This is a very detailed, and well written collective biography of the six Mitford sisters. I think that the study of their lives could almost be a prism through which much of the social and political history of the middle third of the century - social, as exemplifying the mores and decline of the traditional aristocracy; and political, as among the sisters there was an: out and out Nazi (Unity, who met Hitler 140 times and was rumoured - almost certainly falsely - to have been his mistress); a Fascist and Nazi sympathiser (Diana, who left her first husband to marry Fascist leader Oswald Mosley); and a Communist (Jessica, who eloped and went to the US and supported the civil rights movement there in later decades). Among the other sisters, Nancy, the eldest, was a novelist and author of non-fiction works on French history, Deborah, the youngest became Duchess of Devonshire, and Pam was the "boring" one (though married to a Fascist sympathiser). There was also, which is less well known, a brother Tom, who was killed in the closing weeks of the war fighting the Japanese. Their mother was also very soft on Hitler, even during and after the war. This book explores their lives and loves in great, sometimes perhaps over exhaustive detail, trying to see the sisters and their actions (rightly) in the context of their times, but sometimes in my view going a little too far in bending over backwards, for example, to use Diana Mosley's unwavering loyalty to her husband as justification for her ongoing fascist/Hitler-sympathising and anti-semitic attitudes even long after the war. I thought some of this could have been reined back a bit, and that is the reason for my docking a very good book half a point in my rating. But this is a very good read and instructive about so much of English society in the middle decades of the 20th century. ( )

How many more books about the Mitford sisters can be written, and how many more will I read? Seemingly an infinite number given my curiosity about this family. There is certainly a mountain of material at any biographer’s disposal since the six sisters never ceased writing books, magazine articles or letters.

Laura Thompson writes a cross between a conventional biography and a literary one which is understandable since the characters in all of Nancy Mitford’s books can somehow be traced to one or more of her family members. She also concentrates on Nancy and Diana in this volume, which is a shame since I think they’ve been done to death. Still, this is a excellent portrait of the family, especially for readers who haven’t read a lot about the family. ( )

I thought I would find this absorbing, but it was only moderately so. My experience was very much like Citizenjoyce below except for the fact that I love Brideshead Revisited!! But why did the sisters follow such extreme ideologies? If it wasn't for their humour, one would find them without any admirable qualities. ( )

Whenever someone asks what my least favorite books are I can always name two I hate unreservedly, Brideshead Revisited is one of them. When Thompson mentioned twice the many comparisons between the Mitford family and Brideshead Revisited I thought I might not like the book, but I'd give it a try. I made it through 24% before I gave up. Argh, the snobbery, cruelty, sibling rivalry, and casual acceptance of Hitler and fascism were too much. I like that the sisters kept their senses of humor throughout their lives, but I can't say much more for the family. I certainly don't want to spend any more time with them.

A fascinating look at culture change in England amidst the early 20th century European conflicts. The story told through the ill-equipped Mitford children. Together they represent the clash of cultures that would need generational changes to work through. Impressive research and easy-to-read. Except for one minor annoyance: Thompson litters the narrative with French. While this does reflect the linguistic style of the privileged classes of the time, it did feel a little affected a hundred years later. On balance a unique and important point of view from which to observe England 1900-1950. ( )