The fascinating story of an unconventional, bisexual and powerfully loving relationship and a unique portrait of gender and feminism – with a new introduction from Juliet Nicolson.
‘A brilliantly structured account of the dramas, infidelities and deep emotional attachments’ GUARDIAN
‘An intimate and controversial account of his bisexual parents’ open relationship’ NEW YORK TIMES
‘One of the most absorbing stories, built around two very remarkable people, ever to stray from Gothic fiction into real life’ TLS
The marriage was that between the two writers, Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson and the portrait is drawn partly by Vita herself in an autobiography which she left behind at her death in 1962 and partly by her son, Nigel.
It was one of the happiest and strangest marriages there has ever been. Both Vita and Harold were always in love with other people and each gave the other full liberty ‘without enquiry or reproach’, knowing that their love for each other would be unaffected and even strengthened by the crises which it survived. This account of their love story is now a modern classic.
‘A brilliantly structured account of the dramas, infidelities and deep emotional attachments’ GUARDIAN
‘An intimate and controversial account of his bisexual parents’ open relationship’ NEW YORK TIMES
‘One of the most absorbing stories, built around two very remarkable people, ever to stray from Gothic fiction into real life’ TLS
The marriage was that between the two writers, Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson and the portrait is drawn partly by Vita herself in an autobiography which she left behind at her death in 1962 and partly by her son, Nigel.
It was one of the happiest and strangest marriages there has ever been. Both Vita and Harold were always in love with other people and each gave the other full liberty ‘without enquiry or reproach’, knowing that their love for each other would be unaffected and even strengthened by the crises which it survived. This account of their love story is now a modern classic.
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Reviews
Portrait of a Marriage is as close to a cry from the heart as anybody writing English in our time has come, and it is a cry that, once heard, is not likely ever to be forgotten ... Unexpected and astonishing
One of the most absorbing stories, built around two very remarkable people, ever to stray from Gothic fiction into real life
The charm of this book lies in the elegance of its narration, the taste with which their son has managed to convey the real, enduring quality of his parents' love for each other
An intimate and controversial account of his bisexual parents' open relationship
A brilliantly structured account of the dramas, infidelities and deep emotional attachment that went to construct the partnership of Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville-West
Nigel's insightful Portrait of a Marriage shines a light on a fascinating couple