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Dispatches from the Gilded Age: A Few More Thoughts on Interesting People, Far-Flung Places, and the Joys of Southern Comforts
Dispatches from the Gilded Age is a collection of essays by Julia Reed, one of America's greatest chroniclers.
In the middle of the night on March eleventh, 1980, the phone rang in Julia Reed's Georgetown dorm. It was her boss at Newsweek, where she was an intern. He told her to get in her car and drive to her alma mater, the Madeira School. Her former headmistress, Jean Harris, had just shot Dr. Herman Tarnower, The Scarsdale Diet Doctor. Julia didn't flinch. She dressed, drove to Madeira, got the story--and her first byline--and the new American Gilded Age was off and running.
The end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first was a time in which the high and the low bubbled furiously together and Julia was there with her sharp eye, keen wit, and uproariously clear-eyed way of seeing the world to chronicle this truly spectacular era. Dispatches from the Gilded Age is Julia at her best as she profiles Andre Leon Talley, Sister Helen Prejean, President George and Laura Bush, Madeleine Albright, and others. Listeners will travel to Africa and Cuba with Julia, dine at Le Bernardin, savor steaks at Doe's Eat Place, consider the fashions of the day, get the recipes for her hot cheese olives and end up with the ride of their lives through Julia's beloved South.
With a foreword by Roy Blount, Jr. and edited by Julia's longtime assistant, Everett Bexley.
In the middle of the night on March eleventh, 1980, the phone rang in Julia Reed's Georgetown dorm. It was her boss at Newsweek, where she was an intern. He told her to get in her car and drive to her alma mater, the Madeira School. Her former headmistress, Jean Harris, had just shot Dr. Herman Tarnower, The Scarsdale Diet Doctor. Julia didn't flinch. She dressed, drove to Madeira, got the story--and her first byline--and the new American Gilded Age was off and running.
The end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first was a time in which the high and the low bubbled furiously together and Julia was there with her sharp eye, keen wit, and uproariously clear-eyed way of seeing the world to chronicle this truly spectacular era. Dispatches from the Gilded Age is Julia at her best as she profiles Andre Leon Talley, Sister Helen Prejean, President George and Laura Bush, Madeleine Albright, and others. Listeners will travel to Africa and Cuba with Julia, dine at Le Bernardin, savor steaks at Doe's Eat Place, consider the fashions of the day, get the recipes for her hot cheese olives and end up with the ride of their lives through Julia's beloved South.
With a foreword by Roy Blount, Jr. and edited by Julia's longtime assistant, Everett Bexley.
12 pages, Audio CD
Published August 23, 2022
57 people are currently reading
2247 people want to read
About the author
Julia Reed
78 books90 followersJulia Reed was born in Greenville, Mississippi, in 1960. She went to the Madeira School for Girls at age sixteen near McLean, Virginia. She began taking classes at Georgetown University but then transferred to and graduated from American University.
She started working at Newsweek magazine as an intern in 1977 and went on to become Contributing Editor and columnist. She was contributing editor and senior writer at Vogue for twenty years. She is a Contributing Editor at Elle Magazine and at Garden and Gun Magazine (for which she also writes a column). She also writes articles for the New York Times, Conde Nast Traveler, and the Wall Street Journal.
Well known as a humorist and a “master of the art of eating, drinking, and making merry,” according to her publisher, her books include One Man’s Folly: The Exceptional Houses of Furlow Gatewood (2014), But Mama Always Put Vodka in Her Sangria! Adventures in Eating, Drinking, and Making Merry (Apr 30, 2013), New Orleans, New Elegance (2012) with Kerri McCaffety, Ham Biscuits, Hostess Gowns, and Other Southern Specialties: An Entertaining Life (with Recipes) (Apr 28, 2009), The House on First Street: My New Orleans Story (2008) and Queen of the Turtle Derby and Other Southern Phenomena (2005)
She started working at Newsweek magazine as an intern in 1977 and went on to become Contributing Editor and columnist. She was contributing editor and senior writer at Vogue for twenty years. She is a Contributing Editor at Elle Magazine and at Garden and Gun Magazine (for which she also writes a column). She also writes articles for the New York Times, Conde Nast Traveler, and the Wall Street Journal.
Well known as a humorist and a “master of the art of eating, drinking, and making merry,” according to her publisher, her books include One Man’s Folly: The Exceptional Houses of Furlow Gatewood (2014), But Mama Always Put Vodka in Her Sangria! Adventures in Eating, Drinking, and Making Merry (Apr 30, 2013), New Orleans, New Elegance (2012) with Kerri McCaffety, Ham Biscuits, Hostess Gowns, and Other Southern Specialties: An Entertaining Life (with Recipes) (Apr 28, 2009), The House on First Street: My New Orleans Story (2008) and Queen of the Turtle Derby and Other Southern Phenomena (2005)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
November 7, 2024
With the calendar year winding down, I wanted to make a point of revisiting the authors who I have focused on over the course of the year. Many of these authors have been those regarded as the masters of their craft, and I have savored their work immensely, contributing to a rewarding year of reading. Not all writers will pen the great American novel or bring a number of historical volumes to society. Some of the most gifted writers are those that many of us have not heard of. Earlier in the year, I searched for a book entitled South Toward Home, and my library catalogue pointed me to Julia Reed, even though she was not the author I had been searching for. Everything happens for a reason, and this time it must have been that I needed a dose of southern comfort and charm. Julia Reed wrote for a number of magazines and wrote numerous memoirs about life growing up in the south, each funnier than the last. We just turned the clock back this past week so it gets dark too early for my tastes. I decided to combat the darkness with yet another trip to Julia Reed’s south, a trip that I knew would provide many smiles and chuckles on a long fall night.
