What makes these moments almost heartbreaking is how obviously highly cherished they are, like small personal mementos of someone long dead that are rarely handled because losing them would be so terrible. Her love for her mother -- who was, clearly, a terrible mother, absolutely no good at it, and who equally clearly loved her children and was a good if wildly unpredictable friend after they grew up -- is also clear, and surprisingly warm and affectionate. The chilly disapproving biography by Nancy Schoenberger, which stuck Blackwood on a pin and stared at her with beady eyes, isn't supplanted but illuminated by Lowell's memories of her mother's quips and catchphrases "Too bad, even for us!
Lowell also developed love for her rather terrible grandmother, and it's oddly poignant to see her trying to connect to the background Caroline so determinedly cut and ran from. I also liked her emphasis on Blackwood's writing: that no matter how many the men, how wild the nights, how plentiful the bottles, her mother would determinedly sit herself down, focus on the page, and write. That said, this book is probably most rewarding to someone already interested in Blackwood, Robert Lowell, or both, but if you are, there are a lot of little hidden gems.
If not, it might be as off-putting as a remarkable number of GoodReaders seem to think it is. View all 10 comments. Dec 20, Bill Kupersmith rated it really liked it Shelves: nonfiction. Ivana Lowell is the daughter of Lady Caroline Blackwood, a member of the Northern Irish aristocracy who was the third wife of the American poet Robert Lowell, as well as being a spectacularly messy alcoholic and a very talented writer herself and an amusing friend. I read this book whilst recovering from fairly major surgery.
Ivana Lowell is herself excellent company and this is just the sort of gossipy but intelligently written distraction you need when you are dealing with a lot of pain. It wi Ivana Lowell is the daughter of Lady Caroline Blackwood, a member of the Northern Irish aristocracy who was the third wife of the American poet Robert Lowell, as well as being a spectacularly messy alcoholic and a very talented writer herself and an amusing friend.
It will also cure any traces of class envy you may be tempted to. Aristocrats seem to be especially bad at parenting. It was also fascinating to read the author's account of her encounters with the Weinstein brothers. The MeToo revelations would have been very old news to Ivana. Jan 16, Wendy rated it really liked it Shelves: non-fiction , memoir , anglophilia , Ivana Lowell tells the story of her rather lonely and chaotic childhood.
She lived in a succession of different houses, spent time in England, Ireland, Boston and New York growing up with the only constant being her rather troubled and alcoholic mother who, in spite of her shortcomings, was a fairly devoted and loving mother. You can't help but feel for what a lonely and sad childhood she experienced, and it's not overly surprising that she herself struggles with alcoholism as an adult.
She is quite frank and honest about her experiences and her narrative made for a very engaging reading experience.
It didn't take me any time at all to finish this book, and I could hardly put it down once I started it. View all 6 comments. I rank them right below textbooks and right above instructions manuals written in China. Celebrity tell-alls are always filled with tales of woe and cocaine, and pretty light on the actual names. Naming names is the most exciting part of a celebrity memoir, right? Ivana Lowell's memoir names names and doesn't pull any punches, and it's actually really well written.
It still has the abuse and the addiction, the inside of her head feel, the crummy first person at an AA confessional they all have to have that, don't they?
But there was something tongue in cheek about the whole book, a bit of bite, wanting us to notice the juxtaposition of extreme wealth and privilege and parties with the Queen Mother with crazy hideously funny life behind the glam. So she's rich - poor little rich girl stories are everywhere; there's obviously an interest and market for them, as they come out in droves every year.
At least Ivana Lowell's is well written. The Queen Mother's nickname among her aristo cronies was "Cake? Don't be put off by those who are bitching about the poor little rich girl who doesn't recognize the value of her millions or her connections. There are far too many celebrity memoirs being written today, but this is one that is remarkably compelling and quite unflinching in its honesty. Ivana Lowell, despite every advantage, is impoverished in every way that counts and has had to face real tragedy, and a gene pool that although wealthy Guinness Breweries is also afflicted with alcohol, suicid Don't be put off by those who are bitching about the poor little rich girl who doesn't recognize the value of her millions or her connections.
Ivana Lowell, despite every advantage, is impoverished in every way that counts and has had to face real tragedy, and a gene pool that although wealthy Guinness Breweries is also afflicted with alcohol, suicide, abuse and secrets. At the heart of this story is Ivana's conflicted relationship with her possibly amoral, drunken and intelligent mother, the writer Caroline Blackwood. While the writing could have been tighter and more linear, this first book is a page turner for sure.
View 2 comments. Aug 29, Diann Blakely added it. What happened is Crazy Families and their legacy. In fact, if mostly shielded from the What happened is Crazy Families and their legacy. In fact, if mostly shielded from the worst of his biologically-induced depredations, Ms. Lowell to her material.
