Starred Biographies

Happy Monday! Here are three fabulous biographies from Farrar, Straus & Giroux, all with MULTIPLE starred reviews:

MR. & MRS. DISRAELI: A Strange Romance by Daisy Hay
An unusual story of Victorian romance and politics, MR. & MRS. DISRAELI moves beyond the anecdotes to reveal the interior life of one of Britain’s most influential couples: Mary Anne Lewis and British prime minister Benjamin Disraeli.

“Hay’s thoughtful and measured prose, filled with quotations from letters, missives, and love poems, is a page-turner of a historical, political, and feminist romance.
A superlative achievement.” — Booklist, starred review

“Hays’s vivid account offers an empathetic, modern understanding of a passionate, seemingly mismatched couple who inspired each other’s great achievements in the restrained Victorian era-a relationship that remains every bit as absorbing as those in Disraeli’s own romantic novels.”
— Publishers Weekly, starred review

Available February 17

FRANK: A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage by Barney Frank
In his candid and witty political memoir, Barney Frank relates his journey from the outskirts of New York City to Boston’s city hall and the Massachusetts legislature, and then to the U.S. Congress, where he played a vital role in the struggle for personal freedom and economic fairness for more than four decades.

“Much more entertaining than most political memoirs, Frank’s story isn’t just revealing; it may be the most fun you can have reading about the United States Congress.” — Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“This detailed and accessible memoir certainly lives up to its title, as former Massachusetts Congressman Frank offers a warts-and-all portrait of his life in public service.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review

“This is an illuminating look at behind-the-scenes politics and larger societal changes and one man’s struggle with sexual politics and identity.”
— Booklist, starred review

Available March 17

YOUNG ELIOT: From St. Louis to The Waste Land by Robert Crawford
This groundbreaking new biography of one of the twentieth century’s most important poets, T. S. Eliot, has THREE stars!

“The man whose THE BARD dispelled the myths and mists about Robert Burns now publishes the first volume of a biography every bit as magisterial on the most consequential anglophone poet of the twentieth century… It’s hard to imagine a literary biography of greater merit being published this year.”
— Booklist, starred review

“Drawing on sources not available to previous biographers, the author fashions an authoritative, nuanced portrait… Although Crawford modestly claims that his biography is neither ‘official’ nor definitive, it is unlikely to be surpassed.”
— Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Crawford’s masterly biography, with its great depth, attention to detail, and close reading of the youthful Eliot’s writings, is likely to become the definitive account of the great poet’s early years.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review

Available March 31