Anais Nin: A Biography

Rating:
Summary: Where the funhouse ends
Review: Bair's book is exceptional. She is the finest biographer writing today (see also here work on Beckett) Never having been a fan of Nin's this book was a stunning examination of her bizarre, to say the least, life, from incest to bigamy yet Nin tried to keep it all in perspective for her "art." What is particularly poignant is the relationship between Nin and Henry Miller. Old Henry doesn't hold his own, no matter the quiet days spent in Vichy, they were determined by Nin. She was a morally bankrupt person yet Bair makes the revelations of her life absorbing and nearly understandible.

Rating:
Summary: Misses the point by a mile
Review: Being that this is the first book I have read on Anais Nin, I have nothing to compare it to. Ms. Blair had quite a huge task ahead of her researching and reading all the volumes of diaries that Ms. Nin left. What a great accomplishment!

Although I found that book quite interesting to read, it was also confusing. There were many names to keep straight. Ms. Nin lived an extrodinary life and her main goal was to become a published author in an era where men dominated the field. Her work was also considered too taboo for her time, maybe if she was born fifty years later than she had been, she might not have had to struggle so hard.

I also found it absolutely amazing how she lived her life and it was anything but conventional. What I didn't understand is why she felt a strong need to support Miller and Gonzalo for the many years that she did even to the detriment of her own finances. She'd always find the money to give them and not her creditors. I can't quite come to the conclusion that Ms. Nin was indeed a liar as the book suggests. She did tend to rewrite her dairies to "fit" the occasion, especially if someone would be reading them. I do agree with some of the reviewers that Ms. Blair was at times sarcastic when writing about certain events that took place.

I find that Ms. Nin was an extrodinary person and I look forward to reading her work as well as other biographies on her. This book was worth the read, if not completely accurate, at least it's very entertaining.

Rating:
Summary: An in-depth examination of an enigmatic literary giant
Review: I came across ANAIS NIN: A BIOGRAPHY a few months ago when my interest in Ana?s Nin was in its infancy. My initial reaction was surprise. Ana?s Nin is most famous for her diaries, of which there are now two versions available, and most of her fiction was only an outgrowth of her diaries. It seemed redundant that a biography would be written about a writer whose main product was auto-biography. Then, when I actually started reading ANAIS NIN: A BIOGRAPHY, I was a little offended. Deirdre Bair seemed to be taking all the fun out of a very fascinating woman. I set down Bair's tome and returned to Ana?s.

What initially attracted me to the writing of Ana?s was its poetic quality. I often didn't understand what exactly she was talking about, and I didn't care. I liked the mystery. She has one of the most beautiful writing styles I have ever seen. Does one really need to "understand" poetry in order to appreciate its beauty? As the months went by, however, and I sampled more and more of Nin's writing - even learning that it was the basis for the movie HENRY AND JUNE and that apparently she had had something to do with that notorious book TROPIC OF CANCER (which I had been aware of only because it is mentioned on an episode of SEINFELD) - the convoluted mystery of Ana?s Nin was becoming unbearable and was draining my interest and patience. Now I wanted a more linear, literal understanding of her life. Having realized that Nin herself was virtually incapable of providing such a thing, I humbly returned to ANAIS NIN: A BIOGRAPHY.

Suddenly, I was deeply grateful to Deirdre Bair. Bair provided insight into a world I had not known (Nin died in 1977, when I was only two-years-old), and she helped me make sense of these beautiful but enigmatic diaries. Bair explains that Nin did not keep a diary in the conventional sense. What Ana?s actually did was create in her diaries a continuous novel - part fiction, part non-fiction - with herself as the star. Nin was her own iconographer, reminding me of dance legend Martha Graham who created an entire new system of dance only as a means of making herself the star of every performance (incidentally, Bair writes that Nin's LADDERS OF FIRE was inspired by a Martha Graham performance).

