Eleanor of Palm Beach

Rating:
Summary: Sad but Interesting
Review: ELEANOR OF PALM BEACH is a biography of Eleanor Chase Fatio. Mrs. Fatio was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where she displayed literary talent from the earliest age. By the 1920's, when she herself was only about 20 years old, she already was a best-selling novelist.

Mrs. Fatio's affluent family began wintering in Palm Beach back when that resort was new. At the turn of the 20th Century, the Town of Palm Beach had been created, virtually whole cloth, by railroad and steel magnate Henry Flagler as an escape for the very rich.

Subsequently, Eleanor would marry Maurice Fatio, a Swiss citizen who became a naturalized American. According to letters Eleanor wrote, and which the author includes in this book, theirs was a great love match. Maurice was one of a handful of architects responsible for that opulent look now associated with contemporary Palm Beach, a style which has been adopted widely in affluent American communities.

Unquestionably, Eleanor and Maurice were accomplished and fascinating people. One of this book's greatest flaws is the sparcity of detail it offers; too often, his account is little more than a timeline of where they were and when. The author implies that the Fatio's surviving child gave him access to her mother's papers. At the least, it would have been nice if he would have reprinted the first chapter of one of Eleanor's bestsellers.

Nonetheless, this biography is a fascinating peek at the genesis of Palm Beach through the eyes of two of the people who gave form to the modern town. Thus, it is worthwhile reading, though the ending in inescapably sad.

Rating:
Summary: Sad but Interesting
Review: ELEANOR OF PALM BEACH is a biography of Eleanor Chase Fatio. Mrs. Fatio was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where she displayed literary talent from the earliest age. By the 1920's, when she herself was only about 20 years old, she already was a best-selling novelist.

Mrs. Fatio's affluent family began wintering in Palm Beach back when that resort was new. At the turn of the 20th Century, the Town of Palm Beach had been created, virtually whole cloth, by railroad and steel magnate Henry Flagler as an escape for the very rich.

Subsequently, Eleanor would marry Maurice Fatio, a Swiss citizen who became a naturalized American. According to letters Eleanor wrote, and which the author includes in this book, theirs was a great love match. Maurice was one of a handful of architects responsible for that opulent look now associated with contemporary Palm Beach, a style which has been adopted widely in affluent American communities.

Unquestionably, Eleanor and Maurice were accomplished and fascinating people. One of this book's greatest flaws is the sparcity of detail it offers; too often, his account is little more than a timeline of where they were and when. The author implies that the Fatio's surviving child gave him access to her mother's papers. At the least, it would have been nice if he would have reprinted the first chapter of one of Eleanor's bestsellers.

Nonetheless, this biography is a fascinating peek at the genesis of Palm Beach through the eyes of two of the people who gave form to the modern town. Thus, it is worthwhile reading, though the ending in inescapably sad.