What do you think?
Rate this book
The Fall of the House of Wilde: Oscar Wilde and His Family
Oscar Wilde owed his most outstanding characteristics - his precocious intellectualism, his flamboyance, his hedonism, his recklessness, his pride, his sense of superiority, his liberal sexual values - to his parents. Oscar's mother, Lady Jane Wilde, rose to prominence as a political journalist, advocating in 1848 a rebellion against colonialism. Proud, involved and challenging, she became a salon hostess and opened the Wilde's Dublin home at No. 1 Merrion Square to the public. Known as the most scintillating and stirring hostess of her day, she passed on her infectious delight in the art of living to Oscar, who imbibed it greedily. His father was Sir William Wilde, one of the most eminent men of his generation. Acutely conscious of injustices in the social order, Sir William laid the foundations for the Celtic renaissance in the belief that culture would establish a common ground between the privileged and the poor, Protestant and Catholic. But Sir William was also a philanderer, and when he stood accused of sexually assaulting a young female patient, the scandal and trial sent shock waves through Dublin society. After his death the Wildes moved to London where Oscar burst irrepressibly upon the scene. The one role that didn't suit him was that of the Victorian husband, as his wife, Constance, was to discover. For beneath the swelling forehead was a self-destructive itch: a lifelong devourer of attention, Oscar was unable to recognise when the party was over. The Fall of the House of Wilde for the first time places Oscar Wilde as a member of one of the most dazzling Anglo-Irish families of Victorian times, and also in the broader social, political and religious context. A remarkable and perceptive account, this is a major repositioning of our first modern celebrity, a man whose own fall from grace in a trial as public as his father's marked the end of fin de siecle decadence.
495 pages, Paperback
First published August 18, 2015
53 people are currently reading
1114 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
January 7, 2017
Wow, don't dump books too quickly, that is what this book proves. This book made a total turnaround for me. Even if I immediately noticed that the information provided piqued my interest and I didn't want to stop, I found the writing florid and not as clear as it could have been. The information at times seemed jumbled. It went off in one direction and then vied off in another. I was playing with the thought that it might be a hagiography. No, this is no hagiography. That presented is balanced. By the book's end you have a very clear understanding of both Oscar Wilde's familial background and his own unique character. His writings are thoroughly covered in such a manner that you understand why he wrote them and what he was attempting to say through them. His parents’ lives are certainly as interesting as Oscar’s. His mother was a bluestocking, active in the Irish Rebellion of 1848, an author and translator as well as a devoted mother to both her sons. His father was a polymath - a surgeon, an ethnologist and working toward Celtic cultural revival before even Yeats. And a philanderer. You get fascinating portraits of three people, not just one. This is a book containing the wit, satirical humor and stunning poetry characteristic of Oscar Wilde's writing but of moving tragedy too. I complete this book thinking with surprise at all that I have learned. I finish it with a new respect for the man and where he came from. I finish it with sadness for what life held in store for Oscar, his brother and his mother. I don't think any reader will complete this book unmoved.
The book moves forward chronologically, first speaking of the parents and then Oscar and his brother. All are covered through the years to their deaths, and a short epilog speaks of the lives of offspring.
The book contains many quotes from Oscar Wilde's writing and letters. His ability to express himself is exceptional. Lines of poetry moved me, and I don't usually react to poetry. Much of what Oscar said to others, and thus recorded here, grabbed my interest. It spoke to me; he had important things to say and said it eloquently. Sometimes lyrically, sometimes with humor. About Victorian society, about love, about art, about culture, about literature, about morals. The author refers also to biographical information from earlier books. The book is based on thorough research.