Born in 1960 in Greenville, Mississippi, Julia Reed never shied away from good times: throwing a party, shopping for the latest fashion, dining and hobnobbing with friends until the wee small hours of the morning. Reed enjoyed a luxurious childhood because both her maternal grandparents and parents used political connections to be a first name basis with politicians on both sides of the aisle. At age nine, young Julia accompanied her father on his first trip to Washington. She fell in love with the ambience of the city and got to be her father’s date at a number of fancy restaurants. At age fourteen, Julia and her friend Jessica Brent got to explore the city for themselves when her father left the girls as part of an envoy to Russian diplomats. In the 1970s, one left teenagers to explore a city on their own, room service included. Not so much now due both to the tabloids and human nature. Reed contrasts her experiences with those of the Clinton and Bush daughters as they grew up in the White House. The girls were largely kept out of sight and out of mind so that they could enjoy relatively normal upbringings. Today, Jenna Bush is a co-host on a successful morning show, but as a teenager, her father wanted her to be away from the spotlights. Although twenty years old, I found Reed’s interview with the Bush daughters to be poignant, one of the few to not contain much humor, revealing how much had changed in the media and Washington from her own adolescence. Yes, the essay went off on tangents, but that is Reed’s style, which I am used to at this point, and I feel as though I am listening to a friend spin a yarn. That was Julia Reed for many people.
Reed’s work at Newsweek and Vogue took her around the world to chase stories. She wrote about the poverty in 1990s Cuba and an African safari that she took with her dear friend McGee. That might be a lifetime dream for many of us, but Reed got to experience it due to her father’s connections. On a different occasion, she traveled with feminists on the Trans-Siberian Railroad to Novosibirsk as these women from all over Europe were set to rendezvous in China to demand better human rights in that nation. The camaraderie Reed sensed on the train was nothing short of electric, but, as a southerner with friends coming from all walks of life, spending three days on a train with only women was a little much for her. As Reed noted, on her journey from Moscow back to New York with stops in three countries along the way, she oozed pheromones and must have only talked to men on the way home. Reed was not against only talking to women. She addressed the community of women in a piece she wrote about sisters helping each other in now modern Kabul. Afghanis from abroad came home to teach those who stayed how to run a salon and start their own business. These women could operate the business from their own home and would not need to wear a burka to do so. Needless to say, Reed was touched. These journeys, Reed related, took place toward the turn of the 21st century in a gilded age for the United States, punctuated by the Clinton and Bush presidencies. Although many thought these to be peaceful, dull years, Reed enjoyed traveling the globe and meeting people at every stop. It was what she lived for.
Although her traveling took her all over the world, Reed felt most at home back in the Mississippi Delta. This was home and she continued to live parts of the year there for the rest of her life. No one threw a party like Reed’s mother Judy. She could whip up the best party food, and some recipes are included here, but Reed saved the best of these experiences for other books. Christmas parties for hundreds of people that lasted all night were what Reed lived for. The house and all the people were all decked out, and Reed’s rationale is that you only live once, time to party. This mantra included the time she canceled a wedding to a man twice her age after her parents bought food and champagne to feed a thousand people. The Reed family partied well that weekend because the champagne was not returnable. Julia did what she did best: she went to Paris with her friend André Talley and drowned out her sorrows in French cuisine and spirits. Until the end of her life, her favored drink was a Pimm’s Spritz, which seems perfect to ring in a new year or any festive occasion. That is what Reed’s life was: festive. Whether she resided in Greenville, New Orleans, Washington, New York, or anywhere in between, Reed was the hostess with the mostest. Even though she touches more on her hostess skills in other books, revisiting her epic parties here made me want to drop everything and head south. The Ritz cracker eggplant parmigiana is calling my time.
Friend Roy Blount, Jr has yet to come to terms with the fact that Reed is gone. In fact it has been over four years, and as I have read through most of her omnibus this year, I had no idea. In her writing, Julia Reed appears so frenzied and alive. She knew what she wanted and if that never included a lasting marriage, so be it. Reed knew how to party southern style with her friends. She hosted core memory making Thanksgiving meals, and was a loving companion to her dog Henry. Reed’s work allowed her to span the globe but she always had one foot in the Mississippi Delta. This was home, and she wore her upbringing as a badge of pride. Over this year, I have read a number of Reed’s memoirs about life as a southern belle. This lifestyle does not exist much anymore, but Reed and her family preserved the southern way of life through their hospitality complete with the best food and spirits. She may not be with us anymore, but when I pick up a book of Julia Reed’s wit and humor, I want to stop everything and go to the Mississippi Delta. Reed was the hostess with the mostest, and I am sure she would have made me feel welcome at one of her gatherings, even if I don’t imbibe. I am so glad that I discovered her work this year; it is the perfect tonic for a dark, fall evening.
