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Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
34 posts | 6 read | 15 to read
An indispensable memoir by one of the most prominent writers of his generation Originally published in 1976, "Christopher and His Kind" covers the most memorable ten years in the writer's life from 1928, when Christopher Isherwood left England to spend a week in Berlin and decided to stay there indefinitely, to 1939, when he arrived in America. His friends and colleagues during this time included W. H. Auden, Stephen Spender, and E. M. Forster, as well as colorful figures he met in Germany and later fictionalized in his two Berlin novels and who appeared again, fictionalized to an even greater degree, in" I Am a Camera" and "Cabaret." What most impressed the first readers of this memoir, however, was the candor with which he describes his life in gay Berlin of the 1930s and his struggles to save his companion, a German man named Heinz, from the Nazis. An engrossing and dramatic story and a fascinating glimpse into a little-known world, "Christopher and His Kind" remains one of Isherwood's greatest achievements."
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review
shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Pickpick

Allow me to bitch my way towards praising Isherwood's memoir: it grated that he told it in the third person with a few retrospective first person observations; too much of it was an undisciplined diary dump, too much again a dull exposé of who, and, tediously, to what degree, his characters were based on real people. That said, there are too many wonderful stories here of 1930s gay and literary life for this not to be an enthusiastic pick.

Lindy Bitchy praise is fine with me. 7y
shawnmooney @Lindy 😍❤💜 7y
46 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Christopher Isherwood and WH Auden in Canada, circa 1938! 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦

saresmoore That last sentence—what an endearing description! I want to go to then (and there). 7y
Jaimelire I hope Canada strives to remain like this. 7y
26 likes1 stack add2 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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britt_brooke 😵😵😵 7y
saresmoore Yeesh. 7y
LeahBergen 😬 7y
22 likes3 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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James Stern warrants his own Wikipedia page, and when he died in 1993 he got an obit in the New York Times. But would you believe the Internet doesn't have one photo of him, nor even a decent photo of the book of his short stories? I'm intrigued…

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Stern

shawnmooney And The Heartless Land is the first book I've searched for that Goodreads had no record of! (Yet Litsy does!) (edited) 7y
shawnmooney
[tagged book]The Heartless Land
7y
saresmoore 🤔 Time to don the sleuth hat. I'll hunt for his works while I look for the anti-communist/anti-Beatles religious tract! 7y
24 likes3 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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quirkyreader Have you seen the film? I thought it did a good job adapting some parts of the memoir. 7y
shawnmooney @quirkyreader I have not, but now that I've read the book I definitely want to! 7y
20 likes2 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Suet624 I need to find this book. 7y
saresmoore @Suet624 Me, too! The descriptions are spot on and so clever. 7y
21 likes2 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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This is but one colorful episode in Gerald Hamilton's long and extremely colorful life: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Hamilton

LeahBergen Ha! 7y
cariashley 🤣 7y
23 likes2 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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rubyslippersreads The Walrus and the Carpenter could have shown him. 😄 7y
26 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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42 likes
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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saresmoore The manners of a genius without the genius. Ha! 7y
22 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Lindy Demurely bitchy? 7y
shawnmooney @Lindy It's one of those gay male oxymoronic phenomena you wouldn't understand. LOL. Or, just a strange expression with little meaning… 7y
Lindy @shawnmooney Hmmmmm. Okay. I can imagine it in someone who's a total queen. Especially if there's another one in the room who's getting all the attention. 7y
See All 6 Comments
DeborahSmall Definitely my brother lol 7y
saresmoore I think demurely bitchy works, although perhaps not as a contrast to overpolite! But then, I'm from the South where both attitudes are prevalent. "Bless her heart..." 7y
Hobbinol ❤demurely bitchy. 7y
34 likes6 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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29 likes
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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saresmoore I confess, I don't get the metaphor. 7y
shawnmooney @saresmoore This quote probably doesn't stand so well on its own: he is talking about the painful decision to get rid of a whole bunch of characters that came to him en masse in his original vision for a novel, in order to focus in on only one or two of them. 7y
saresmoore Oh! I see. That's why it's about a delicate separation, not sacrifice. Thank you! 😊 7y
33 likes3 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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31 likes
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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27 likes
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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This is how Isherwood got his lucky break as a Hollywood screenwriter. And this is what all those people meant when they called me "genial".... :-)

saresmoore Genial allumeuse? 7y
shawnmooney @saresmoore Now you've done it: you've described me to a T! LOL 7y
30 likes2 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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LeahBergen I'm a bit "fussy" about syphilitic sores myself. ? 7y
shawnmooney @LeahBergen In that case, my dear, probably best not to be conducting random anal probes in public… 7y
LeahBergen 😂😂😂 7y
27 likes3 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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As a two-pack-a-day smoker for nearly 30 years, until 2 1/2 years ago, I call B.S. on this story. Still, it's a great anecdote. :-)