The Anglo-Irish heir to the Guinness fortune, alcoholic, and none-too-stable herself, Blackwood was gifted with a dark sense of humor and a highly distinctive prose style that remains, unfortunately, mostly out of print.
Perhaps the publication of this enthralling memoir will change that. Dec 28, Lisa rated it it was amazing Shelves: memoir , favorites. That's right, I'm giving this one the big 5 stars. Read it and weep, haters. I can't imagine her having held anything back. It must be all here pubic hair transplant, drunken disgraces, dating second cousins, etc.
The subject was definately interesting. Her mother was nothing less than fascinating, AND, I found Iavana to be a pretty good writer to boot there is a That's right, I'm giving this one the big 5 stars.
Her mother was nothing less than fascinating, AND, I found Iavana to be a pretty good writer to boot there is a strong writer's gene there, no denying that. So there it is. I love hearing women tell their own stories. I guess it can be said that Ivana was born into "privledge", but trust me, you would never, ever want to trade circumstances. A lot of unfortunate and deep unhappiness.
I found Ivana's voice to be very honest and likable. Well done, Ivana. Thanks for your story. Jan 29, Danielle McClellan rated it liked it. What a mess! And yet, impossible to put down! The most addictive kind of junk food read--I gobbled it up, but had a distinctly queasy feeling afterwards.
The book is filled with surprising gossip Why the Queen Mother was called "Cake" by her friends , literary hijinks the author's stepfather was Robert Lowell , and some great anecdotes sprinkled amongst the visits to rehab and tales of increasingly impossible men.
Ivana Lowell may be the quintessential poor little rich girl and she really did What a mess! Ivana Lowell may be the quintessential poor little rich girl and she really did have a hell of a life , but she tells a damn good story and knows how to poison her arrows with just enough of that satisfying sting. Aug 09, Deborah Beatriz Blum rated it it was amazing. Very honest and raw. I found it very interesting.
Lowell writes about someone who was a friend of my parents - Ivan Moffat - who she later discovers was her biological father. Her descriptions of him really capture the man I knew as a child. Nov 19, Featherbooks rated it it was ok Shelves: biography. Sturm und drang, childhood neglect, alcoholism among the wealthy, titled British upper classes and much name-dropping. You're welcome. Jan 11, Kavanand Reading for Two rated it liked it.
Ivana Lowell's memoir of her life as a member of the famed Guinness clan has some fascinating moments. Her mother was novelist and muse to many Caroline Blackwood, and her stepfather and the main father figure in her life was poet Robert Lowell.
This didn't exactly make for a stable childhood; Blackwood was an alcoholic and Lowell was bipolar. Ivana's maternal grandmother, Maureen Guinness, is both fascinating and rather repugnant. She was an aristocrat, but her sense of humor was rather low-b Ivana Lowell's memoir of her life as a member of the famed Guinness clan has some fascinating moments. She was an aristocrat, but her sense of humor was rather low-brow she apparently enjoyed fart jokes and torturing her dinner guests by pretending to be her own maid.
And in the tradition of grandmothers everywhere, she would say really awful things. For example, when she learns that the man Ivana believed was her biological father may not be after all, Maureen is delighted because this means that Ivana isn't half Jewish and thus has a better chance of landing a husband.
Ivana shares her mother's problem with alcohol, and much of the book discusses her struggles with it. Her stories of rehab are funny, but also a bit terrifying. I enjoyed this memoir, but it felt like it needed some editing. There were a few things that didn't make sense in terms of time her age at various events seemed to vary a bit , and parts of it felt disjointed.
However, it was still an entertaining fast read. Feb 25, Cynthia Rennolds rated it it was amazing. I loved this book. Dysfunction at its best. Truly interesting characters trying to find their way in the world.
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Only after her mother died of cancer in did she discover that Caroline had led two other men to believe that Ivana was their daughter: Robert Silvers, one of the founders of the New York Review of Books , and Ivan Moffat, the Hollywood screenwriter. Granny, who died in , was gleeful. A non-Jewish granddaughter would have a far better chance of getting married.
Ivana was despondent. She preferred Silvers. Lowell takes the reader through a chaotic childhood and then on into an even trickier adulthood she is now Among other piteous humiliations, when a boyfriend is alarmed by the effect her burn scars have had on her body, she agrees to undergo a pubic hair transplant.
It fails save for "a few lonely sprouts". Later, when she is dating Bob Weinstein, the Miramax movie mogul charmingly asks a hotel employee to set about Ivana's new Galliano gown, which he dislikes, with a pair of scissors.
She ends up attending the Oscars in what looks like a "shapeless black pillowcase". When she eventually marries, she chooses — what else?
She and Moffat try to forge a relationship, but she can't help herself: she is mean to him. By the time remorse sets in, however, it is too late: Moffat has had a stroke, and is on his deathbed.
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