4 stars
Born in 1960 in Greenville, Mississippi, Julia Reed never shied away from good times: throwing a party, shopping for the latest fashion, dining and hobnobbing with friends until the wee small hours of the morning. Reed enjoyed a luxurious childhood because both her maternal grandparents and parents used political connections to be a first name basis with politicians on both sides of the aisle. At age nine, young Julia accompanied her father on his first trip to Washington. She fell in love with the ambience of the city and got to be her father’s date at a number of fancy restaurants. At age fourteen, Julia and her friend Jessica Brent got to explore the city for themselves when her father left the girls as part of an envoy to Russian diplomats. In the 1970s, one left teenagers to explore a city on their own, room service included. Not so much now due both to the tabloids and human nature. Reed contrasts her experiences with those of the Clinton and Bush daughters as they grew up in the White House. The girls were largely kept out of sight and out of mind so that they could enjoy relatively normal upbringings. Today, Jenna Bush is a co-host on a successful morning show, but as a teenager, her father wanted her to be away from the spotlights. Although twenty years old, I found Reed’s interview with the Bush daughters to be poignant, one of the few to not contain much humor, revealing how much had changed in the media and Washington from her own adolescence. Yes, the essay went off on tangents, but that is Reed’s style, which I am used to at this point, and I feel as though I am listening to a friend spin a yarn. That was Julia Reed for many people.
Reed’s work at Newsweek and Vogue took her around the world to chase stories. She wrote about the poverty in 1990s Cuba and an African safari that she took with her dear friend McGee. That might be a lifetime dream for many of us, but Reed got to experience it due to her father’s connections. On a different occasion, she traveled with feminists on the Trans-Siberian Railroad to Novosibirsk as these women from all over Europe were set to rendezvous in China to demand better human rights in that nation. The camaraderie Reed sensed on the train was nothing short of electric, but, as a southerner with friends coming from all walks of life, spending three days on a train with only women was a little much for her. As Reed noted, on her journey from Moscow back to New York with stops in three countries along the way, she oozed pheromones and must have only talked to men on the way home. Reed was not against only talking to women. She addressed the community of women in a piece she wrote about sisters helping each other in now modern Kabul. Afghanis from abroad came home to teach those who stayed how to run a salon and start their own business. These women could operate the business from their own home and would not need to wear a burka to do so. Needless to say, Reed was touched. These journeys, Reed related, took place toward the turn of the 21st century in a gilded age for the United States, punctuated by the Clinton and Bush presidencies. Although many thought these to be peaceful, dull years, Reed enjoyed traveling the globe and meeting people at every stop. It was what she lived for.
Although her traveling took her all over the world, Reed felt most at home back in the Mississippi Delta. This was home and she continued to live parts of the year there for the rest of her life. No one threw a party like Reed’s mother Judy. She could whip up the best party food, and some recipes are included here, but Reed saved the best of these experiences for other books. Christmas parties for hundreds of people that lasted all night were what Reed lived for. The house and all the people were all decked out, and Reed’s rationale is that you only live once, time to party. This mantra included the time she canceled a wedding to a man twice her age after her parents bought food and champagne to feed a thousand people. The Reed family partied well that weekend because the champagne was not returnable. Julia did what she did best: she went to Paris with her friend André Talley and drowned out her sorrows in French cuisine and spirits. Until the end of her life, her favored drink was a Pimm’s Spritz, which seems perfect to ring in a new year or any festive occasion. That is what Reed’s life was: festive. Whether she resided in Greenville, New Orleans, Washington, New York, or anywhere in between, Reed was the hostess with the mostest. Even though she touches more on her hostess skills in other books, revisiting her epic parties here made me want to drop everything and head south. The Ritz cracker eggplant parmigiana is calling my time.
Friend Roy Blount, Jr has yet to come to terms with the fact that Reed is gone. In fact it has been over four years, and as I have read through most of her omnibus this year, I had no idea. In her writing, Julia Reed appears so frenzied and alive. She knew what she wanted and if that never included a lasting marriage, so be it. Reed knew how to party southern style with her friends. She hosted core memory making Thanksgiving meals, and was a loving companion to her dog Henry. Reed’s work allowed her to span the globe but she always had one foot in the Mississippi Delta. This was home, and she wore her upbringing as a badge of pride. Over this year, I have read a number of Reed’s memoirs about life as a southern belle. This lifestyle does not exist much anymore, but Reed and her family preserved the southern way of life through their hospitality complete with the best food and spirits. She may not be with us anymore, but when I pick up a book of Julia Reed’s wit and humor, I want to stop everything and go to the Mississippi Delta. Reed was the hostess with the mostest, and I am sure she would have made me feel welcome at one of her gatherings, even if I don’t imbibe. I am so glad that I discovered her work this year; it is the perfect tonic for a dark, fall evening.
