by Amanda Foreman
Book of the week
The daughter of the first Earl Spencer, Georgiana lived in England from 1757 to 1806 and, yes, she was Princess Diana's great-great-great-great-aunt. While Foreman (daughter of High Noon screenwriter Carl) claims not to have pointed up parallels in the two lives, readers will be hard put to miss them. At age 17, Georgiana wed the wealthy Duke of Devonshire, but the marriage was a crowded one: For 20 years her best friend was also her husband's mistress. Unloved and ignored by the duke, she turned to politics and fashion and became the most celebrated noblewoman of her day. But, alas, Georgiana had a self-destructive streak. She had bouts of bulimia, occasionally took laudanum (opium) and was a compulsive gambler who amassed astronomical debts. This meticulously researched biography reads like a racy historical novel, providing a unique look at a fascinating woman. (Random House, $29.95)
Bottom Line: Riveting tale of a troubled royal
by John Grisham
Grisham's 11th novel in as many years features the popular author's favorite narrative scenario—a smalltime lawyer gets trapped in a sinister conspiracy that spins far beyond his control. What's missing in this dud of a thriller are Grisham's other trademarks: flawed but likable heroes, plot twists grounded firmly in the law and, most important, intelligent writing.
The story centers on a trio of felonious former judges—nicknamed the Brethren—running a profitable mail sting from inside a federal prison. At the same time, the CIA is planning to rig a presidential election to make sure their pro-defense candidate gets to the White House. Things take a wildly implausible turn when the two scams converge, leading to some pointless intrigue and a strangely dull ending that fails to deliver any emotional payoff. What's more, you'll need a subpoena to find a single sympathetic character, or even a well-drawn one. Grisham showed signs of stretching as a writer in his last thriller, The Testament, but here he takes a big step backward. This court rules against the disappointing Brethren and appeals to Grisham to take more time with the next one. (Doubleday, $27.95)
Bottom Line: Bears little family resemblance to Grisham's finest
The Life of Harry James
by Peter J. Levinson
Long before there was sex, drugs and rock and roll, there was sex, alcohol and big-band swing. And as this surprisingly absorbing biography suggests, trumpet player Harry James could have been the role model for Mick Jagger. The southern-born James was a splendid, wonderfully energetic musician with a big, brassy tone and a romantic, if-florid, touch with a ballad. From 1941 to 1953 the James band sent 70 records to the Billboard charts, including hits with Frank Sinatra and Dick Haymes. Personally, James, who died in 1983 at 67, was less of an all-star. He was an alcoholic, a chronic philanderer (even during his 22-year marriage to actress Betty Grable) and, at best, an indifferent father (two of his sons ended up suing him for nonsupport in 1964). Levinson, an agent and publicist who knew James for 24 years, treats him evenhandedly, enhancing his reputation as a musician but making no attempt to whitewash his less-than-engaging persona. (Oxford, $30)
Bottom Line: Model celebrity biography
by Jeffrey Toobin
It seems unlikely that any writer could make the Clinton-Lewinsky sex scandal fresh and entertaining, but that's just what Toobin has accomplished. An ABC News legal analyst and staff writer at The New Yorker who similarly deconstructed the O.J. Simpson saga in 1996's The Run of His Life, Toobin zeroes in on the suspect motives of the President's tormentors, creating a story as taut and surprising as any legal thriller.
Nor does Toobin spare Bill Clinton, whose "abject self-pity" and "sustained dishonesty," he says, ensured that the scandal would rage on. But the real story here is how Clinton's many adversaries—lawyers, reporters and bureaucrats driven largely by petty grudges and greed, as well as ideology—converged inexorably into a "vast conspiracy," if not precisely the one alluded to by Hillary Clinton. The intimate conniving of Linda Tripp, for instance, revived Kenneth Starr's moribund inquisition. By the time Paula Jones is made to sketch the President's penis during a deposition, Toobin's nifty tale reads like the ultimate political satire. (Random House, $25.95)
Bottom Line: Unimpeachable page-turner
- Contributors:
- Jean Reynolds,
- Alex Tresniowski,
- Ralph Novak.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
