Lantern Slides: The Diaries and Letters of Violet Bonham Carter 1904-1914

The Diaries and Letters of Violet Bonham Carter #1

by Violet Bonham Carter, Mark Bonham Carter (editor), Mark Pottle (editor)

Through Violent Bonham Carter's remarkable diaries and letters, published here for the first time, the decade before the first world war is seen from a unique ringside seat, social as well as political. As eldest daughter of H.H Asquith, liberal leader and prime Minister, and step-daughter of the inimitable Margot Asquith, Violet Bonham Carter was in a privileged position.

Genres: Biography

496 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1996

About the author

Helen Violet Bonham Carter, Baroness Asquith of Yarnbury, DBE, known until her marriage as Violet Asquith, was a British politician and diarist. She was the daughter of H. H. Asquith, Prime Minister from 1908–1916, and later became active in Liberal politics herself, being a leading opponent of appeasement, standing for Parliament and being made a life peer. She was also involved in arts and literature.

Reviews

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Violet Bonham Carter, the only daughter of H.H. Asquith, kept a diary from the age of 18. She moved in privileged circles with the great figures of the day and wrote revealingly about what she saw. This book contains a selection of her diaries and letters, covering the years 1914-1945.

[Nicola Pierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am blown away by Bonham Carter's intelligence and fearlessness. She was a wonderful writer and dutifully recorded every nuance of her surroundings, whether it be a dinner at Roosevelt's Whitehouse or a weekend away with the likes of Winston and Clemmie Churchill. My one big stumbling block was trying to understand the politics - there was a lot of politics! - which she absorbed with ease. She had a marvellous relationship with her father which was a standout for me. This is a big book but I thoroughly enjoyed it as an insight to a life of wealth and servants and excelling socially in every way.