4 stars
August 16, 2022
What a plethora of carefully curated information that made for a solid, entertaining read. My thoughts were taken on a historical journey from chapter to chapter, never knowing what to expect, thereby heightening my anticipation. Julia Reed was a keen writer, endowed with a mind that is akin to a focal lens that took a snapshot of a current situation and expounded upon it in minute detail. I actually heard myself expressing my own commentary to her writings. She had me fully engaged.
I particularly enjoyed the chapters on fashion, beauty and food and was riveted by the chapter about Sister Helen Prejean. Some chapters were lighthearted and some were more serious in tone. But, you are guaranteed that each chapter is brimming with detailed information.
In summation, this was a lovely, light read I found highly entertaining. You will have to pick up a copy of this book and dive into it for yourself.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.
I particularly enjoyed the chapters on fashion, beauty and food and was riveted by the chapter about Sister Helen Prejean. Some chapters were lighthearted and some were more serious in tone. But, you are guaranteed that each chapter is brimming with detailed information.
In summation, this was a lovely, light read I found highly entertaining. You will have to pick up a copy of this book and dive into it for yourself.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.
August 24, 2022
DISPATCHES FROM THE GILDED AGE
by Julia Reed
St. Martin’s Press
Pub Date: Aug 23
Oh how I enjoyed journalist Julia Reed's essays from the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Her most famous story was her first, when as a Newsweek intern, she was called by her boss to go ASAP to her alma mater, where Jean Harris, former headmistress, had just shot Herman Tarnower, The Scarsdale Diet Doctor. It was March, 1980. That shocking event launched her storied career and began America's second Gilded Age.
Reed interviews many luminaries of the day: President George Bush and First Lady Laura; Madeleine Albright; Sister Helen Prejean; Vogue's Andre Leon Talley. She travels to such exotic sites as Cuba and Africa, and shows us great fashion, good eats, and her much-loved South.
Beautifully written, absorbing and fun, Dispatches from the Gilded Age took me happily through Reed's life as a chronicler of fascinating decades gone by. Highly recommended!
Thanks to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are mine.
#DispatchesfromtheGildedAge
#JuliaReed
#stmartinspress
#NetGalley
#GildedAgeEssays #GildedAgeJournalist
#ScarsdaleDietDoctorShooting #bookstagramcommunity
by Julia Reed
St. Martin’s Press
Pub Date: Aug 23
Oh how I enjoyed journalist Julia Reed's essays from the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Her most famous story was her first, when as a Newsweek intern, she was called by her boss to go ASAP to her alma mater, where Jean Harris, former headmistress, had just shot Herman Tarnower, The Scarsdale Diet Doctor. It was March, 1980. That shocking event launched her storied career and began America's second Gilded Age.
Reed interviews many luminaries of the day: President George Bush and First Lady Laura; Madeleine Albright; Sister Helen Prejean; Vogue's Andre Leon Talley. She travels to such exotic sites as Cuba and Africa, and shows us great fashion, good eats, and her much-loved South.
Beautifully written, absorbing and fun, Dispatches from the Gilded Age took me happily through Reed's life as a chronicler of fascinating decades gone by. Highly recommended!
Thanks to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are mine.
#DispatchesfromtheGildedAge
#JuliaReed
#stmartinspress
#NetGalley
#GildedAgeEssays #GildedAgeJournalist
#ScarsdaleDietDoctorShooting #bookstagramcommunity
July 9, 2022
I received an ARC of, Dispatches from the Gilded Age, by Julia Reed. I could not get into this book. Me and Julia did not live the same way or the same time.
April 18, 2022
This was quite the collection of stories. I found some really good and interesting and others not so much.
It was a bit different than what I was expecting but still a good book.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy
It was a bit different than what I was expecting but still a good book.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy
March 24, 2023
Another enjoyable read from Julia Reed. It saddens me that we will not be entertained by her stories and insights.
February 12, 2022
What a treasure this memorial is. I did not know who Julia Reed was prior to reading but her essays invite you right into her southern roots and simultaneously fabulous upper east side taste. I believe these two characteristics make her perspective on historical events, politics, etc unique. She has a comical edge to her more serious stories but can equally draw you in with light stories of her childhood or with a simple recipe. I can’t wait to share this book with others
March 25, 2022
Dispatches from the Gilded Age by Julia Reed is a collection of essays that are enjoyable to read before bed, especially when you don't have the energy for literature that requires concentration. The collection of 33 essays is divided by subject into seven parts, with titles such as In Fashion and Beauty, People, Adventures, The South, Food and Feasting.
