This book is truly fascinating, but you really have to want to read it to get through the 600+ pages. I almost gave up a couple of times, before I adjusted to the author’s style and rhythm. He writes upfront that he isn’t creating a traditional biography and indeed, it is not. There is some chronological order, but mainly the narrative wanders forwards and back in time. The author enjoys taking side jaunts into a variety of subjects (e.g., Rex Harrison, Sophia Loren), and sprinkles his own witty observations throughout. The more I got into the book, the more it began to feel as if I were privy to someone leisurely recounting his memories, maybe in front of the fire with a good drink in hand, as one recollection triggers another, often straying from the main topic. (For example, this quote from page 346: “I’ve always thought of Taylor and Burton as a comical couple. Their ridiculous side is what is mostly on display. But as regards the question of fatality — questions of accident and chance — when I think more deeply, as I am doing now, today, they are tragic. In the end, obsessed with desire for each other, for possession, they were left utterly alone. As unapproachable as ghosts, they were unaware of the rest of us — at best, impatient with the rest of us. We — other people, that’s to say — are not to be cared about.”) But this book certainly captures the phenomenon of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, or “Liz and Dick,” as they were known at the time. It’s all there: passion, scandals, excesses, luggage, private jets, jewelry, movies, entourages, yachts, temper tantrums, health crises, addictions, fights, reconciliations! If they flew commercial, they bought all the tickets in first class; if they stayed at a hotel, they rented the entire floor. In the days long before social media, Liz and Dick were constantly splashed across the pages of tabloids and magazine covers, and their exploits were frequently reported on network news programs. My biggest reservation is that I just can’t imagine anyone being interested in this book unless they experienced the 1960’s and 1970’s firsthand, or are true aficionados of that era. But once you get onboard, it’s a freewheeling, interesting, and enjoyable ride.
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- R D TaylorReviewed in the United Kingdom on January 10, 2025
Very entertaining read
