Letters from Oxford: Hugh Trevor-Roper to Bernard Berenson (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Richard Davenport-Hines (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Review

'wonderfully wise and witty... in Trevor-Roper, as these letters drenched in irony attest, history had discovered a profound analyst who was also a consummate stylist' -- Christopher Silvester THE SUNDAY TIMES 'Richard Davenport-Hines's introduction is so crisp and perceptive.' -- Ferdinand Mount THE SPECTATOR 'Trevor-Roper proves a wonderful letter-writer, filling his pages with outrageously funny accounts of Oxford goings-on and malicious London gossip.' -- Derwent May THE TIMES '... the book would be worth buying for it [Roper's account of his campaign to get Macmillan elected Chancellor of Oxford University]. But other reasons for buying this book will be found on almost every page; not least among them is the skill of the editor, Richard Davenport-Hines, whose deft annotations somehow contrive to be both economical and omniscient.' -- Noel Malcolm THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH, 'These letters offer sheer, unadulterated pleasure.' -- Mark Bostridge THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY 'Skilfully edited by Richard Davenport-Hines, this volume is a consolation at any season, and, it must be hoped, is the forerunner of many more to come.' -- L G Mitchell THE TLS 'The letters focus best on teh 'guerilla-warfare of the cloister,' the elections to the Wardenship of All Souls, to the Regius Professorship of Poetry.' -- John Saumarez Smith COUNTRY LIFE 'contain masterpieces of wit and irony... Davenport-Hines has added some masterly notes and an excellent introduction' -- THE FINANCIAL TIMES Robin Lane-Fox 'this very entertaining volume...superbly edited by Richard Davenport-Hines.' -- Adam Sisman LITERARY REVIEW

Product Description

In 1947, 33-year-old historian Hugh Trevor-Roper and 82-year-old world-famous art critic Bernard Berenson met for the first time. Trevor-Roper promised to write to Berenson, and his letters continued until his friend, frail but still intensely curious about the world, died in 1959. Elegantly constructed, beautifully and precisely written, Trevor-Roper's correspondences are shot through with high-octane malice, sharp judgments, blistering comments, and many wonderfully funny episodes. From meeting Communist dignitaries behind the Iron Curtain to speeding in his glamorous gray Bentley to visit duchesses in the Scottish borders, this collection sets a tone of amusement at the "human comedy"—the vanity, snobbery, intrigue, and human weakness that Trevor-Roper saw all around him.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Orion Publishing (September 28, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0297850849
• ISBN-13: 978-0297850847
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,021,346 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Delightful!, October 1, 2007

By	Ronald H. Clark (WASHINGTON, DC USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Letters from Oxford: Hugh Trevor-Roper to Bernard Berenson (Paperback)

The late Hugh Trevor-Roper (1914-2003; later Baron Dacre of Glanton) was everything you want in an Oxford don: deeply learned; possessed of a wicked sense of humor; extremely clever (in the British sense of the term); sporting a period of service in the Secret Intelligence Service during the war (out of which grew his "The Last Days of Hitler"); but above all one of the finest letter writers one is likely ever to encounter (on a par with Justice Holmes and Isaiah Berlin). This book consists of letters written by Trevor-Roper to the art expert and proprietor of I Tatti Bernard Berenson between 1947 and 1960.

The letters are edited and introduced by Richard Davenport-Hines, and his substantial introduction to the volume is one of its finest features. However, the meat of the matter are the letters themselves, skillfully annotated and accompanied by some wonderful photographs, and presented in pleasant format in this volume. Also included as appendices are several letters that Trevor-Roper wrote to the American historian Wallace Notestein. A couple points bear emphasis. While there are no letters as such from Berenson, occasionally there are some excerpts included to set the stage for Trevor-Roper's letters to follow. I was very surprised to see that Berenson was far more knowledgeable in fields outside art history than I had imagined; in fact, he was quite conversant with the main themes of European and American intellectual history. Another point is that for those of us interested in (and puzzled by) the inner workings of the University of Oxford and its component colleges, these letters are a treasurehouse of information. Trevor-Roper delighted in academic fisticuffs and delighted even more in explaining these strange rituals to outsiders such as Berenson. However, not all the letters are fun and games; some show Trevor-Roper at work as an historian, including dispute with some major figures such as J. Hexter, Christopher Hill, Tawney, and above all Lawrence Stone. So, from every vantage point, just as enjoyable a collection of letters as one will ever happen upon.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars T-R to BB an A, September 27, 2006

By	Christian Schlect (Yakima, Washington/USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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Those who appreciate smoothly elevated language, as put down here by a very lively English scholar in private correspondence to an elderly friend from the art world of Italy, will greatly enjoy this book.

Flashes of insights on random subjects, biting descriptions of the petty politics of universities, asides on some of the most famous people and controversies of the 1940s-50s, and well-turned phrases abound in this collection of letters.

(Richard Davenport-Hines deserves the praise Hugh Trevor-Roper gave another editor of a collection of letters: "... it is very well and learnedly edited.")