by Isabel Lincoln Elmer ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 11, 1987
The story of a life of wealth beyond all knowing--except to the Rockefellers--turns out to be a story of bondage and family sorrows much like those in any family. Isabel Lincoln Elmer, called Belle, was the fourth heir to the Rockefeller fortune to be named Isabel, and her daughter was the fifth. She is the great granddaughter of the famed John D.'s brother William Rockefeller and was raised amid unbelievable wealth and luxury. Throughout her youth, Belle was unaware that a bitterness about the Rockefellers had built up over the generations. When she finally did understand the public's contempt for her family wealth, she began hiding her name. Belle's grandmother Isabel was a formidable emotional tyrant who withheld all tenderness from her children. Belle's mother Isabel was herself victimized by this inability. Belle herself bore many burdens, beside the family name: great jealousy of her beautiful younger sister (whose curls Belle once cut off spitefully), a self-righteousness that led her into constant quarrels with her husband Buzz, and eventually stomach ulcers. Meanwhile, her family was undergoing death after death, suicide, the Great Depression and serious illnesses, including a strange and tragic alienation of love by which family members were kept bound to the Rockefeller code. At age 40, she was emaciated and looked 60. Finally, as her personal family's frustrations mounted, Belle and Buzz attended a Billy Graham Crusade and were smitten hard by Christ. In the midst of a conversion, they fell in with Cay Anderson and Judy Sorensen, two partners in prayer on Cape Cod, and attended retreats held by Cay and Judy at Rock Harbor. When Cay and Judy founded The Community of Jesus, Belle's conversion and spiritual housecleaning in depth led her and Buzz to move permanently to Rock Harbor as members of The Community of Jesus. The Rockefeller background is compelling and moving; Belle's conversion experience has somewhat less power.
Pub Date: May 11, 1987
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Freundlich
Review Posted Online: N/A
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1987
Categories: NONFICTION
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