Bair deals graphically with some of the more disturbing aspects of Nin's life, namely, the incestuous relationship with her father. I found the descriptions so unsettling that I had to put the book down, returning a few weeks later. Ana?s is quoted as saying that by some mistake of nature she had been born the daughter of the man who should have rightfully been her husband. However, this description helped me better approach the mystery of Nin's literary life: why so much emphasis on the diary? (Bair claims the over-emphasis on the diary may've been the greatest obstacle to Nin establishing herself as a writer of fiction.)

I had known that Ana?s began her diary at age 11 as a letter to her father after he abandoned the family, but I hadn't known the more painful aspects of their relationship. Deirdre Bair's description helped me understand why Ana?s believed that she should not have been born her father's daughter but an unrelated woman he could later marry. If Ana?s convinced herself that it was a mistake of nature that she was born her father's daughter, then she did not have to confront the fact that her father had on several occasions raped his own daughter when she was just a little girl (again, Bair is very graphic in this description, quoting from Nin's own INCEST). In this view, he most likely was only succumbing to the sexual attraction that would blossom in later life; it wasn't his fault that nature had made the mistake of making Ana?s his daughter. When I put this together with the fact that her diary was begun as a letter to her father, I came to realize why her pages are so filled with details of her sexual exploits and the games she played with men (Bair describes how Nin eventually became a bigamist, married to two men at once). She had made up her mind to no longer be the sexual victim of men; her letters to her father would detail how powerful she had become, that she could no longer be taken advantage of. The diary was her connection to her father, as well as her defense against him.

ANAIS NIN: A BIOGRAPHY is indispensable for anyone interested in a linear understanding of Ana?s Nin's life and work. Bair reveals Nin as a deeply troubled woman, and a deeply human woman. I don't agree that Bair is unsympathetic in her portrayal of Nin. How could I when she only made me love her more?

Addendum [7/2/04]: Since having written this review I have been in contact with someone who knew Ana?s Nin personally. This person says they have first-hand knowledge that contradicts some things that Deirdre Bair has written. The difficulty here is that this person did not want to elaborate and tell me what exactly Deirdre Bair got wrong. In addition, I have recently seen a British documentary called "Ana?s Nin: Spy in the House of Love." This documentary contains an interview with Deirdre Bair wherein she comes across as quite hostile to Nin, distain in her voice, even a cold indifference. After seeing this documentary I have to agree with what the others have said: Bair seems to not have liked Ana?s Nin. I gave Bair the benefit of the doubt with this biography because I just figured she was being a rigorous and respectable biographer. But in the documentary it becomes clear that Bair set out to "disprove" Ana?s Nin, to demonstrate that Nin was a liar. I don't think this is very commendable stance. It seems a little too personal, not as neutral as you'd like a biographer to be.

So, the combination of these two - the personal contact I've had with someone who knew Ana?s Nin and has said Bair made some mistakes, Bair's interview in the British documentary - have made me view ANAIS NIN: A BIOGRAPHY in a different light. At one point I considered this book to be the "bible" of Ana?s Nin's life, the definitive account. I now see that while this book is certainly helpful in its linear recounting of the facts of Nin's life, Ana?s Nin will ultimately remain a mystery. And, thankfully, I'm realizing that's how it's meant to be! What matters more, whether Ana?s Nin was telling the "truth" or whether she was a good writer?

I think it matters more that Ana?s Nin was a good writer.

