written by one who had kept her mental faculties sharp.