The Christmas List
The Grand Surprise: The Journals of Leo Lerman …..by Leo Lerman Lerman
Longtime features editor at Vogue, and later editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair and all-round arts devotee was omnivorous in his desire to experience the full range of culture and entertainment. This broad, selection of Lerman’s journals is filled with great gossip (on everything from Ruth Gordon’s eating habits to architect Philip Johnson’s sex life) and some astute remarks on art. Lerman (1914–1994) is a great diarist: the details are precise, the information careening from idiosyncratic to important, and his tone endlessly amused and amusing. While he can be peevish and even mean, he is also frequently funny and generous. The casual reader may be lost at times, but if you are moderately conversant with high art and high society or want to know what Princess Marina, duchess of Kent, wore to the Metro Opera in September 1956, Lerman’s journals are perfect.’
$24 www.amazon.com Publisher:Knopf (April 10, 2007)
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