Andrew Michael Parodi

Rating:
Summary: Interesting
Review: I can understand why people find this biography alienating. Deidre Bair certainly sheds no tears for Anais Nin; her tone is cool and detached at best. There is nothing inherently wrong with this detachment; in fact, coolness is infinitely preferable to heroine-worship and gushing, and I think Bair must have wanted her book to work as a sane, clear-eyed counterpoint to the self-mythology and pop phenomenon of Anais Nin, as well as counterpoint to the rhapsodic narcissism and half-truths that permeate her diaries.
Nonetheless, Bair's detachment occasionally spills over into open dislike of Nin; sentences prickle with moral judgment, ironic rebuke. It is always starkly noticeable when this happens because of Bair's otherwise crisp, self-effacing restraint. The Nin that emerges here is at best a spoilt, manipulative, vain and egocentric little child in need of a good slap across the face; at worst, she's a monster capable of inhuman callousness and indifference. This image is derived partly from fact, true; but there is no objective organization of facts, and these facts are largely unmitigated by humour or any attempt to probe Nin's deeper psychology. All Nin's acts are attributed to base motives - she's a narcissist, she's selfish, she's a manipulator. I've no doubt Nin WAS guilty of all these charges; but in writing the story of a woman like Anais Nin, so fascinated with human psychology and with the possibilites of life beyond moral demarcations, it is the duty of her biographer to probe deeper, to look beyond, even if they do not absolve Nin of her crimes.
As a result, Nin does not really emerge in this pages; it seems like an shopping list of her follies and cruelties rather than a exploration. Bair seems to have little affinity with Nin, and you begin to wonder why she's writing the book at all; obviously, it's not essential a biographer adores their subject (it's probably better they possess a healthy skepticism); but Bair does not even esteem Nin as much of an artist.
So you begin to feel guilty about reading this book. It seems hypocritical, to condemn Nin while enjoying a salacious tour of her very colourful life. It makes Bair seem simultaneously judgmental and scurrilous, an untenable position. Nevertheless, Bair does possess one great virtue as a biographer: she's self-effacing. Her writing and personality does not intrude excessively, except in occasional moments of moral censure; and Nin's life was so full of incident and glamour that you're propelled from page to page regardless. It's great to have the biographical facts of Nin's life as a means of decoding her diaries to some extent, which are so full of self-myth and hyperbole that it can feel like wading through the raptures of a schoolgirl's mind. I think Bair was afraid to engage fully with Nin, believing critical distance was the way of giving this inevitably salacious biography (anything about Nin is inevitably salacious) a sense of validity and rectitude. She shouldn't have bothered with this pretence of scholarly dignity; she should've just admitted that her - and our - interest in Nin is voyeurism and titillation, love of her extremes and her glamour and her erotic knowledge, and that she's our heroine, not our object of revulsion. Anyone who picks up this biography wants to identify with Nin to some extent - this does not mean unqualified endorsement of everything she did.
Bair should let her imagination roam a bit - or else she should stick to subjects like de Beauvoir and Beckett, whose stature and gravity no one is going to dispute.

Rating:
Summary: Five stars for this book from an Anais Nin fan
Review: I give Deirdre Bair high marks for her book. Sure, it can be disillusioning to those of us who discovered Anais Nin when we were impressionable youth and admired her for her creative and adventurous life. But I think that in her approach to understanding Nin, Bair was not vicious, jealous, or working from other motives of disrespect. She had the cooperation of Nin's family, friends, and lovers and had access to materials unavailable to others. The length of the book, the amount of materials she studied, and her helpful and thorough notes for each chapter convince me she cared about her subject and presenting Nin's life accurately. I think the book gives a very sensitive assessment of who Nin was. Some of what the book reveals is disappointing, but that is more about Nin than Bair. I appreciate that Bair didn't try to be a psychologist or literary critic- she stuck to doing a thorough job as biographer, working with as many primary sources as possible. Nin is an especially complex subject and I believe Bair did her justice, not trying to simplify, glorify, denigrate or disregard those contradictions and deceptions Nin wove into her life. Instead, she dignified Nin by taking her on as a woman whose life was fascinating, who was a compelling person, and who didn't need- in life or death- to stay hidden behind a facade.

