Welcome to our book review site go-pdf.online!
You may have to Search all our reviewed books and magazines, click the sign up button below to create a free account.
Memoirs of an Aesthete
N this classic memoir Harold Acton offers a witty and vivid account of the first thirty-five years of his life (1904-39): from a boyhood among the dilettanti in Florence before the First World War, through his friendships with some of the great writers of his generation in Oxford and Paris, to his discovery of a spiritual home in Peking.
Nancy Mitford
The only biography in print of Nancy Mitford, written by her friend Harold Acton shortly after her death. Defining an exceptionally witty era whose vanishing continues to fascinate, Nancy Mitford's writings have remained steadfast in their popularity - like those of Evelyn Waugh, her male counterpart. The repackaging of Mitford's novels Love in A Cold Climate, The Pursuit of Love, Don't Tell Alfred (Penguin 2000/1) and a recent television series on the Mitfords have done much to feed the interest in her life. Harold Acton's book is driven by his intimate knowledge of her. Both belonging to a blissfully carefree generation, he shows her as she thought of herself and was seen by those closest to her. Formidable, loyal, amusing and determined, her life was tragic only in that she knew exactly how to handle her fate with a supreme wit reminiscent of Bridget Jones' diaries.
The Bourbons of Naples, 1734-1825
Naples is one of Europe's most fascinating cities and the ruling dynasty which left its mark more than any other was that of the Bourbons, who arrived in 1734 and were only displaced by the Unification of Italy in 1870. Before that time Naples was the largest of the Italian kingdoms and, with Pompeii and Vesuvius as its main attractions, it drew hundreds of aristocratic travellers and visitors in the 18th century. The city also attracted the armies of revolutionary France and the royal family escaped to Sicily thanks to Admiral Nelson. The Bourbons of Naples was welcomed as a masterpiece at the time of first publication in 1956, and was chosen by Sir Osbert Sitwell as his book of the year. Sir Harold Acton (1904-1994) - famous aesthete and historian - brings 18th-century Naples vividly to life, with unforgettable characters such as Lady Hamilton and Nelson, royal eccentrics and plenty of court intrigue. 'An elaborate comedy of manners played out over 700 pages.' The Times
Peonies and Ponies
None
Three Extraordinary Ambassadors
Depicts the lives of three British ambassadors to Italy during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and examines the ambassadors' interest in Italian art
My Mother, My Father and His Wife Hortense
In this fierce and poignant book, the author, drawing on sources that include her grandmother's richly erotic diaries, unveils intimate details of the Acton dynasty in Florence, the illicit love affair of Arthur and Elsie, and the controversial legal aftermath that continues to this day. A true family saga played out against the backdrop of Florence's celebrated Villa La Pietra. The struggle over the billion dollar estate of one of the 20th century's most notable aesthetes, Harold Acton, pitted New York University, against first Liana Beacci, Acton's illegitimate half-sister, and since her death in 2000 her daughter, Princess Dialta Alliata di Montereale, who lives in Honolulu. It began its ...
Memoirs of an Aesthete, 1939-1969
Reflections on world travels, R.A.F. experiences and friendships with cultural leaders Edith Sitwell, Gertrude Stein, Evelyn Waugh, etc.
