Elizabeth Taylor

November 21, 2022
Journalist Brower (Team of Five: The Presidents Club in the Age of Trump) captures in this glowing portrait the larger-than-life story of British American actress Elizabeth Taylor (1932–2011), who “defined twentieth-century Hollywood for a global audience.” Taylor shot to stardom at age 12 with her role as Velvet Brown in the 1944 film National Velvet, and she really came into her own with her portrayal of Angela Vickers in the 1951 melodrama A Place in the Sun. “I was bitten, and I loved the possibility of acting,” Taylor said in an unpublished interview at the time. Brower meticulously details Taylor’s stormy romantic relationships, from marrying hotel heir Nicky Hilton as a “means of escape”from her parents to her tumultuous two marriages to actor Richard Burton, who called their relationship “Le Scandale.” In her later years, Taylor became an AIDS activist and humanitarian. Brower convincingly depicts Taylor as a complex woman whose glamour, even today, is “intoxicating.” The result is a mesmerizing appreciation of a legendary star. Agent: Howard Yoon, Ross Yoon Agency.

Starred review from May 1, 2023

Elizabeth Taylor may well be the last great star of the classic Hollywood era. In the days before social media and the internet, Taylor stopped the presses with her larger-than-life persona and extravagant lifestyle. In writing this biography, journalist Brower (Team of Five: The Presidents Club in the Age of Trump) was supported by Taylor's family, who granted interviews and provided access to Taylor's unpublished letters and diaries. The resulting work contains little detail about her films or professional accomplishments, but there is a plethora of juicy details about the events that kept her in the spotlight--her eight marriages, adulterous affairs, numerous illnesses, and near-death episodes, not to mention her vast jewelry collection, which warrants its own chapter. Much attention is given to her passionate and volatile relationship with Richard Burton, which began during the filming of Cleopatra and would continue through two marriages. Beneath her hard-edged exterior, Taylor treated people with respect and was passionate about rooting for the underdog and for those who were discriminated against, as evidenced by her stalwart activism around AIDS. VERDICT Eleanor Caudill's perspicuous narration will compel listeners forward and gives Taylor's frequent ballsy quotes appropriate rendering. An engrossing, gossipy listen.--Phillip Oliver

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