Rating:
Summary: An interesting but often soulless recitation of facts
Review: I read many Amazon reviews of this book (mostly negative) but bought it anyway, hoping for an in-depth look into the life of Anais Nin. What I got were details covering everything about her life except WHY she loved the men whose selfishness Bair details ad nauseum. I never could figure out why Anais loved Gonzalo or Rupert, men she was with for decades. Bair talks only of how they demanded money and how Anais resented them. Dig a little deeper, please!

It seems the author did not care to present her subject as anything but a psychologically frail moron, a fool. This unwillingness/inability to provide any important insight into the reason for these particular lengthy love affairs makes the on and on repetition of how they demanded her money, her time, etc. become quite boring and meaningless. Also, since nearly EVERY man Anais met seemed to demand that she share any money she got with them, was this how all men were during this era? There was no context in which to discern what was happening to Anais and why. Overall, factually informative but emotionally disappointing.

Rating:
Summary: A Good Competent Biography
Review: Like many young adults I was fascinated and inspired by Nin's Diaries when I read them in the seventies. Lately I've been rereading them along with Bair's biography. I was aware that Nin's life was more complex and checkered than what she described, so I came to Bair's book for a more objective account. I think Bair succeeds and without the venom some reviewers here ascribe to this work.

As to the deeper understandings of what really made Nin tick, Bair speculates at times, but the mystery largely remains. However, I find this typical of biographies.

Rating:
Summary: Mermaid Swimming in an Emotional Storm
Review: Nothing holds so great an interest for me now than the study of a human heart seeking to express itself in life. ~Anaïs Nin

In the first third of this extraordinary biography, Deirdre Bair presents Anaïs Nin as a spoiled and sexually adventurous muse. The writing reads more like an exposé and presents Anaïs in quite an unflattering light.

Not only did Bair have access to 250,000 pages of Nin's "unedited" diaries, she also interviewed an astounding number of individuals who knew Anaïs and had access to family archives.

The first 114 pages left me fascinated and occasionally annoyed in places. Eventually the somewhat curt comments succeeded in bringing me to a place where I started to appreciate the astute observations about Anaïs' character and the depth of insight Deirdre Bair displayed in her writing. She also includes lines from Hugh Guiler's diary to reveal his talent for poetic prose, beautiful artistic temperament and caring nature. Then she succeeds in explaining why the marriage between Hugo and Anaïs was a source of comfort and conflict.

I continued reading and soon discovered her disregard for living the dutiful domestic life. She enjoyed the aesthetic elements of decorating, although poor Hugo had to take out loans to please her passion for exotic surroundings. While I had originally wished she would just run away with Henry and be done with it, I can now see why Rupert's love fulfilled her on all levels. The plot of her life is rather complex.

From a psychological perspective, this study becomes not only a revelation of all a human can do to destroy their own life, it also becomes a study in all one can do to repair a life.

Towards the middle of the book we are convinced we know this woman who seems to only seek recognition for her work and who supports whoever happens to appear as a novelty in her life. While reading the diaries, I never realized how much Hugo suffered or how he became a human force enabling Anaïs' addictions.

There are times when the reader may feel more sympathy for the men in Anaïs' life than for her plight as a woman in search of sexual fulfillment and true love. While many men love her throughout her somewhat solitary existence spent mostly with her diaries, it becomes increasingly clear that one man in particular values Anaïs as a soul and his love for her becomes so powerfully strong, I cried through the last chapter.

By the last few pages I felt that finally Anaïs is revealed in the way many will view her as they read her diaries. Unfortunately you may be discouraged to read that Anaïs' Nin's life is as far from a fairy tale dream as one could imagine. Not only do I now believe she was in deep emotional pain most of her life, I also now understand why she was compelled to write because pain can be released through the pen.

While Deirdre Bair decided not to apply clinical terms to Anaïs Nin's personality, I found myself considering she may have had some form of Biplor Disorder. Her spending sprees, beyond voracious sex drive, obsessive nature, anger erupting into bitter arguments, deep suicidal depression and callous indifference to death alternating with euphoric episodes showing an appreciation for life and her behavior in regards to the criticism of her writing led me towards that conclusion.

