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THE GOLDEN WARRIOR

Name: THE GOLDEN WARRIOR
Author: Lawrence James
ISBN: 1-55778-579-1

THE LIFE AND LEGEND OF LAWRENCE OF ARABIA

by Lawrence James ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 22, 1993

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Revisionist bio that tries to shrink T.E. Lawrence down to his actual deeds. Lawrence's life and mind were impressive by any standard, British historian James admits, but the real Lawrence should now be seen plain, not as the figure drummed up by his autobiographical romance, Seven Pillars of Wisdom, and by newsman Lowell Thomas, whose 1918 picture-show about Lawrence's desert exploits made soufflÇ royale out of what should have been hard-boiled eggs. For a while, at least, Lawrence fed and embraced the legend: He liked its drawing him into the company of great artists and movers and shakers, companions like G.B. Shaw, Thomas Hardy, and Winston Churchill. Sadly, the historical truth needed juggling: Where Lawrence explained in Seven Pillars how he'd blown up his 79th bridge, ``analysis from all available sources,'' James reports, shows merely an honorable 27 bridges demolished. James also documents that the homosexual rape and torture scene in Seven Pillars was made up, since Lawrence couldn't have been where he said he was during the incident. And where Jeremy Wilson's titanic Lawrence of Arabia (1990) finds Lawrence dying, at 47, quite likely a virgin, James repeats broad hearsay that Lawrence was an active homosexual while riding with the Arabs. James attests that, by age 37, deep guilt had brought about in Lawrence an addiction to flagellation and his consequent total self-abasement, change of name, and need to hide among the lowest ranks of the RAF. Despite all degradings, though, James's Lawrence, at his best, still comes off as a noble, literate man, and is perhaps even more gripping a figure than the various mythical and movie versions. A lesser but still magnificent Lawrence. (Sixteen pages of b&w photographs—not seen.)

Pub Date: Feb. 22, 1993

ISBN: 1-55778-579-1

Page Count: 440

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1993

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
EMPIRES IN THE SUN
by Lawrence James

- BOOK REVIEW
CHURCHILL AND EMPIRE
by Lawrence James

- BOOK REVIEW
ARISTOCRATS
by Lawrence James

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.