The essay which made a lasting impression on me was the one on Helen Prejean, an eighty-two-year-old nun from Baton Rouge and the author of Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States who worked to stop the death penalty. I think that anyone who reads Dispatches from the Gilded Age should, first of all, read this essay. Julia Reed states: “I thought I believed in the death penalty, but I read the manuscript of her book anyway - trailing pages through airports across the country as I flew on a series of planes - and by the time I'd reached my destination, the conviction of a lifetime had been overturned”.
Another very interesting, although completely different article, is the one on Madeleine Albright, former US secretary of state who just left us on March 23, 2022. There is also an entertaining and inspiring text on André Leon Talley, an American fashion journalist, who was the first African-American male creative director of Vogue. And I must also mention a fashion essay which emphasizes the importance of red lipstick. It is such a fun piece!
Good stories about interesting personalities, a few serious topics, and relaxing themes of fashion - all sprinkled with a pinch of humor - this is Julia Reed's recipe for a good book that can give the reader a moment of respite from the never-ending and often overwhelming problems of the world around us.
The essay which made a lasting impression on me was the one on Helen Prejean, an eighty-two-year-old nun from Baton Rouge and the author of Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States who worked to stop the death penalty. I think that anyone who reads Dispatches from the Gilded Age should, first of all, read this essay. Julia Reed states: “I thought I believed in the death penalty, but I read the manuscript of her book anyway - trailing pages through airports across the country as I flew on a series of planes - and by the time I'd reached my destination, the conviction of a lifetime had been overturned”.
Another very interesting, although completely different article, is the one on Madeleine Albright, former US secretary of state who just left us on March 23, 2022. There is also an entertaining and inspiring text on André Leon Talley, an American fashion journalist, who was the first African-American male creative director of Vogue. And I must also mention a fashion essay which emphasizes the importance of red lipstick. It is such a fun piece!
Good stories about interesting personalities, a few serious topics, and relaxing themes of fashion - all sprinkled with a pinch of humor - this is Julia Reed's recipe for a good book that can give the reader a moment of respite from the never-ending and often overwhelming problems of the world around us.
August 23, 2022
A delightful read of a compilation of essays by the late Julia Reed edited by a longtime assistant, Everett Bexley. It begins with her first writing assignment while still as an intern summoning her to go to her alma mater where her former headmistress, Jean Harris, had just shot The Scarsdale Diet Doctor. Off she went and continued going until 2020. This is, in part, a memoir of her favorite things: interesting people, world travel, and her love of food and anything Southern—particularly her home in Louisiana and Mississippi.
In her writings, you will discover that she lived a life of extravagance and luxury while indulging her friends with her over abundance of alcohol at her parties and swag bags. Her interviews with influential people are filled with interesting antidotes about her interviewees from art patrons to political influencers. One of my favorite essays was her interview with Laura Bush while she was First Lady and was on a trip to New York with her twin daughters primarily of Reed’s ability to make it an almost folky read. Travel with her on a safari or a travel on a train with all women on their way to a conference (not her favorite trip). Her love of entertaining comes flowing through the pages as she writes of food and her beloved South; included are some southern recipes along with her mother’s and grandmother’s advice.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book; this is my honest review.
In her writings, you will discover that she lived a life of extravagance and luxury while indulging her friends with her over abundance of alcohol at her parties and swag bags. Her interviews with influential people are filled with interesting antidotes about her interviewees from art patrons to political influencers. One of my favorite essays was her interview with Laura Bush while she was First Lady and was on a trip to New York with her twin daughters primarily of Reed’s ability to make it an almost folky read. Travel with her on a safari or a travel on a train with all women on their way to a conference (not her favorite trip). Her love of entertaining comes flowing through the pages as she writes of food and her beloved South; included are some southern recipes along with her mother’s and grandmother’s advice.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book; this is my honest review.
January 19, 2022
In the middle of the night on March 11, 1980, the phone rang in Julia Reed’s Georgetown dorm. It was her boss at Newsweek, where she was an intern. He told her to get in her car and drive to her alma mater, the Madeira School. Her former headmistress, Jean Harris, had just shot Dr. Herman Tarnower, The Scarsdale Diet Doctor. Julia didn’t flinch. She dressed, drove to Madeira, got the story, and her first byline and the new American Gilded Age was off and running.
And so begins this collection of essays from Julia Reed. A Southern Treasure.
I remember the Scarsdale Diet and the shooting of the doctor and the trial. Such drama! With one century ending and another beginning, Julia gives us a look at so many people, places, and food! Those hot olives!!
So many of her best profiles. One of which we just lost today as I write this. Andre’ Leon Talley. A veritable who’s who of the time. The Bush family, Madeleine Albright, and so many more. Dining at favorite restaurants, what food was popular as well as the fashions of the time.
Her writing style is relatable as well as hilarious at times. This is one of those books that you find yourself reading again. As a Mississippi former resident, I loved this book. The South at its finest.
NetGalley/August 23rd, 2022 by St. Martin’s Press
And so begins this collection of essays from Julia Reed. A Southern Treasure.
I remember the Scarsdale Diet and the shooting of the doctor and the trial. Such drama! With one century ending and another beginning, Julia gives us a look at so many people, places, and food! Those hot olives!!
