The Red Sheep of the Family

Like the Mann family in Germany, the Mitfords are a household name in Britain –albeit even more notorious.
Now, at long last, German readers can discover the sisters’ story – with particular emphasis on Jessica. Six young English gentlewomen fly their Cotswolds nest and move out into the wider world. The eldest and most sharp-tongued sister became a writer, the second and most down-to-earth never strayed far from her rural roots.
The third and most beautiful married the leader of the English Fascists and went to jail, the fourth and most free-spirited became one of Hitler‘s closest friends and shot herself in the head at the outbreak of war. The sixth and most aristocratic became the Duchess of Devonshire. And the fifth? She broke the mould, married her cousin (one of Churchill’s nephews), then a Jewish lawyer, and later went on to become a fun-loving communist and a chain-smoking American citizen with an upper-class English accent. A civil rights activist, performer, island-owner and bestselling author, Jessica Mitford, the »red sheep« of the Mitford sisters, fled her family and turned her back on their values, yet never quite managed to sever the ties of kinship and upbringing. A fascinating book about family and kindred spirits, friendship and kinship – and a cheerfully resolute struggle for freedom.

A remarkable biography of one of the great, inspiring yet neglected women of the 20th century: Jessica Mitford