#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * UPDATED TEXT WITH RESULTS OF THE CLARK ESTATE SETTLEMENT * NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Janet Maslin; The New York Times * Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader's Circle for author chats and more. * When Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bill Dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale; unoccupied for nearly sixty years; he stumbled through a surprising portal into American history. Empty Mansions is a rich mystery of wealth and loss; connecting the Gilded Age opulence of the nineteenth century with a twenty-first-century battle over a $300 million inheritance. At its heart is a reclusive heiress named Huguette Clark; a woman so secretive that; at the time of her death at age 104; no new photograph of her had been seen in decades. Though she owned palatial homes in California; New York; and Connecticut; why had she lived for twenty years in a simple hospital room; despite being in excellent health? Why were her valuables being sold off? Was she in control of her fortune; or controlled by those managing her money? Dedman has collaborated with Huguette Clark's cousin; Paul Clark Newell; Jr.; one of the few relatives to have frequent conversations with her. Dedman and Newell tell a fairy tale in reverse: the bright; talented daughter; born into a family of extreme wealth and privilege; who secrets herself away from the outside world. Huguette was the daughter of self-made copper industrialist W. A. Clark; nearly as rich as Rockefeller in his day; a controversial senator; railroad builder; and founder of Las Vegas. She grew up in the largest house in New York City; a remarkable dwelling with 121 rooms for a family of four. She owned paintings by Degas and Renoir; a world-renowned Stradivarius violin; a vast collection of antique dolls. But wanting more than treasures; she devoted her wealth to buying gifts for friends and strangers alike; to quietly pursuing her own work as an artist; and to guarding the privacy she valued above all else. The Clark family story spans nearly all of American history in three generations; from a log cabin in Pennsylvania to mining camps in the Montana gold rush; from backdoor politics in Washington to a distress call from an elegant Fifth Avenue apartment. The same Huguette who was touched by the terror attacks of 9/11 held a ticket nine decades earlier for a first-class stateroom on the second voyage of the Titanic. Empty Mansions reveals a complex portrait of the mysterious Huguette and her intimate circle. We meet her extravagant father; her publicity-shy mother; her star-crossed sister; her French boyfriend; her nurse who received more than $30 million in gifts; and the relatives fighting to inherit Huguette's copper fortune. Richly illustrated with more than seventy photographs; Empty Mansions is an enthralling story of an eccentric of the highest order; a last jewel of the Gilded Age who lived life on her own terms.Praise for Empty Mansions "An amazing story of profligate wealth . . . an outsized tale of rags-to-riches prosperity."--The New York Times "An evocative and rollicking read; part social history; part hothouse mystery; part grand guignol."--The Daily Beast "Fascinating . . . [a] haunting true-life tale."--People "One of those incredible stories that you didn't even know existed. It filled a void."--Jon Stewart; The Daily Show "Thrilling . . . deliciously scandalous."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
#13323 in Books Ingramcontent 2016-08-23 2016-08-23Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 7.99 x .73 x 5.18l; .81 #File Name: 0345408160352 pagesMy Life on the Road
Review
224 of 236 people found the following review helpful. Lovely journey with a vanguard of modern feminismBy QuickbeamI taught women's studies for years so I am very familiar with Steinem's work and life. Even so; this book surprised me with its warmth and insight. It is not a biography but more of a road journal. It is not crafted by chronology but by memory and thought stream. I found it very engaging and moving. The opening dedication was heart rending for those of us who lived in those years.Steinem is the half generation between me and my mother. In the late 60's as my mother was ironing we were watching TV. The women's movement was considered radical fringe; even to my mother's peers who had built planes and careers during WWII only to be sent home afterwards. My mother watched Steinem on TV and said "she is so brave". I asked why and she said "she is so beautiful she could have had an easy life. She has chosen a hard road. It will make your life better". The absurd in the 1960s is now law of the land. It is with that in mind I read this book and appreciated the context of her travels and impact.This is a fast conversation of a book; not a polemic. I loved it and I hope it finds a wide audience.4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. should be shorterBy kid spiderI appreciate Gloria Steinem;s dedication in promoting women's issues.. However; the meetings; "talking circles"; encounters just get tedious after a while. I was fine for the first 2/3 of the book. Sorry; I didn't love it.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Brilliant; thought-provokingBy RCBrilliant; thought-provoking; inspiring. Steinem shares stories and history that's been twisted or erased for centuries by white male patriarchy. She shows another way through her own journey and the hundreds of stories she's collected along the way from her decades of writing; campaigning; and organizing across the country with women and men from all backgrounds. Required reading for everyone.If nothing else; this book will enlighten you to the fact that our great American democracy and constitution were influenced and preceded by that of the Iroquois Confederacy; the oldest continuous democracy in history. Ben Franklin was a fan. Try doing a Google search for 'iroquois confederacy ben franklin.'