OK, I do have a quibble. More in the beginning but less often in the end I found the writing quite simply not clear. I am reading for understanding, not for sophisticated highbrow explanations. I will give one example of lines that put me off. They are taken from chapter 28. They are in reference to an essay written by Oscar Wilde in the 1880s on Shakespeare’s sonnets:
“Arguably, Oscar in these works is one of the progenitors of the epistemological relativity that permeated modernist art at the beginning of the 20th century. Equally important Oscar can be seen as a point of origin for an approach for which he is less often associated and which might in the most general sense be labeled Post-Structuralist. The dyadic structure of the relationship between fact and fiction, between art and life, is undone, shown to be unstable by Oscar’s work. By inserting himself into the dominant discourse, but ironically in such a way as to destabilize its structures, he was a pioneer of a tactic that became run of the mill in the 1970s. “
I find this hard to follow. I am acquainted with Oscar Wilde’s heavy use of irony and how he juggles meanings and plays one thought against another. That said here by the author could be expressed more simply. The florid language of the Victorian era is fine in the quotes, but not here. I think at times the author got carried away by the language of those he was writing about and mimicked it in his own analyses.
As with the book’s content, the audiobook narration also improved the more I listened. In the beginning it felt too fast and, too dramatized. By the end I had absolutely no problem understanding and I loved the intonations. I loved how he read the poetry. His pronunciation of French is good. The narrator of the audiobook is John Telfer.
I highly recommend this book if you want to understand the writing of Oscar Wilde, the man and his family.
The book moves forward chronologically, first speaking of the parents and then Oscar and his brother. All are covered through the years to their deaths, and a short epilog speaks of the lives of offspring.
The book contains many quotes from Oscar Wilde's writing and letters. His ability to express himself is exceptional. Lines of poetry moved me, and I don't usually react to poetry. Much of what Oscar said to others, and thus recorded here, grabbed my interest. It spoke to me; he had important things to say and said it eloquently. Sometimes lyrically, sometimes with humor. About Victorian society, about love, about art, about culture, about literature, about morals. The author refers also to biographical information from earlier books. The book is based on thorough research.
OK, I do have a quibble. More in the beginning but less often in the end I found the writing quite simply not clear. I am reading for understanding, not for sophisticated highbrow explanations. I will give one example of lines that put me off. They are taken from chapter 28. They are in reference to an essay written by Oscar Wilde in the 1880s on Shakespeare’s sonnets:
“Arguably, Oscar in these works is one of the progenitors of the epistemological relativity that permeated modernist art at the beginning of the 20th century. Equally important Oscar can be seen as a point of origin for an approach for which he is less often associated and which might in the most general sense be labeled Post-Structuralist. The dyadic structure of the relationship between fact and fiction, between art and life, is undone, shown to be unstable by Oscar’s work. By inserting himself into the dominant discourse, but ironically in such a way as to destabilize its structures, he was a pioneer of a tactic that became run of the mill in the 1970s. “
I find this hard to follow. I am acquainted with Oscar Wilde’s heavy use of irony and how he juggles meanings and plays one thought against another. That said here by the author could be expressed more simply. The florid language of the Victorian era is fine in the quotes, but not here. I think at times the author got carried away by the language of those he was writing about and mimicked it in his own analyses.
As with the book’s content, the audiobook narration also improved the more I listened. In the beginning it felt too fast and, too dramatized. By the end I had absolutely no problem understanding and I loved the intonations. I loved how he read the poetry. His pronunciation of French is good. The narrator of the audiobook is John Telfer.
I highly recommend this book if you want to understand the writing of Oscar Wilde, the man and his family.
March 3, 2017
Not the easiest book to read, but it does provide a comprehensive view of Oscar Wilde and his family. And the author is correct, you don’t really understand Oscar the man without the backdrop of his famous family.
Unfortunately, I went into this expecting to adore Mr. O. Wilde, but I came away with my illusions dented, if not shattered. I kept wanting to shake him and yell, “That person doesn’t really care about you! Let him go!” or “Pay attention to your money, dammit!” I will probably regain my fondness for this brilliant man, but it was difficult to see how he fooled himself about so many things. After spending time in prison and penury, all for the sake of a man who must have been a narcissist, Oscar still didn’t “get it” and continued to think that loving the jerk was the thing to do. I’ve watched many women do the same thing, and it drives me crazy!
