Michael Holroyd is the author of acclaimed biographies of George Bernard Shaw, the painter Augustus John, Lytton Strachey, and Ellen Terry and Henry Irving, as well as two memoirs, "Basil Street Blues "and "Mosaic." Knighted for his services to literature, he is the president emeritus of the Royal Society of Literature and the only nonfiction writer to have been awarded the David Cohen British Prize for Literature. His previous book, "A Strange Eventful History," won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for biography in 2009. He lives in London with his wife, the novelist Margaret Drabble.
"Intoxicating . . . Burst[s] with the tremendous generosity of its
author . . . From the first page "A Book of Secrets" casts the
spell of a time long gone, of loves endured and lost, expectations
dashed on the rocks of reality, of inner desires forever stilled,
casting their shadows into history. It is written with the kind of
elegance, ease and simplicity possible only from a master craftsman
who has flown far beyond any learning curve and is relishing his
free fall. [Holroyd] carries us as if on a magic carpet from one
character to the next, and one time period to the next, with
consummate grace. Holroyd is a kind of Fred Astaire on the page,
his many steps becoming one grand, profound design . . . [H]is
heart and humor bounce in vibrant rays off every hot-blooded,
lovelorn, crazy, jealous and joyous woman--and what enlightened
being would have any woman be otherwise?--in his book . . . "A Book
of Secrets" is a book of magic, a sleight of hand by a master
conjurer singing his swan song, sweetly, softly, with piercing wit
and overwhelming compassion, his poetry in prose evoking a time
past, with all its outrageous obsessions, its illegal passions, its
melancholy perfume." --Toni Bentley, "The New York Times Book
Review
""Michael Holroyd is that rare biographer who is read for himself
as much as for the sake of his subject . . . It is hard to see how
Mr. Holroyd could do better than this book." --Carl Rollyson, "The
Wall Street Journal
"""A Book of Secrets" frequently casts a rosy comic glow . . . Mr.
Holroyd is an impeccable writer and researcher, a man whose books
are packed with intricate detail yet retain a buoyancy. They are
aerodynamic; they run as silently as gliders . . . This book is a
richly marbled meditation not only on the lives of several
remarkable women but also on the art of biography itself . . .
[Holroyd's] new book contains many fine moments during which,
holding on with white knuckles, you might hear yourself cry,
'Brilliant!'"
Praise for "A Book of Secrets
""Master raconteur and biographer of Bernard Shaw and Lytton
Strachey, the always elegant Holroyd is at the top of his game . .
. Holroyd writes like an angel and memorably draws the rivulets of
these fluid lives together." --"Publishers Weekly "(starred
review)
""A Book of Secrets "is truly a book of revelations, of sudden,
emotional jolts . . . The work of a master-biographer at the height
of his powers . . . A beautifully structured narrative, punctuated
by surprises and dazzling shifts in focus." --Daisy Hay, "The Daily
Telegraph
""It's a testament to Holroyd's dexterity that this big, densely
populated canvas never feels cluttered or confusing . . . As is
always the case with Holroyd, the reader comes away equally
inspired, equally curious, and lavishly entertained by a
story-teller of the first rank." --Lee Randall, "The Scotsman
""Richly evocative and beautifully written . . . Holroyd's skills
as a researcher and detec
Praise for "A Strange Eventful History":
“The most completely delicious, the most civilized, and the most
wickedly entertaining work of nonfiction anyone could ask for . . .
Irresistible.” —Michael Dirda, "The Washington Post"
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