Zelda Fitzgerald: Her Voice in Paradise

One reviewer (Ms Kay) opines this is the best of the Zelda biographies, whereas another ("skc-33") opines that the Cline biography is not enjoyable, that it reads like a dissertation. I agree that the Cline biography is extremely well researched but I disagree with regard to the references: the footnotes are not a bit distractive. I hardly noticed them. In fact, they were much less intrusive than I've experienced in other nonfiction works. The author's information on the other characters in the lives of the Fitzgeralds (the Hemingways, the Menckens, Dos Passos, Edmund Wilson, Dorothy Parker, and dozens more) adds so much more to this biography; I found it a delightful surprise to have so much additional information on these other personalities with whom I am only casually acquainted. In addition, these other people played such an important role in the lives of the Fitzgeralds, it would have been unfortunate if Cline had omitted them. Cline is English and brings a more worldly perspective in her analysis. Her only fault is trying too hard to be "fair and balanced" with regard to Mr Scott Fitzgerald. It is abundantly clear (through this biography and others) that he may have had a natural talent to write, but he was dishonest (stole his wife's journals without her knowledge, much less her blessing); plagiarized almost word for word Zelda's diaries into his own works; was an alcoholic of the worst degree; was an adulterer (I have no problems with an open marriage where both parties agree, but in this case, Zelda did not); and who did all he could to insure Zelda would not reach her potential as a writer, dancer, or painter. Despite his strong Catholic upbringing and desire to be buried in the Church, he had only a slight problem, it appears, with supporting Zelda's decision to have as many as three abortions (and he left it up to her, deferring his own judgment or strong opinion one way or the other; and giving her no emotional support after the decision was made). As one reviewer has posted, these personality faults do not matter; it is what one leaves behind. Even if one agrees with that, one will learn in all these biographies of Zelda, it was her work that was left behind and not his. If I had only one biography of Zelda's to read, it would be Cline's. As noted above, I agree wholeheartedly with the review by Ms. Kay. Incidentally, if you are still curious about Mr Fitzgerald's romantic side, he purposely did not wed Zelda in her home town (Montgomery, AL), but more than a thousand miles away (NYC), making it nearly impossible for any of Zelda's family or friends to attend; he limited the wedding to six people, and started the wedding early despite knowing that two of the six (Zelda's sister and her husband) would miss the ceremony. And one more thing: Mr Fitzgerald did not allow Zelda to attend the baptism of their only child, "Scottie," for fear of what Zelda might do or say at that ceremony. The wedding story is told in al

If you take the time and read every other biography out there about Zelda Fitzgerald, you will notice something strange. While every one covers the same person and materials, not every biography is exactly the same. Nancy Milford's "Zelda" reads like a Fitzgerald novel- beautiful, careless and tragic. Kendall Taylor's "Sometimes Madness is Wisdom" focuses more on Zelda as an individual with multiple flaws and multiple talents, and also destroys the mythical love story that everyone thought was "Scott and Zelda". Sally Cline's "Her Voice in Paradise" expands on Kendall Taylor's basic concept but makes it all her own with such detailed research and weaving all of the broken stories together into one beautiful mosaic.I would list this as THE best biography written about Zelda...well, actually this ties for first place with Kendall Taylor's bio, which is equally brilliant but on a totally different level. Read both and you get two separate layers of Zelda's short and complicated life. Any pity or admiration that you felt for Scott before reading either of these will most certainly vanish, for these books do not paint him as the romantic character that his legend portrays. In these he is an equally flawed human being much like Zelda, but a man whose lifelong coverup of his insecurities included alcohol abuse and adultery.So in conclusion, if you are a voracious reader with a thirst for knowledge and devouring every detail into your mind, I would recommend that you buy this book immediately.

Sally Cline's Zelda Fitzgerald portrays the life of mythical 20s idol who married novelist F. Scott. This is no light coverage: six years in the making, it is the first on her life to appear in over thirty years and provides a complex analysis of the Fitzgeralds' lives and achievements.

... In the summer of 1919, during the courtship that would lead to marriage the following year, Zelda Sayre wrote Scott Fitzgerald a letter in which she observed,"Men think I'm purely decorative, and they're just fools for not knowing better . . . I love being rather unfathomable . . . Men love me cause I'm pretty ? and they're always afraid of mental wickedness ? and men love me cause I'm clever and they're always afraid of my prettiness ? One or two have even loved me cause I'm lovable, and then, of course, I was acting." Well before her celebrated marriage, Zelda was nothing if not elusive ? and a master of the non sequitur besides. In "Zelda Fitzgerald: Her Voice in Paradise," Sally Cline makes use of the linguistic romps found in her subject's letters, diaries and novels in a way that allows the reader to hear the voice of one of the Jazz Age's most celebrated and controversial women. That voice, arguably the best guide to Zelda's complex mind is a remarkable one, and by relying on it the biographer has created a narrative that pulses with vivid, angry, joyous, despairing immediacy. In Ms. Cline's treatment the unfathomable Zelda becomes less so. Ms. Cline straightforwardly relates Zelda's upbringing as a Southern belle, her courtship and marriage to F. Scott Fitzgerald, their life together as his career took flight, the birth of their daughter Scottie, Scott's alcoholism, the disintegration of the marriage and her madness and subsequent hospitalization for the still debated diagnosis of schizophrenia. Accounts of the various treatments Zelda endured while hospitalized, which included electro-shock therapy and injections of horse serum, are appalling. The author is at pains not to tinker with the historical record the way Nancy Milford did in her1970 biography of Zelda, written at the height of feminist revisionism and what-ifs. Ms. Cline is very clear that in writing this book she hoped to show that "during Zelda's life her ballet, like her writing and painting, was subsumed under the greater interest of her marriage. As Zelda's biographer, I have tried to balance the account." What that means for the book is greater exposure to these endeavors. While the biographer makes a convincing case that Zelda was a fine writer, she is less persuasive about the merits of her dancing (begun at the age of 27) and her painting. Ms. Cline does a masterful job of presenting the intoxicating (and intoxicated) sights, sounds and fixations of Jazz Age America from New York to Hollywood, with significant detours to Scott Fitzgerald's Minnesota, and back again. The writing is strong, the research exhaustive. Close to 100 pages of notes follow the book's index. Zelda Sayre was born in Montgomery, Ala. on July 12, 1900. Her father was a judge and though not wealthy the family occupied a home in that part of town where old money thrived. Zelda quickly became part of a social set that included the city's wealthiest and most beautiful girl