The whole family had money issues, i.e. they wanted to spend it, but they also wanted it to just magically appear with no effort on their part. I have some sympathy for them—I don’t want to go to work every day either. The difference is that I suck it up & go, whereas they tried marrying people, reissuing books, or just ignoring their lack of money until the problem was breathing down their necks. Oscar really didn’t stand a financial chance, as neither of his parents were dreadfully responsible with cash and he and his brother took that tendency to new lows for the family. To his credit, he endured a personally horrendous tour of North America, all for the money, but squandered that effort by spending the cash almost immediately.
It was also spooky to see how much Oscar’s marriage & affairs mirrored his father’s life. His father chose women while Oscar chose men, but the parallels beyond that difference were uncanny. We really do absorb patterns and behaviours from our families, don’t we?
Considering how small his output was, it is amazing how famous Oscar Wilde continues to be. There is absolutely no doubt that the man was a genius, even if he was a self-destructive one. I will continue to enjoy his many epigrams and his still-relevant & funny plays and try to purge some of my dismay with the realities of his life.
Unfortunately, I went into this expecting to adore Mr. O. Wilde, but I came away with my illusions dented, if not shattered. I kept wanting to shake him and yell, “That person doesn’t really care about you! Let him go!” or “Pay attention to your money, dammit!” I will probably regain my fondness for this brilliant man, but it was difficult to see how he fooled himself about so many things. After spending time in prison and penury, all for the sake of a man who must have been a narcissist, Oscar still didn’t “get it” and continued to think that loving the jerk was the thing to do. I’ve watched many women do the same thing, and it drives me crazy!
The whole family had money issues, i.e. they wanted to spend it, but they also wanted it to just magically appear with no effort on their part. I have some sympathy for them—I don’t want to go to work every day either. The difference is that I suck it up & go, whereas they tried marrying people, reissuing books, or just ignoring their lack of money until the problem was breathing down their necks. Oscar really didn’t stand a financial chance, as neither of his parents were dreadfully responsible with cash and he and his brother took that tendency to new lows for the family. To his credit, he endured a personally horrendous tour of North America, all for the money, but squandered that effort by spending the cash almost immediately.
It was also spooky to see how much Oscar’s marriage & affairs mirrored his father’s life. His father chose women while Oscar chose men, but the parallels beyond that difference were uncanny. We really do absorb patterns and behaviours from our families, don’t we?
Considering how small his output was, it is amazing how famous Oscar Wilde continues to be. There is absolutely no doubt that the man was a genius, even if he was a self-destructive one. I will continue to enjoy his many epigrams and his still-relevant & funny plays and try to purge some of my dismay with the realities of his life.
August 1, 2016
The first half of this detailed, extensively researched tome was about Oscar Wilde's fascinating parents. The second half was about Wilde himself. Jane Wilde, Oscar's mother, was extraordinary in her intellectual achievements and in her weekly salons that brought together the brightest minds in Dublin; the sections of the book that included Jane's correspondence were a highlight. There were times when I wanted the narrative to digress to tell me more about the social milieu, as various tidbits were flung out and hurried passed (such as attitudes to illegitimacy - Wilde had illegitimate siblings), but there is so much information available about the people closest to Wilde that the author avoids too much broader digression. I will now have to do a whole lot more background reading, which isn't a bad outcome. This shouldn't be anyone's starting point on Oscar Wilde, but it is a worthwhile addition to knowledge about his family and attitudes. I very much enjoyed it.
January 7, 2022
Dear Oscar, I wished you had lived now. At least you wouldn't have ended up in prison for your love.
Of course this is a sad and heartbreaking story. For Oscar as well as for his brilliant and loving mother. Reading this you wished you could change some of their history, make it more bearable here and there and help them out.
