MixedLos Angeles Review of BooksOne of the dangers of a comprehensive biography is that the sheer volume of information can make for a slow, sometimes dull read. This book might have been twice as good if it were half as long ... While Bucknell clearly situates herself in relation to England and the United States, she seems unaware of how her identity as a straight woman might affect her telling of Isherwood’s life ... Despite her goal of comprehensiveness, there are two unfortunate aspects of Isherwood’s personality that Bucknell ignores: his misogyny and his antisemitism ... She might have written a fine critical biography. Instead, other than a cryptic statement in the prologue, Bucknell gives no accounting of Isherwood’s enduring popularity or importance ... I can’t find a fact, memory, or opinion advanced by Bachardy that she does not accept fully and uncritically. He is an important source, certainly, but is he as reliable as Bucknell has taken him (or needs him) to be?
