Maud: The Diaries of Maud Berkeley

by Flora Fraser

1985, 192 pages loaded with photos and info. 9 1/2 By 10 3/4" Her wonderful rich descriptions of life during the Victorian era in this diary are supported by superb and often highly amusing sketches. Maud had an acute eye for detail and her illustrations and text give the reader a great understanding of how life must have been for a young middle class woman living on the Isle of Wight in the 1880's and 90's. Her boundless enthusiasm in a very jolly hockey sticks sort of way is very refreshing and totally unselfish.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Victorian, Classics, British Literature, Memoir

192 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 1985

About the author

Flora Fraser Soros (born 30 October 1958) is an English writer of historical biographies.

She is the daughter of historian and historical biographer Lady Antonia Fraser and the late Sir Hugh Fraser, a British Conservative politician. Her stepfather was the playwright Harold Pinter, the 2005 Nobel Laureate in Literature, her mother's second husband until his death in 2008. Her maternal grandparents were the late Elizabeth Longford, also an eminent biographer, and the late Lord Longford, a well-known politician, social reformer, and author.

She was named after Scottish Jacobite Flora MacDonald. Using her maiden name Flora Fraser, she has written biographies of Emma Hamilton, Caroline of Brunswick, the daughters of George III, and Pauline Bonaparte.

Reviews

[Sylvester (Taking a break in 2023) · Rating 5 out of 5]

So unusual. I loved how the little day to day notes and drawings brought Maud and her circle to life. Hilarious, in some ways. She and her buddies seemed to have nothing important to do but fool around, play tennis, walk along the promenade, act in theatricals, and sew, sew, sew. I was astonished at how much the women - even the wealthier ones, who could afford to have other people do for them - sewed clothing, curtains, items of decor, costumes for theatricals, gifts, you name it. Maud is constantly looking for ways to pass the time - and makes some pretty funny remarks. I couldn't help but feel her marriage was helped a great deal by he fact that her widower groom had 3 daughters not many years younger than her - so she had an instant group of friends - which seems to be what she cared most about.

She has talent as an artist, too. Her drawings are charming. I'm surprised this book isn't more well-known, it certainly deserves more attention.

[Louise Culmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maud Berkeley's delightful diaries were written from the late 1880s to early 1900s, first on the isle of wight and then, after her marriage, mainly in London. There are many amusing incidents in the course of the diaries, but what makes them really outstanding are the lively and beautiful sketches which accompany the text. Maud lived at home with her elderly parents before her marriage, but she enjoyed a lively social life with her group of friends, and there are many pictures of her and her friends walking, sailing, picnicking, playing tennis, making music, participating in amateur theatricals etc, not to mention some more dramatic incidents like rescuing a gentleman friend who has fallen through the ice while skating. A fascinating glimpse into a different world.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up on the recommendation of BookTube's Kate Howe's a couple of years ago as part of a Victober TBR. I was particularly interested in reading more about the Victorian era from a nonfiction perspective.

Maud Berkeley's diary is a slice of life about her own experiences. There was nothing revelatory about the diary. It focused solely on the day to day trivialities that concerned Maud, who was a sheltered spinster, spending much of her time chaperoned by trusted family members and trusted family friends for the first half of the book. Nevertheless, Maud was granted freedom which allowed her and her group of friends the latitude to get into hijinks at times. There were occasional glimpses into the political goings on with the outside world but the diary largely focused on noticings and occupations of a single turned newlywed and new step parent.

One pet peeve I had was that I often didn't see how the illustrations and captions aligned with the text. However, both the sketches and watercolors were great. I personally felt like there wasn't a whole lot of substance to the diaries. It was basically a who's who of life in a small town. If you like reading diaries and enjoy illustrations, this book might be for you.