The book begins with Oscar's parents and I absolutely adored them both. Their minds far beyond their time. His father wrote many books about the Irish culture, trying to preserve the Irish identity, succeeding as well as his writing was a great part of the Celtic Revival. But you wonder how much Sir William Wilde knew his efforts would become appreciated as he got little money for some of his work and worked himself into debts.
Jane Wilde was a remarkable woman much in her own way. She supported the Irish nationalist movement and was a poet under the name Speranza before she got married. After her marriage she kept writing and translating books. She held parties full of interesting people and you just wish you could get an invite to one of her parties too.
After the death of Oscar's father the family stayed tight but they faced debts, alcoholism and public disgrace. Its a long read from there and you just really hope for the better, for Jane's sake most of all. But she never again seems to be as happy as she was before the death of her husband eventhough that wasn't an ideal marriage either.
The writing style of Emer O'Sullivan is beautiful. Though I see some found it too flowery, to me this kept me in the flow of reading when quotes of William, Jane, Willie or Oscar would be used. And we get to read plenty of their writing. What an interesting family! I would want to say many more but you just have to read it I think.
Of course this is a sad and heartbreaking story. For Oscar as well as for his brilliant and loving mother. Reading this you wished you could change some of their history, make it more bearable here and there and help them out.
The book begins with Oscar's parents and I absolutely adored them both. Their minds far beyond their time. His father wrote many books about the Irish culture, trying to preserve the Irish identity, succeeding as well as his writing was a great part of the Celtic Revival. But you wonder how much Sir William Wilde knew his efforts would become appreciated as he got little money for some of his work and worked himself into debts.
Jane Wilde was a remarkable woman much in her own way. She supported the Irish nationalist movement and was a poet under the name Speranza before she got married. After her marriage she kept writing and translating books. She held parties full of interesting people and you just wish you could get an invite to one of her parties too.
After the death of Oscar's father the family stayed tight but they faced debts, alcoholism and public disgrace. Its a long read from there and you just really hope for the better, for Jane's sake most of all. But she never again seems to be as happy as she was before the death of her husband eventhough that wasn't an ideal marriage either.
The writing style of Emer O'Sullivan is beautiful. Though I see some found it too flowery, to me this kept me in the flow of reading when quotes of William, Jane, Willie or Oscar would be used. And we get to read plenty of their writing. What an interesting family! I would want to say many more but you just have to read it I think.
abandoned-books
November 20, 2025I love Oscar Wilde and thought I’d really enjoy learning about his family, but this was just so dense and not my thing. I couldn’t care less about his great great ancestors it turns out. I like my non-fiction to read like fiction and that’s what I was expecting from the summary. That really was not the case here
Read
June 23, 2019Not enough of interest to keep me interested.
September 7, 2016
I perfered the first half of the book. His parents were fascinating. I found myself getting more and more annoyed at Oscar for what he put his family and himself through for a petulant spoilt man child
January 1, 2023
With tear-filled eyes and a heart that ached, I read the last page of this book, and put it down, wishing I'd never picked it up.
I have loved Oscar wilde since I was 10 and read a compilation of his short stories. I've giggled my way through multiple re- reads of the importance of being earnest and a few replays of the Colin firth movie too. I knew his life had been tragic, but reading this book was the end of an era. I don't think I could ever read wilde the same way again.
When you love an author, you make a picture of them in your head. Imagine them a certain way. And the OW I imagined was far, far off from the real one.
- I know he was a genius but that was almost incidental. He was a poser...a proponent of the "fake-it-till-you-make-it" club. The accusations levelled at him by whistler all sound very true.
- the author keeps trying to remind the reader how kind OW was to the boys he was hiring as prostitutes...but the cruelty shown to his wife, his 2 kids, his brother, is mind boggling! The poor, poor woman...Read from her perspective, his life story is a saga of abuse and neglect.
-he comes across as a selfish, self centred, luxury loving narcissist, with no capability for insight, who emotionally and financially all those who loved him...maybe except his mother.
Sigh...not an easy picture to swallow of someone you idealised for a long time.
