A Life of Contrasts is an international bestseller by Diana Mitford

Diana Mitford

Diana Mitford, Lady Mosley , was one of Britain's noted Mitford sisters. She was married first to Bryan Walter Guinness, heir to the barony of Moyne, and secondly to Sir Oswald Mosley, 6th Baronet, of Ancoats, leader of the British Union of Fascists; her second marriage, in 1936, took place at the...

 that was first published by Hamish Hamilton

Hamish Hamilton

Hamish Hamilton Limited was a British book publishing house, founded in 1931 eponymously by the half-Scot half-American Jamie Hamilton . Confusingly, Jamie Hamilton was often referred to as Hamish Hamilton...

 in 1977. She later released a revised edition of the book that was published in 2002 by Gibson Square.

Synopsis

In the autobiography, the British aristocrat recounts her colourful past. Such as her marriage to Sir Oswald Mosley, founder of the British Union of Fascists

British Union of Fascists

The British Union was a political party in the United Kingdom formed in 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley as the British Union of Fascists, in 1936 it changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists and then in 1937 to simply the British Union...

, her association with Nazi figures and her subsequent three year internment

Internment

Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...

 under Defence Regulation 18B

Defence Regulation 18B

Defence Regulation 18B, often referred to as simply 18B, was the most famous of the Defence Regulations used by the British Government during World War II. The complete technical reference name for this rule was: Regulation 18B of the Defence Regulations 1939. It allowed for the internment of...

. She also recounts her frienships with leading literary figures sich as Evelyn Waugh

Evelyn Waugh

Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh , known as Evelyn Waugh, was an English writer of novels, travel books and biographies. He was also a prolific journalist and reviewer...

, Harold Acton

Harold Acton

Sir Harold Mario Mitchell Acton CBE was a British writer, scholar and dilettante perhaps most famous for being wrongly believed to have inspired the character of "Anthony Blanche" in Evelyn Waugh's novel Brideshead Revisited...

, John Betjeman

John Betjeman

Sir John Betjeman, CBE was an English poet, writer and broadcaster who described himself in Who's Who as a "poet and hack".He was a founding member of the Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture...

 and Lytton Strachey

Lytton Strachey

Giles Lytton Strachey was a British writer and critic. He is best known for establishing a new form of biography in which psychological insight and sympathy are combined with irreverence and wit...

.

2002 edition

In the 2002 edition, she describes several events which occurred following the original 1977 publication. Such as the grief she experienced after her husband's death, her brain tumour as well as her reaction to international events and public figures. She also writes about her "secret" missions to Germany before war broke out, when she helped set up a radio station to raise funds for the BUF.

Critical reception

The book was well-received by critics, impressed by Mosley's writing talents. Although several critics were not satisfied that she gave a convincing explanation of her political views.

Reviews

"Fragrant.." The Times

The Times

The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

"A Life of Contrasts is a candid, page-turning memoir." Mary S. Lovell

Mary S. Lovell

Mary S. Lovell is an English writer and has written biographies of Beryl Markham, Amelia Earhart, Jane Digby, Richard Francis Burton, Amy Elizabeth Thorpe, the Mitford Girls and Bess of Hardwick...

q

"a rare treat." Selina Hastings

"engrossing...If you actually want to know about Diana Mosley, read this book." Evening Standard

Evening Standard

The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...

Contents

The book also includes a selection of black and white photographs.

(original edition)

• 1. Grandfathers and Grandmother (1)
• 2. "...She Can't Live Long" (6)
• 3. Batsford (12)
• 4. Asthall (22)
• 5. Paris (44)
• 6. Swinbrook (55)
• 7. Bailiffscourt (61)
• 8. Buckingham Street (70)
• 9. Cheyne Walk (86)
• 10. Mosley (94)
• 11. Munich and Rome (106)
• 12. Hitler (116)
• 13. Accident (129)
• 14. Wooton (136)
• 15. Berlin (147)
• 16. War (157)
• 17. Prison (169)
• 18. Crux Easton (199)
• 19. Crowood (210)
• 20. ALIANORA (218)
• 21. Le Temple De La Gloire (230)
• 22. Clonfert (235)
• 23. Venice and Paris (244)
• 24. Inch Kenneth
  Inch Kenneth
  Inch Kenneth is a small grassy island in the parish of Kilfinichen and Kilvickeon, Argyllshire. The island is situated at the entrance of Loch Na Keal, off the west coast of the Isle of Mull, Scotland, to the south-southeast of Ulva...
  
  and London (254)
• 25. The Windsors (264)
• 26. The Antagonists (268)
• 27. A Vale of Tears (273)
• 28. Laughter and the Love of Friends (282)

Index (289)