Not only does she have to be in bed when emotionally trying situations occur, she alternates with high moments of increased activity and heightened creativity. It is interesting how she almost becomes her own psychologist through self analysis, yet not until the end of her life does she settle into one of her most comfortable personalities, one which she seems to fight against until the bitter end when her health deteriorates and she has no choice but to allow the love of her life to care for her completely in all her complexity.

I loved reading all the quotes by Anaïs and finding out more about the friends who influenced her, but was at times saddened by how many times she repeated actions that apparently caused her extreme conflict of the soul beyond what many human beings could endure. In a way, she almost gives herself as a sacrifice to writing itself.

While reading her diaries, her life seems a dream. While reading this biography suddenly you may start to view her life as more of a nightmare. While there are many high points, there is an undercurrent of despair. The humor is rare, but vibrant when it strikes. The perfume incident was quite humorous.

This is truly one of the most enlightening biographies I have ever read and can highly recommend this book to anyone who is reading the Nin diaries. I'd highly recommend reading the Early Diary Volume 4 (1927-1934), Henry and June, A Literate Passion, Diary of Anaïs Nin (1947-1955), In Favor of the Sensitive Man, A Spy in the House of Love and listening to the Anaïs Nin Herself tapes before reading this biography.

The reason I love Anaïs Nin's writing is because there are moments of such beauty in her writing. Here is an example from Diary of Anaïs Nin (1947-1955):

The sand did not seem like sand, but like powdered glass which reflected the light. The sea folded its layers around me, touching my legs, my hips, my breasts like a liquid sculptor with warm hands." ~Anaïs Nin

If you are reading Anaïs Nin's evocative and poetic writings, this biography will answer a host of questions, including why Anaïs and Henry drifted apart and how her deeply disturbing childhood influenced all her romantic relationships. Photographs are sprinkled throughout the pages and are carefully placed to enhance the reading experience. The index is quite helpful for research. Perhaps Anais Nin was very much like a mermaid swimming in an emotional storm until she found Rupert.

~TheRebeccaReview.com


Rating:
Summary: Instead of Mittens...
Review: This biography is a thorough catalogue of facts about the life of a complicated woman, but you can warm your hands off the hatred that emanates from its pages. Why write a book about a subject you do not like? I am also offended by Bair's announcement that Nin is a "minor" writer. Who decides these things? (Let it be known that for decades F. Scott Fitzgerald was also considered a "minor" writer by the critics of the day. A few decades later, they'd changed their minds.)

Anais Nin is not for everyone. If you don't like Anais Nin and need more facts to back your views, check out this book. If you like Nin, or are interested in learning about her, there are other, more discerning, means.

Rating:
Summary: A very unsympathetic look at a unique woman
Review: This book left me mixed. I learned more about the truth behind Anais Nin than I ever learned in reading all of the diaries--expurgated and unexpurgated--but I can't understand Bair's out-and-out loathing of Anais Nin. If you don't at least find her fascinating, why not write a biography about someone else? This book was filled with cynical biographer asides such as, "The house was always cold and her clothes were shabby. What a better way to lift her spirits than to throw a dinner party!" Really. I expect more from People Magazine.

Of course anyone who knows a smidgeon about Anais Nin would never call her flawless. She was deeply, deeply flawed. And a responsible biographer should point out the flaws. But I felt like I was on the subway with a gossipy neighbor who wouldn't shut up about everything she didn't like about another woman. Let it rest. What's disappointing is that, from a research perspective, this was the best piece I've read about Anais Nin. Ms. Bair did her homework--hence the three stars.

You won't find better research about Anais Nin than in Ms. Bair's book. If you want to know about Anais Nin, read it. But try to be cognizant of Ms. Bair's apparent jealous little sister attitude.