So many of her best profiles. One of which we just lost today as I write this. Andre’ Leon Talley. A veritable who’s who of the time. The Bush family, Madeleine Albright, and so many more. Dining at favorite restaurants, what food was popular as well as the fashions of the time.
Her writing style is relatable as well as hilarious at times. This is one of those books that you find yourself reading again. As a Mississippi former resident, I loved this book. The South at its finest.
NetGalley/August 23rd, 2022 by St. Martin’s Press
August 21, 2022
Dispatches From the Gilded Age by Julia Reed
#fortyeighthbookof2022 #arc
This book is being posthumously published, as the author died in 2020. I’ve only read one book of Reed’s prior to this, and a lot of magazine columns, and I saw her speak a few years ago at a library event and really enjoyed it. So when the book started with a few essays I’d already read, I was disappointed. I also didn’t expect this to be a compilation of essays from so long ago, most the 90s. But then I read the chapter on Sister Helen Prejean, and it was fascinating. Then the next on Madeleine Albright, and I was hooked. I think her chapters on people (part 3 of the book) were more interesting than the others, followed by the ones detailing adventures (part 4). The later part of the book deals with more recent events, which I was relieved to see. The rest of the stories I could largely take or leave, but if you’ve never read a southern humorist, she’s not a bad author to start with. Just know that she was wealthy and very well connected, so she’s writing about quite a different lifestyle than the normal southerner has.
Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the advance copy. (Pub date 8/23/22.)
#fortyeighthbookof2022 #arc
This book is being posthumously published, as the author died in 2020. I’ve only read one book of Reed’s prior to this, and a lot of magazine columns, and I saw her speak a few years ago at a library event and really enjoyed it. So when the book started with a few essays I’d already read, I was disappointed. I also didn’t expect this to be a compilation of essays from so long ago, most the 90s. But then I read the chapter on Sister Helen Prejean, and it was fascinating. Then the next on Madeleine Albright, and I was hooked. I think her chapters on people (part 3 of the book) were more interesting than the others, followed by the ones detailing adventures (part 4). The later part of the book deals with more recent events, which I was relieved to see. The rest of the stories I could largely take or leave, but if you’ve never read a southern humorist, she’s not a bad author to start with. Just know that she was wealthy and very well connected, so she’s writing about quite a different lifestyle than the normal southerner has.
Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the advance copy. (Pub date 8/23/22.)
July 12, 2023
Ms. Reed's last book following her death three years ago. When they dismantled the house she had so carefully built and decorated, it broke my heart to see her beloved things go up for auction. I wish her family had kept more, or that she had dispensed her lovely items to friends before her leaving. She did have time. Roddy McDowall did this, and I always thought that was such a lovely thing for him to do. Some of these stories and essays have made there way into other books. My favorite, by far, is the lost art of giving parties and how no one tries anymore. When I did a large sit down dinner in a restaurant (paid for dinner!) for my father in his later years, I had to fight to get people to answer the rsvp card (with stamped return envelope.) All they had to do was check attending or not and choose one of three dinners--yet I still had to call and in some instances multiple times, and the invitations went out months in advance. I wanted to cancel the whole thing out of sheer disgust.
The essays are: Fashion & Beauty, People, How it Started, Adventures, Scenes From a Life, Food & Fasting, The South & North, and Compass Points.
The essays are: Fashion & Beauty, People, How it Started, Adventures, Scenes From a Life, Food & Fasting, The South & North, and Compass Points.
February 26, 2022
Dispatches from the Gilded Age: A Few More Thoughts on Interesting People, Far-Flung Places, and the Joys of Southern Comforts is a collection of essays by Julia Reed from throughout her career. The 30 or so essays are split into seven parts : how her career started; fashion and beauty; profiles of people she has met; travelogues of places she has been; moments in her life; food and her home, the South.
Her style is bold and engaging as she recounts her stories. She is unafraid to speak her mind, even when her opinion might ruffle some feathers. She takes on her topics with an approach reconciling fashion and culture with current events and politics.
However, the opening of the book was hard to get through, as it was filled with run-on sentences and certain typography choices were made that hinders reading. It did not leave me with a good first impression of the essays to come.
In all, it was a light and easy read, despite the book's rough start.
Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Her style is bold and engaging as she recounts her stories. She is unafraid to speak her mind, even when her opinion might ruffle some feathers. She takes on her topics with an approach reconciling fashion and culture with current events and politics.
However, the opening of the book was hard to get through, as it was filled with run-on sentences and certain typography choices were made that hinders reading. It did not leave me with a good first impression of the essays to come.
In all, it was a light and easy read, despite the book's rough start.
Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
February 28, 2022
In the middle of the night on March 11, 1980, the phone rang in Julia Reed’s Georgetown dorm. It was her boss at Newsweek, where she was an intern. He told her to get in her car and drive to her alma mater, the Madeira School. Her former headmistress, Jean Harris, had just shot Dr. Herman Tarnower, The Scarsdale Diet Doctor. Julia didn’t flinch. She dressed, drove to Madeira, got the story, and her first byline and the new American Gilded Age was off and running.