Even then, its hard to read of his absolute inability to pick himself back up or to wrench himself out of the evil clutches of Lord Douglas.
I have loved Oscar wilde since I was 10 and read a compilation of his short stories. I've giggled my way through multiple re- reads of the importance of being earnest and a few replays of the Colin firth movie too. I knew his life had been tragic, but reading this book was the end of an era. I don't think I could ever read wilde the same way again.
When you love an author, you make a picture of them in your head. Imagine them a certain way. And the OW I imagined was far, far off from the real one.
- I know he was a genius but that was almost incidental. He was a poser...a proponent of the "fake-it-till-you-make-it" club. The accusations levelled at him by whistler all sound very true.
- the author keeps trying to remind the reader how kind OW was to the boys he was hiring as prostitutes...but the cruelty shown to his wife, his 2 kids, his brother, is mind boggling! The poor, poor woman...Read from her perspective, his life story is a saga of abuse and neglect.
-he comes across as a selfish, self centred, luxury loving narcissist, with no capability for insight, who emotionally and financially all those who loved him...maybe except his mother.
Sigh...not an easy picture to swallow of someone you idealised for a long time.
Even then, its hard to read of his absolute inability to pick himself back up or to wrench himself out of the evil clutches of Lord Douglas.
August 8, 2017
For someone who is a scholar of that time period, Irish history or the Wilde family, this book should be a 5+. It is meticulously researched and written in great detail, bringing in contemporary figures and history. But for me, that is the rub.... I wanted to win this book, and was curious about Oscar in particular. However, it was just too much information for me. I recently lost my husband and have spent much of the past few months in pain waiting for surgery. I had a very rough time concentrating to finish this biography. My apologies to the author.
July 25, 2018
Excellent book. First half was about the parents of Oscar who contributed so much to Ireland. William was aural & opthalmic surgeon, archaeologist, historian -- collecting materials to preserve the early history of the Irish people. Jane, his mother, became active in the 1848 rebellion and all her life encouraged authors, artists with her weekly salons. She was a devoted mother to her sons, Willie & Oscar. Book follows the tumultuous career of Oscar, including the notorious trial and imprisonment and the sad decline.
March 19, 2018
Very interesting stories of Oscar Wilde and his parents, brother, wife. His mother was a good writer and had a strong personality. Sadly she had to struggle for money to live a successful life. Her son Willie was no help as an addict and gambler. Oscar, of course, had his faults with extravagant living. Several chapters tell of his trial and imprisonment. This was a family that went from " riches to rags" as O'Sullivan puts it in her epilogue.
September 29, 2021
I read this book to find out more about the life and family of Oscar Wilde. I found the many diversions to the lives of other parties distracting at times. IMHO this book reads like a vast journal review article. That said, it is worth the read if you want a thorough coverage of Oscar, his parents, sibling and wife. I learned a great deal.
December 4, 2025
A comprehensive look at the Wilde family, this was a fascinating book that delves into the life and times of not just Oscar, but also his parents, his brother, their spouses and their descendants. There was a lot to the Wilde family, and their hard unhappy lives that I was unaware of. The narrator was well suited to the book.
July 18, 2019
Sad tale of how the Wilde reputation was felled in one generation by personal choices that were meant to doom the sons of Sir William Wilde and his creative wife, Jane. These sons of Dublin chose to make decisions that were challenging to Victorian England morals and traditions. Sad book to read.
December 12, 2021
I enjoyed this for it's inclusivity of all three main members of the Wilde Family. I came away with a renewed respect for Oscars father and mother in their own individual respects. Must read, should read. I did. My notes....could not stop making them.
November 10, 2018
I enjoyed this book about Oscar Wilde's successful parents and the downfall that began, sort of, with his father's infidelity, and continued to the bottom with Oscar and his brother.
December 30, 2020
Quite good as an alternative to Ellman's work.
March 13, 2017
This book tells the story of Oscar Wilde's family - from his respectable and striving grandparents to his brilliant, bohemian parents, to his brother who had entirely too much to live down, to his sons who were cast on the winds of fate. And, of course, Oscar Wilde, the main event.