ReadingEnvy Two packs a day! I have never smoked. So you're saying you don't become immediately addicted? 7y
Lindy Congratulations on quitting. An admirable achievement. 👏👏👏 7y
shawnmooney @ReadingEnvy Apparently, if you don't inhale it's not so addictive; I have no idea, since I inhaled from the get-go so of course got quickly hooked. I just find Isherwood's story of how he came to inhale the first time and thus got addicted to be too cute by half. :) @Lindy Thanks - best thing I ever did - the things you do for love! 💜❤💜❤ 7y
saresmoore Hey! Very impressive! As a child who was shamed and frightened away from smoking in school, I was never much tempted, but this description certainly helps me understand the appeal. 7y
DeborahSmall Well done!! I've never smoked but my mum, dad, brother and 2 sisters smoke. 1 sister only smokes when she's drinking alcohol. It drives me crazy. My mum has tried to stop so many times so I know how difficult it is. I remember when I was about 13 begging her to just have a cigarette as her mood was awful. 👍🏼😘 7y
30 likes5 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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saresmoore This makes me want to read Maurice, as well. What did you think of it? 7y
shawnmooney @saresmoore I'm embarrassed to say that I can't remember if I ever read it! I certainly saw the movie a few times in the late 80s and early 90s. Did I ever get around to reading the novel, which sat on my shelf for a long time. I don't think so. This means I should read/re-read it! :-) 7y
shawnmooney @saresmoore Ha - according to my Goodreads inventory, I have in fact read it. I'm not sure if I was more forgetful then or now. :-) 7y
See All 7 Comments
LeahBergen @saresmoore I have it on my shelf and need to read it, too. I like Forster! 7y
saresmoore @shawnmooney, I get reading amnesia A LOT. @LeahBergen and I can read it and refresh you with the highlights on Litsy. 😊 7y
shawnmooney @saresmoore @LeahBergen There's quite a lot in this Isherwood memoir about his relationship with Forster, and Forster's endless revisions to the novel - so interesting! If neither of you get around to reading it anytime soon, I might be interested in doing a re-read at the same time! But not anytime soon… 7y
saresmoore @shawnmooney @LeahBergen I can't imagine getting to it anytime soon, either. It would be fun to do a buddy read in the future. (Especially if we can come up with some other designation for it!) 7y
24 likes7 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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A chill went through me as I read this paragraph, just saying...

saresmoore Yeah. 7y
DivineDiana I too am shivering. 7y
shawnmooney @saresmoore @DivineDiana Hits a little close to February 2017, doesn't it. 7y
DivineDiana @shawnmooney Indeed. 7y
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Just so everyone understands, I am posting this DESPITE not being able to relate to it at all. High-tension, extreme-danger relationship history? Me? Nuh-uh. 😂❤😂❤

LeahBergen Come on now. There's "something to be said for decency". ? 7y
23 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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LeahBergen I'd look at what's on their bookshelves. 😏 7y
shawnmooney @LeahBergen Barring any naked men prancing around, I would too! 😘 7y
LeahBergen But of course! 7y
saresmoore @LeahBergen @shawnmooney But really, where do you find the naked, prancing, reading men anymore? 7y
27 likes4 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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LeahBergen My contacts dry out and stick to my eyes when I visit the elderly in-laws. 😂 7y
26 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Didn't know Thomas Mann had a writer son - and what a handsome devil!

Suet624 Oh, I wasn't expecting that last sentence. 7y
Lindy 😟 7y
Hobbinol I read his Pious Dance quite some time ago, but I really want to get to
[tagged book]Pathetic Symphony: A Biographical Novel about Tchaikovsky
7y
shawnmooney @Hobbinol Wow, you've not only heard of but read him! As the Japanese say, さすが‼️ / sasuga! / I am impressed by you as usual! 7y
29 likes4 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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31 likes
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Suet624 Amen! 7y
33 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Fun fact: I'd never heard of Upward before, but Wikipedia tells me that until his death in 2009 at the age of 105 he was thought to be the UK's oldest living author.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Upward

Suet624 105? No thank you. I'll be cooked by 80. 7y
Lindy Poems produced like rabbits out of a hat? Love it! 7y
28 likes2 comments
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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CherylDeFranceschi ❤Isherwood❤ 7y
31 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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saresmoore Haha! Talk about a chip on the shoulder. I must admit, I've witnessed a similar attitude in some women with regards to pregnancy. 😒 7y
21 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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quirkyreader For me Shawn this post is a bit ironic. At work when anything comes through in German it gets placed at my station so that I can translate. It's so odd being the de facto translator at a charity shop. 7y
30 likes1 stack add1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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27 likes
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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saresmoore That last sentence combines at least three things that I never thought I'd see combined. This is my kind of book, I think! 7y
27 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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23 likes1 stack add
blurb
shawnmooney
shawnmooney
Christopher and His Kind: A Memoir, 1929-1939 | Christopher Isherwood
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Excited to finally start reading this today. One of my bestest gay friends told me I must read it; he said the movie poignantly reminded him of me and of our friendship so I'm definitely intrigued.

LeahBergen This cover! 😍 7y
quirkyreader Someday I will get to this. I have enjoyed many of his writings. 7y
50 likes2 stack adds2 comments