[Darryl Friesen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Utterly delightful, such a unique document of everyday life that has been made available to us 21st-century readers! Maud’s diary entries are so interesting, witty, wide-ranging, and perceptive. Her drawings and paintings are frequently amusing, and some are downright hysterical! The subjects are so fascinating—because they’re so representative of “the every day” and not at all the studied or formal subjects you’d see in portraits or paintings of the day. They range from anything like going for walks in dauntingly blustery winds to fighting off rogue moths to dealing with naughty adopted pets to collecting blackberries in thorny shrubs to playing guitars and banjos. Wonderful, wonderful stuff!! Maud was an extraordinary woman in so many ways!!

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful. Makes me wish I could draw and/or paint. The diary entries are somewhat pedestrian, but the drawings that accompany them are charming.

[Mela]

I loved the pictures. Some of her memories were charming, others hilarious, others were fascinating glimpses into the life of a Victorian woman. Maud Berkeley had a wit, without a doubt.

But, it was too 'diary-ish' to me, just short entires. They were informative, I knew what happened, etc., but there was not enough flow to enjoy reading much for a long time.

Perhaps, I will be going back to it in the future. This time I got to February 1889.

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A treasure of a book filled with drawings and side notes. Engrossing.

[Sula · Rating 3 out of 5]

The good: the diary gives life to the late Victorian era and contradicts the stereotype of the prim and proper Victorian. Maud larks about and has fun and ddoesnt just sitting around sewing and drinking tea all day. It is nice to see her watercolour illustrations develop in skill as the diary progresses.

The not-so-good: although it does give a peak into life was actually like for a Victorian woman and parts are definitely interesting, it is not the most interesting read. Of course, it is a diary for personal use, and while a jotted-down short paragraph on something that happened with so-and-so might be interesting and useful to Maud, it isn't that interesting to another reader who has no knowledge of them. And that's okay! It's not written with publication in mind, so it is not meant to be, but its just not so interesting to read.

Also not-so-good: at times it felt like things didn't add up somewhere. There were images that didn't appear to match the (selected?) diary entries, and some more description would have been nice. It was also puzzling as sometimes the handwritten text under the image differed slightly from the printed diary entry. I also felt the format was somewhat awkward.

In summary, I would only recommend if you were particularly interest in the social history of the Victorian era, and everyday life then, and possibly more so as a research resource, although her illustrations do enliven this and give potential for something beyond this should your interests be in that direction.

[Jeslyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

In just the 10+ years represented in this book, times changed greatly for Maud Tomlinson Berkeley. I enjoyed reading what she considered worth including - so often the silliness and hijinks of normal life, and I love that she used an illustration format so heavily. The comic sketches are terrific, and I love that she wasn't completely housebound as the only young person at home with aged parents, but had a lot of lively fun with friends. Though these are excerpts, the shift to married life and later parenthood is almost palpable in the pages, and her reasoning behind ending her journal is touching, and tinged with her humor - "I am now going to turn my attention to compiling an album for each one [child]. Devoting all my time at present to teaching Dorothy to read. Perhaps one day she, too, will write her diary. As yet, she has difficulty in spelling the simplest of words." Her daughter was not yet four years old at this point, haha...

[Louise Culmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maud Berkeley lived in Sandown on the Isle of Wight with her elderly parents in the late 19th century. She had a busy social life, and her diary is full of accounts of walking, playing tennis, sailing, dancing,making music, skating,amateur theatricals etc with her friends. There are domestic mishaps, and there are occasionally more dramatic episodes, like rescuing a skater who has fallen through the ice, or encountering a shark while out canoeing. Sometimes the entries make you realise how times have changed, for instance the characters walk far more than the average modern person does (a 13 mile walk is a mere stroll). What makes the book outstanding though are the many delightful sketches that accompany the text, and which portray the events described with skill and wit. A fascinating look at a vanished world.

[Dawn T · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of those found in a used book store (in Montreal, Canada no less), probably no longer published anywhere, and just loved treasures. Currently checking out my personal bookshelves to see some of the many I’ve never marked here.

[Sobriquet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't recommend this enough- the illustrations are an added loveliness.

[Dora Witherell vandenberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Start out boring as time goes by it picks up. As most diary and journal can get wider look into our past.