Clinging to the Wreckage: A Part of Life

by John Mortimer

Book Overview

In this spirited memoir John Mortimer, an esteemed barrister as well as novelist, playwright, and journalist, relates all the paradoxes and pleasures of his double life. With wit and style, Mr. Mortimer takes you from his unusual childhood (his father, a blind barrister, insisted that his wife read the sordid details of his divorce briefs in public) to the dilemmas of his life as a barrister (one of his clients indignantly declared, "Your Mr. Rumpole...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0899191339
• ISBN13: 9780899191331
• Release Date: January 1982
• Publisher: Ticknor & Fields
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 1.16 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Rumpole?

This is the first of two autobiographies by John Mortimer. If you'd like to see where Rumpoles come from, this is how you find out. Amusing in many places, serious in others, possibly a bit more revealing than the author intended.

Mortimer remembered...

CLINGING TO THE WRECKAGE is the first of John Mortimer's three-part autobiography (to date--as of 2001 he is 83 years of age and going strong). Mortimer is known to BBC/PBS fans as the multi-talened writer who developed the screenplays for the TV series BRIDESHEAD REVISITED based on Evelyn Waugh's book of the same name; creator of Rumpole, Queen's Counsel (QC) for the underdog; and author of many novels including the Titmuss trilogy, and SUMMER'S LEASE. In WRECKAGE, John tells of his childhood and young adulthood. Mortimer grew up the son of a British barrister/counselor and his wife a former artist. Against his will he was sent off to boarding school at an early age. However, Mortimer's father lost his eyesight owing to a retinal detachment that could not be repaired. As a result the family source of income was placed in jeopardy and young John and his mother became his father's eyes helping him prepare his legal briefs. Mortimer says he fell in love with the theater at an early age. His family made pilgrimages to Stratford-on-Avon to see the great Royal Shakespeare company perform the bard's works. There he was able to see Lawrence Olivier, John Gielgud, and other fabulous actors of the period. These theater experiences coupled with his work on his father's briefs, led to his own career as a QC, and planted a love of the English language and the theater in the young John which led to his subsequent success in the theater, on television, and in his many books.The book also covers his first marriage to Penelope, with whom he formed a family of six childen which included her four daughters from a previous marriage. Whether or not you have been lucky enough to enjoy the witty dialogue of Rumpole--including his verbal exchanges with wife Hilda (SHE WHO MUST BE OBEYED), the clever plot twists of the Titmuss series, or the wonderful and inspirational BRIDESHEAD REVISITED, you will love this book if you love Brit Wit. Mortimer is incredibly human and very funny.

A Masterpiece in Biography

As always Mortimor has shown brilliance in the world of literature. I was surprized to have found this book without a customer review. I thoroughly enjoy it and highly recommend it for readers of biography. Comparable with Robert Graves "Goodbye to All That".