"The Vanity Fair Diaries 1983-1992," by Tina Brown

I recently read and thoroughly enjoyed Tina Brown’s insightful (and juicy!) portrayal of the English royal family from the mid-20th century to now, titled “The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor – the Truth and the Turmoil” (Crown, 2022). I am not writing about that book here, except to say that it is entirely engrossing, especially for those of us (yes, I admit it) who are fascinated by the royal family (perhaps this is my Canadian heritage showing? My maternal grandmother used to keep a scrapbook about the royal family), despite some reservations about this ancient and quite possibly outdated institution. But reading that book reminded me of Tina Brown’s ability to draw readers in to her stories with all their delicious details. (She also wrote a book about Princess Diana which I have not read, only because I have already read so much about her). I then decided to read Brown’s 2017 book, “The Vanity Fair Diaries 1983-1992” (Henry Holt). What a treat! The English-bred and Oxford-educated Brown was chosen as the (very young) editor of the then-recently resuscitated glamorous magazine, Vanity Fair, and recorded her experiences during those years, not only with editing the magazine, but with all the attendant experiences as she moved from London to New York, became heavily involved in the intellectual and social life of that city (as well as of Los Angeles/Hollywood), started a family, became famous, knew seemingly everyone else famous, and – as briefly described at the end of the book – then became the editor of The New Yorker. I loved reading about the various authors and editors Brown worked with, the politics of publishing in the Conde Nast world, the intrigues, the glamor, the hard work, and so much more. Also of interest are Brown's comparisons of life and work in England and in the United States, and her comments on what it was like to be a woman in a high-level position in the publishing world. The book is chockful of delicious (but generally not mean-spirited) gossip, with wonderful details. I have been a longtime reader of Vanity Fair, and I admire the very purposeful journalistic mix that Brown created of politics, literature, art, popular culture, fashion, glamor, and much more. (She called it the “high-low” mix for short.) The magazine had (and still often has) stunning covers, and photos by, most prominently, Annie Leibovitz, and other esteemed photographers such as Herb Ritts. I was completely absorbed by the book, and hurtled through all 419 pages of it, never bored for an instant.