Beau Brummell: The Ultimate Dandy

I stumbled on this subject...this charming man Beau Brummell, and then read the book. Not so much about Beau Brummell, the "celebrity" ( I abhor biographies of "celebrities". I would rather spend time reading biographies of people I want to learn from.) I enjoy the writing very much. The prose and the style are very engaging, as a good book ought to be.

I give this book a strong rating for a couple of reasons. First, the book compelled me to turn the page. Full of zest and anecdotes that brings the scenes to life, the story was interesting and lively enough that I wanted to see what came next. Second, the author cuts through the legends and delivers the facts behind the man. Where the man's reputation and tales grew over time, there was misinformation, and the author clarifies what is real and what was not. Third, the author presented a wonderful interpretation of Beau. Whereas other stories of BB tend to a biographical string of one event onto the next, the author explains their significance and highlights their interest. For instance, while Beau later wrote a book on male costume, the author explains how Beau's heart really wasn't into the work and the result was a lame book. Forth, the author makes smart conjecture, filling in the gaps and the rest of the tale of the Beau's life. So, if you're interested in reading about Beau, I'd make this your first book.

Ian Kelly has written an excellent biography of a man who rose from obscurity to command the respect of English society. It's a fascinating study, well written & reseaeched. A highly intelligent man, in another era, Brummell might have achieved much more; but in Regency England, the strictures of a rigid class structure combined with disease and his spendthrift ways toppled him from the heights to a miserable end. One quibble; on a recent visit to the UK, I saw the English edition, which is nicely illustrated with color prints, and looks much more elegant than the North American edition. A book about Brummell should above all else be handsome!

The best biographies don't just give us a portrait of their subject, but plunge us into an historical moment. Ian Kelly does both beautifully in his new biography of Beau Brummell. You learn not only about Brummell's unlikely rise from commoner to tastemaker, but also about the subtleties of dandyism -- unlike our understanding of the term, "dandy" did NOT mean foppish, quite the opposite -- about the craftsmanship required for exquisite tailoring, about the philosophical musings prompted by one man's ideals of beauty in Regency London. Hey, guys, I know a lot of you hate the coat-and-tie look, but if you read about Brummell you'll understand what a leap forward this now-modern uniform was. He originated the style, and the fact that it survives to this day, in altered form, is a testament to his life. Yes, there's an element of snob appeal here, sometimes distasteful, but there's also the glory of a man shining like the sun just by walking down the street. That's something few people ever achieve. Beau Brummell was uniquely HIMSELF, though he has inspired legions of imitators. He's also inspired poets and philosophers, whatever you may think of them, from Byron to Baudelaire to D'Aurevilly to Wilde to Camus to Woolf. And not content to be a clotheshorse, he was also a wit, honing his verbal skills in the sometimes nasty society of the upper crust. His fall from grace, and his physical deterioration -- all the worse for his high standards of cleanliness in his younger days -- make for sad reading. Brummell was, in his way, revolutionary, and Ian Kelly depicts both him and his era vividly.

This book was on my wishlist for months before it was published. I adore Regency England, and the possibility of a biography on one of its leading men was too much to pass up. Kelly introduces us to Brummell in his childhood, the son of common parents who wanted a better life for their children. He leads us through Brummell's time at Eton, and in the army (though he never saw battle), through his amazing reign as London's famed favorite, and then, painfully, his fall from grace and his battle with syphilis and debt in France. Beau Brummell is often depicted as a bored, cruelly witty man who took hours to tie his cravat. Kelly shows us this side of Brummell, certainly, but also gives great insight as to why Brummell was the way he was. The biography is littered with tantalizing Brummell one-liners that will make you laugh out loud- and probably had the same effect on Regency society. Readers are presented with hypotheses on Brummell's love life, his gambling addiction, and the constancy of his friends. And, melded with all this, we are given a wonderful, realistic view of Regency London in all its glory and perversity. Kelly is clearly sympathetic to Brummell, and one can't help but agree with him. Brummell deals with seemingly insurmountable problems (many caused by his reckless spending) with amazing sangfroid and humor. So that, when one approaches the end of the book, and is faced with harrowing descriptions of a man suffering endlessly from a wasting disease, it is impossible not to feel for him. Kelly paints a portait not only of a leading man of the Regency era, but also of the era itself. The biography is interesting, well-presented and compassionate. If you like Regency London, you will want to read this book.