This book was engaging and funny at times! There are 30 essays and they're more interesting than the last. Obviously the The Scarsdale DietDoctor story was the one that pulled me in on NetGalley but there are so many great stories of travel, people she's met and her journey throughout her career. I would definitely recommend to any journalist whether they just be starting out or seasoned, as this is extremely relatable!
I was given a NetGalley ARC for an honest review. Thank you to the publisher!
This book was engaging and funny at times! There are 30 essays and they're more interesting than the last. Obviously the The Scarsdale DietDoctor story was the one that pulled me in on NetGalley but there are so many great stories of travel, people she's met and her journey throughout her career. I would definitely recommend to any journalist whether they just be starting out or seasoned, as this is extremely relatable!
I was given a NetGalley ARC for an honest review. Thank you to the publisher!
August 22, 2022
Though Julia Reed died in 2020, her words live on, and Dispatches from the Gilded Age provides great insight into the travels and life of Reed. This essay collection covers it all -- from fashion journalist Andre Leon Talley to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to Jean Harris, the woman who murdered Dr. Herman Tarnower -- and this is just a small sample of what you'll find in this collection.
Like any essay collection, there were some stories that I enjoyed more than others (by that I mean anything dealing with Reed's southern roots), but all in all, Reed's quick wit and keen eye provide a fascinating look at someone who was privy to so much more than the average person. A fun and eclectic read. Hopefully there are more works in her archives for readers anxious to continue reading Reed's words.
Thank you to #NetGalley and the publishers for providing this electronic ARC of #DispatchesfromtheGildedAge.
Like any essay collection, there were some stories that I enjoyed more than others (by that I mean anything dealing with Reed's southern roots), but all in all, Reed's quick wit and keen eye provide a fascinating look at someone who was privy to so much more than the average person. A fun and eclectic read. Hopefully there are more works in her archives for readers anxious to continue reading Reed's words.
Thank you to #NetGalley and the publishers for providing this electronic ARC of #DispatchesfromtheGildedAge.
August 28, 2022
A series of essays by the late Julia Reed, whose work I was somehow unaware of before reading this book. The topics are wide-ranging, but mostly all fascinating--from politicians to travel to life in the South. Julia Reed has a distinctive voice (in writing and from what I've read, in speech) and these were mostly witty and amusing. For me, there are two strikes--her affinity for the republican party and her use of the term "Yankee." Please. It's 2022 (even if she did die in 2020, it was offensive then).
It's difficult reading first-person essays that you know the author wrote shortly before her death, not being familiar with her story and wondering if she knew how soon she was going to die. This is a good book to read to study the craft of the essay, as well as a reminder of how people of a certain age (mine) lived their lives in the 1980s and 1990s. #DispatchesfromtheGildedAge #NetGalley
It's difficult reading first-person essays that you know the author wrote shortly before her death, not being familiar with her story and wondering if she knew how soon she was going to die. This is a good book to read to study the craft of the essay, as well as a reminder of how people of a certain age (mine) lived their lives in the 1980s and 1990s. #DispatchesfromtheGildedAge #NetGalley
November 2, 2022
Rating: 5/5 Stars
For those of you who don’t know who Julia Reed was - you are sorely missing out. One of the most entertaining essayists on politics, food, fashion and southern life, Ms. Reed was a once in a generation voice who was catapulted into fame for her piece as Newsweek intern covering the murder of the Scarsdale Diet Doctor.
Dispatches From the Gilded Age contains all of her essays and interviews from George Bush to Andre Leon Talley. It covers her take on fashion and food across the decades all with the warm voice of your favorite friend.
I wasn’t overly familiar with Reed’s work when I picked this up but I’m glad I did. Read in snippets, these essays were enjoyable and special and made for a delightful reading experience.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
For those of you who don’t know who Julia Reed was - you are sorely missing out. One of the most entertaining essayists on politics, food, fashion and southern life, Ms. Reed was a once in a generation voice who was catapulted into fame for her piece as Newsweek intern covering the murder of the Scarsdale Diet Doctor.
Dispatches From the Gilded Age contains all of her essays and interviews from George Bush to Andre Leon Talley. It covers her take on fashion and food across the decades all with the warm voice of your favorite friend.
I wasn’t overly familiar with Reed’s work when I picked this up but I’m glad I did. Read in snippets, these essays were enjoyable and special and made for a delightful reading experience.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
August 26, 2022
Thanks to the publisher, via Netgalley, for an advance e-galley for honest review.
3-4 stars, rounded up.
I can't remember what impulse brought me to download this book since it turns out I was wholly unfamiliar with Julia Reed's work, but I found many of the essays in this book to be truly interesting. I particularly enjoyed all of the ones detailing fashion and beauty quests the author had undertaken, and the more personal ones about her family also radiated off the page. There were some essays that did drag a bit, and I do think that overall the book felt significantly longer than it was, but it was a treat to be introduced to the author's writing, even if I'm coming to her too late.
