In this memoir, author organizes his memories around different subjects with titles like My Father, My Mother, My Blonds, My Master. Each is a closed subject, a story in itself, even those about his parents, since they were separated. They are all well written, and interesting to read. Some of them overlap with his other book, The Boy's Own Story, where he described his adolescence.The most brilliant part is the chapter My Master where author describes his masochistic relationship with a young master. At that time, author is 64, an established writer and lecturer, and the master is an actor with age close to 30. The relationship evolves and eventually breaks up. Author is devastated. What surprised me here, was not just the honesty with which author describes his experience, but how such a relationship can have real emotional meaning and impact. It is really a window to another world.
In this autobiographical account, the author is remarkably honest, not hiding uncomfortable facts, impulses, or situations where he acted in a way that would be judged as morally unacceptable. On the other hand, the author grew up after the end of World War II, so if he followed the norms of the day, he would never live fully.
The author's website can be found here, and the book can be ordered on Amazon.
The descriptions found in this autobiography by Edmund White seemed lifeless and boring to me. The tale of his life came across as a journalistic and emotionless report. His cold and distant observation of his own life made me lose interest, feeling no attachment to the protagonist nor to those around him. I read it and found that I couldn't care less about what was going on. A shame, because the subjects are, in themselves, very interesting . I confess that weary, I put the book down in apathy, not bothering to finish it.
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