March 19, 2017
The Fall of the House of Wilde, by Emer O'Sullivan, focuses primarily on Oscar Wilde, of course, but the story of his life is placed in the context of his parents', his relationship with his brother, and comparisons among the four. This format makes an already-interesting story even more fascinating, and I think more biographies could benefit from broadening the narrative to focus on the subject's immediate family.
***I received this book for free through Goodyear Giveways.***
***I received this book for free through Goodyear Giveways.***
July 8, 2020
My father has a lot of friends in the publishing industry, and sometimes he’ll come back with books that he was given for free. And sometimes, he’ll think that I’d be more interested in those books than he is, so he gives them over to me to read. I have to say that I’m really glad he gave me this particular book, because if it wasn’t for him giving it to me I don’t think I would have picked it up otherwise.
What I loved about this book is that, while its main focus is, indeed, Oscar Wilde, it also delves into Wilde’s parents and who they were in their own right. The author posits the theory that we can’t truly understand the man that Oscar Wilde was without understanding the people who brought him up, because who they were heavily influenced and reflected on who Wilde eventually became.
The book is split into two distinct parts, albeit not really outlined in the book itself – the first half concerns itself with Wilde’s parents, who they were, what their interests were, and the kind of society that they kept in an Ireland that was striving for independence. The second half of the book concerns Wilde himself a lot more directly, although it does also still mention his parents and brother, as well as friends of his that are relevant to the picture that this book is trying to paint. And all in all, what this book is trying to do is something that no other biography on Wilde has done before – it’s trying to give you an image of Wilde in the context of his family.
The book is incredibly well researched and very well written. While it is a biography, and so the writing can be somewhat dry and matter-of-fact at times, it gives a complete overview of Wilde’s life – his relationships (both with family and with other people), his intellect, his education, his travels, his scandals. The book paints a picture of Wilde that I don’t think I’ve considered before. As a literature student, Wilde was always presented to me as an eccentric genius who did one too many things too outspokenly and ended up on the wrong side of the law for it. Wilde, to most of my contemporaries, is remembered as a brilliant writer, but a man who was labelled as a degenerate.
This book completely changed my mind on that. Wilde was a man with so much heart and soul, so much love and patience, and certainly an intellect that far surpassed many people. He loved attention and he knew how to get it, but he was often misguided thanks to his pride. And reading this book helped me discover so many things about him that I wouldn’t have otherwise.
Some of my favourite facts I got from this book are these:
Wilde’s father was involved in a scandal involving a young woman that ended his career as a doctor, that would then be repeated with Oscar himself when his homosexuality came to light;
Wilde’s brother, Willie, had a daughter who moved to Paris and who, apparently, was notoriously homosexual like her uncle;
Wilde had two sons, one of who died in World War Two, and one of who had children who are still alive today;
The man that Wilde ended up losing his career over died not too long ago, and apparently had stated before his death that everything that people said about him was an exaggeration;
The only reason the Oscar Wilde case held any validity in court is because Wilde was notorious for befriending young male prostitutes who then testified against him in court for unruly behaviour.
If you want to learn more about Oscar Wilde in a way that is well researched and very well presenting, I couldn’t recommend this book enough.
What I loved about this book is that, while its main focus is, indeed, Oscar Wilde, it also delves into Wilde’s parents and who they were in their own right. The author posits the theory that we can’t truly understand the man that Oscar Wilde was without understanding the people who brought him up, because who they were heavily influenced and reflected on who Wilde eventually became.
The book is split into two distinct parts, albeit not really outlined in the book itself – the first half concerns itself with Wilde’s parents, who they were, what their interests were, and the kind of society that they kept in an Ireland that was striving for independence. The second half of the book concerns Wilde himself a lot more directly, although it does also still mention his parents and brother, as well as friends of his that are relevant to the picture that this book is trying to paint. And all in all, what this book is trying to do is something that no other biography on Wilde has done before – it’s trying to give you an image of Wilde in the context of his family.
