Elizabeth Jane Howard's novels of family life and relationships -
in particular the Cazalet Chronicles - have given pleasure to
hundreds of thousands of readers over the years; much more pleasure
than her own family life and relationships ever gave to her. Jane,
as she has always been known, was born in 1923, into a changing
world. She was 'cared for' by a near-brutal nanny, and hardly ever
saw her parents; was 'educated' mainly at home (which means not
educated at all) and spent the rest of her life trying to catch up
intellectually. Immature, naive and with very little
self-confidence, she was easily and frequently hurt by those who
saw her immediate attractiveness but were disappointed by the lack
of sophistication that lay behind it. Her mother made it clear that
she 'didn't like little girls' and much preferred Jane's two
brothers. She was her charismatic father's favourite, but
unfortunately he did not always express his very real love in a
parental fashion. Consequently she has spent her whole life
searching for inner security and love. With a desire (but no
training) to express herself artistically she determined to become
an actress - and for a time did, but was never quite good enough.
Writing came slowly and laboriously, but at this she persisted, and
work for publishers and magazines gave her discipline, and here,
more than anywhere else, she finally found success. In the meantime
she married three times. She says very little about her second
marriage, but writes extensively about the first and third, both
entered with happy anticipation. Peter Scott, her first husband,
was already a celebrity: son of Scott of the Antarctic and a
renowned naturalist and painter. Jane went into the marriage with
high hopes but ignorant of anything which would have given it a
fair start, or longevity. The birth of her daughter Nicola was a
hell of pain and neglect which left her guilty and depressed; and
gradually the relationship foundered. Her third marriage, to
novelist Kingsley Amis, started more propitiously and lasted for 18
years; but Kingsley was demanding and publicly and humiliatingly
critical of her, and in the end she left him. In later years
psychotherapy helped her come to terms with herself and her
mistakes; and her ever-extending list of friends and lovers reads
like a Who's Who of the late 20th century. She writes with
consummate honesty and great skill, and the reader's heart goes out
to her. This is a thoughtful and moving chronicle of her remarkable
life and character, and an invaluable record of a social class and
artistic circle that no longer exist. (Kirkus UK)
Honest and unflinching, this book illuminates the literary world of the latter half of the 20th century, as well as giving a personal insight into the life of Elizabeth Jane Howard.
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