3-4 stars, rounded up.
I can't remember what impulse brought me to download this book since it turns out I was wholly unfamiliar with Julia Reed's work, but I found many of the essays in this book to be truly interesting. I particularly enjoyed all of the ones detailing fashion and beauty quests the author had undertaken, and the more personal ones about her family also radiated off the page. There were some essays that did drag a bit, and I do think that overall the book felt significantly longer than it was, but it was a treat to be introduced to the author's writing, even if I'm coming to her too late.
August 1, 2022
DISPATCHES FROM THE GILDED AGE
by Julia Reed
St. Martin’s Press
Pub Date: Aug 23
As with most essay collections, some kept my interest others I simply skimmed through. The stories highlight the unique life of Julia Reed and others of the upper echelon in America. The style is kept to Reed's usual style and is easy to read.
Those interested in a behind-the-scenes look of an I can't believe people who live like this work will get satisfaction from reading this. I can also see it appealing to those with an interest in American history/cultural history.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the dARC of this work in exchange for my honest review.
by Julia Reed
St. Martin’s Press
Pub Date: Aug 23
As with most essay collections, some kept my interest others I simply skimmed through. The stories highlight the unique life of Julia Reed and others of the upper echelon in America. The style is kept to Reed's usual style and is easy to read.
Those interested in a behind-the-scenes look of an I can't believe people who live like this work will get satisfaction from reading this. I can also see it appealing to those with an interest in American history/cultural history.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the dARC of this work in exchange for my honest review.
October 18, 2022
Julia Reed would make my ultimate dinner party guest list, even if every detail would be under the microscope of her razor sharp scrutiny. I love her entertaining and cookbooks, and this posthumously published collection of essays delivers another side of Julia's writing - the journalistic. Her keen eye for detail, impeccable sense of place, wry to rollicking humor, and taste for the ironic are reflected in every piece. She's Martha Stewart meets Truman Capote at a Charleston heritage society gala.
I received a digital galley of this book in exchange for an honest review, and loved this one so much that I plan to purchase a hardcover for my permanent collection.
I received a digital galley of this book in exchange for an honest review, and loved this one so much that I plan to purchase a hardcover for my permanent collection.
September 9, 2022
Yes, I received an advance copy- but how much did I love it? I will be buying this as a gift for so many!! In fact I have already ordered two!
Reading these essays is bittersweet as the author has passed, but they also serve as an enormous tribute to the life she lived and her generous invitation to all to join her in it via her essays.
Trying to pick a favorite— I think Accidental Africa, followed by Dis Engaged as a close second.
Treat yourself to this book which I promise will have a special spot on your “keeper shelf”.
Reading these essays is bittersweet as the author has passed, but they also serve as an enormous tribute to the life she lived and her generous invitation to all to join her in it via her essays.
Trying to pick a favorite— I think Accidental Africa, followed by Dis Engaged as a close second.
Treat yourself to this book which I promise will have a special spot on your “keeper shelf”.
October 27, 2022
Dispatches from the Gilded Age: A Few More Thoughts on Interesting People, Far-Flung Places, and the Joys of Southern Comforts by Julia Reed is a fascinating book. Full of essays, this book chronicles the author’s personal experiences during a fascinating time. I think readers who enjoy memoirs will enjoy this book. Readers of true crime will also find this book intriguing. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.
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August 24, 2022I feel really mixed about this one. I love Julia's style of writing, but the content didn't appeal to me. I didn't want to read about how luxurious Nixon's inauguration was or how Kissinger was at these parties. I couldn't get into this and unfortunately couldn't finish it. However, if reading about Republicans schmoozing is something you can get past, the writing is lovely and easy to read!
November 2, 2022
Julia left us too early. Painful to think that she wrote several of these humorous essays knowing the end was near. She was one of a kind! And a very talented writer. Thanks to the wonderful Everett for curating the book. An excellent representation of the many and varied topics she addressed—
December 11, 2024
Enjoyable book of essays - witty, interesting, thought provoking! Great for when you are in the mood for something light, but not mindless! I always enjoy Julia's work and her sense of humor, and this book was no different.
July 17, 2022
Dispatches from the Gilded Age is a compilation of essays by the late author Julia Reed. The book spans about 25 years and is divided by topics including travel, food and entertaining, fashion, the south, all from her unique personal viewpoint and written for various publications. I enjoyed reading most of them, and it is easy to skip a story if it doesn't interest you. The author lived a charmed life, with an abundance of fascinating experiences to share.
September 7, 2022
LOVED this tribute. Such a funny, thoughtful collection of pieces from a writer who undoubtedly left her mark.
September 14, 2022
This collection of stories I was really hoping to love, it just felt fractured and i wasnt really able to get into it. Perhaps it was due to the stories and book being completed posthumously.
January 15, 2023
Enjoyable read! It was fun to read about her experiences that also were very relatable to my upbringing.
March 29, 2023
Julia captures time and place so well.
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