From my backlist: To the One I Love Best by Bemelmans

#TotheOneILovetheBest #NetGalley

Like many, I think that I know Bemelmans best for the stories involving “Two Little Girls in Two Straight Lines…” So, it was fun to explore another dimension of the author.

Here he tells the story of his friendship with the famous interior designer Elsie de Wolfe. At the time, De Wolfe was elderly while Bemelmans was not. Still, their worlds crossed through Hollywood.

For some 1950s nostalgia and glamour in sections titled Elsie at Home and Elsie Abroad, pick this one up. I think that it will make you smile.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Pushkin Press for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 07 May 2023

223 pages

Biography/Memoir

Editorial Reviews

Review

“This book is a must.” 
— The New York Times

“An extravaganza in Bemelmans’ inimitable vein.”
–Kirkus Reviews

“Delightful… It was Bemelmans’ privilege to have known [Lady Mendl] and it’s ours to have his gorgeous recollections.”
–Sunday Times

“A beautiful, fun and emotion-filled piece of social history.”
–Irish Independent

“The charm of To the One I Love the Best lies in the peerless combination of author and subject.”
–Paris Review

“About a third of the way through the book I decided that Lady Mendl, was one of the great comic creations in the history of literature . . . as airy as a soufflé, full of the sun and smells of California . . . Madeline for grown ups.”
–The Spectator 

“Reissued treasure.”
–The Gloss