The book is incredibly well researched and very well written. While it is a biography, and so the writing can be somewhat dry and matter-of-fact at times, it gives a complete overview of Wilde’s life – his relationships (both with family and with other people), his intellect, his education, his travels, his scandals. The book paints a picture of Wilde that I don’t think I’ve considered before. As a literature student, Wilde was always presented to me as an eccentric genius who did one too many things too outspokenly and ended up on the wrong side of the law for it. Wilde, to most of my contemporaries, is remembered as a brilliant writer, but a man who was labelled as a degenerate.
This book completely changed my mind on that. Wilde was a man with so much heart and soul, so much love and patience, and certainly an intellect that far surpassed many people. He loved attention and he knew how to get it, but he was often misguided thanks to his pride. And reading this book helped me discover so many things about him that I wouldn’t have otherwise.
Some of my favourite facts I got from this book are these:
Wilde’s father was involved in a scandal involving a young woman that ended his career as a doctor, that would then be repeated with Oscar himself when his homosexuality came to light;
Wilde’s brother, Willie, had a daughter who moved to Paris and who, apparently, was notoriously homosexual like her uncle;
Wilde had two sons, one of who died in World War Two, and one of who had children who are still alive today;
The man that Wilde ended up losing his career over died not too long ago, and apparently had stated before his death that everything that people said about him was an exaggeration;
The only reason the Oscar Wilde case held any validity in court is because Wilde was notorious for befriending young male prostitutes who then testified against him in court for unruly behaviour.
If you want to learn more about Oscar Wilde in a way that is well researched and very well presenting, I couldn’t recommend this book enough.
December 27, 2018
Well! Now I know that Oscar wasn't a one-off. Reading about Lady Jane and Sir William, I feel that I understand much more about what made Oscar "Oscar"... Very, very readable, but well-researched, documented and annotated.
December 12, 2016
Oscar Wilde will always be a figure of fascination for me and this excellent larger look at the Wilde family adds much in understanding his genius and his failings.
November 30, 2017
[inadvertently posted my review for a Conan Doyle biography here whoops]
March 28, 2017
Emer O'Sullivan has written an astounding and well-researched tome on every member of the Wilde family and everyone in their lives. She brings the 1800's to life with detailed information on Irish/English culture, customs and communities. Her in-depth portrait of Jane and William WIlde (Oscar's parents) is truly fascinating. His father was an incredible historian, author, archaeologist, researcher and physician. His contributions to Irish culture, history and public health are proof that he was way ahead of his time. Jane Wilde, constantly portrayed as rebellious and eccentric, was politically astute and quite active. Traits unusual for a woman during the Victorian era. I wish we could go back to the concept of the "salon" like the Wilde's held to talk politics, culture, books and life. O'Sullivan also includes detailed portraits of the luminaries of the day: James Whistler, Jonathan Swift, William Thackery, Alfred Lord Tennyson Oliver Wendell Holmes and so many, many more. She researched their backgrounds and presented a well-rounded account of their lives, thoughts, works and how they interacted and impacted the entire WIlde family. Unfortunately we all know the sorry tale of Oscar Wilde and his stunning fall from grace. But the in-between times of his life and his works are fascinating reading. He was quite a character, to say the least. Wilde was outrageous, vain, pompous and self-assertive. But inside of all of that bluster resided a truly gifted talent. The final three four years of his life were just plain sad. I have tremendous admiration for an author who not only researches the subject so extensively but one who has an outstanding vocabulary. O'Sullivan peppers her book with such interesting words as "carapace" and "incommensurability". No slouch here...This is a fascinating and revealing biography that plums the depths of Oscar Wilde's psychi as well as the lives of everyone in his orbit. An enjoyable read.
Read
September 26, 2018This is a long, complex, challenging read. Once into it, however, it is not a hard book to read and enjoy.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews