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Betjeman: A Life
by
A.N. Wilson
John Betjeman was by far the most popular poet of the twentieth century; his collected poems sold more than two million copies. As poet laureate of England, he became a national icon, but behind the public man were doubts and demons. The poet best known for writing hymns of praise to athletic middle-class girls on the tennis courts led a tempestuous emotional life. For muc...more
Hardcover, 375 pages
Published
November 28th 2006
by Farrar Straus Giroux
(first published 2006)
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I have had this for a too long a period in my "reading" category which is not technically correct, so i am trying to rectify that now. When I read a biography (or autobiography) of a writer (Proust, Joyce etc) or poet (Emily Dickinson, Ted Hughes, John Clare etc) I am inclined to attempt to concurrently read some of the work refereed to therein and invariably become side-tracked in the minutia of his or her life. OK that being said I can adequately comment now on this book. A.N. Wilson...more
A few reasons I wanted to read this book, and why I enjoyed it:
The England that Betjeman tried to preserve (architecture, Anglo-Catholicism, etc) is the England that I fell in love with as a kid (through reading and listening to things like Vaughan Williams' "Oxford Elegy") and which as I grew up I realized doesn't exist any more, much to my sadness. So I sensed a kindred spirit in Betjeman.
As a huge Waugh fan, I was excited to read about the inspiration for th...more
The England that Betjeman tried to preserve (architecture, Anglo-Catholicism, etc) is the England that I fell in love with as a kid (through reading and listening to things like Vaughan Williams' "Oxford Elegy") and which as I grew up I realized doesn't exist any more, much to my sadness. So I sensed a kindred spirit in Betjeman.
As a huge Waugh fan, I was excited to read about the inspiration for th...more
I like the writings of A.N. Wilson and this biography is no exception. Betjeman was a popular English poet of the 20th century and became widely beloved because of his easily grasped poems. He was a polymath and became well-known as a presenter on early BBC-TV on such subjects as churches, architectural preservation especially of Victorian era buildings, and the English country-side. A devout Anglican and a married man, he nevertheless lived most of his adult years with his mistress, a lady-i...more
A fine life of poet and lover of architecture John Betjeman. Just the right length. Wilson appreciates Betjeman the way I do, which inclines me to like the book. He wrote a little over 200 poems, around 30 of which were very good. This is better than 99.9 percent of all other poets. What has always struck me about Betjeman is his love for the people and the land and the buildings that are his subjects. This love is direct and artless and unaffected. Irony and obscurity are not Betjeman's ...more
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Andrew Norman Wilson is an English writer known for his critical biographies, novels and works of popular and cultural history. He is also a columnist for the London Evening Standard and was an occasional contributor to the Daily Mail,Times Literary Supplement, New Statesman, The Spectator and The Observer.
A. N. Wilson was educated at Rugby School and New College, Oxford. Destined or...more
More about A.N. Wilson...
A. N. Wilson was educated at Rugby School and New College, Oxford. Destined or...more
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