Pepita by Vita Sackville-West
Charming, witty and honest to a fault - Vita’s biography of her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother is as thought-provoking as it is entertaining… and entirely readable into the bargain.
The Book
Spanning the lives of three generations and written by the fourth, ‘Pepita’ is the wildly romantic and entirely true story of the female side of Vita Sackville-West’s genealogy. Starting in the slums of Granada and ending in one of the most famous houses in the UK - this is a story that includes all of the messy, intimate and shocking details of three women’s lives that were lived to the full.
Written from the evidence gathered for the inheritance court case of 1908 the story is a mixture of narrative, witness accounts and memories. Vita writes beautifully and eloquently but also in a way that is very digestible and actually makes one want to read more. It’s the first book I have ever read of Vita’s, but I’m fascinated by her and her life; and my teenage obsession of Virginia means that I know a little of her history but it was lovely to learn more and - as the phrase would have it - from the horse’s mouth.
I think it is even more poignant a portrait of each woman because they are so linked to the writer. Vita draws parallels between the personality traits of Catalina in Victoria and Pepita and - though she doesn’t say it - I can see each of these matriarch’s shining in what I know of Vita’s own personality which did nothing by halves.
I would suggest anyone who has an interest in the story of Vita to read this book. It is not boring, in fact quite the opposite and the insights it gives not only into the genealogy of the Sackville’s but also the social issues of those generations means that it’s a very valuable story. And, at the end of the day, who doesn’t love a story of strong women taking control of their own destinies?
Ratings
Readability || ***
{ Readability: is the book easy to read, does it have simple yet effective language that is accessible and does it have a good flow}
Entirely readable apart from the French and Spanish bits… either get a dictionary or accept that you’ll just need to understand the gist of what is being said.
Structure || *****
Conforming to the required structure of a biography I could find no fault in Vita’s timeline or choice of putting the book together. Everything flowed, all the characters made sense and there was no part where I wondered why it was there or how it had got there.
Decadence || ***
Decadent in that one simply cannot believe that such lives are actually lead by real people. I actually found 90% of this book rather depressing - filled as it was mostly with accounts of expenditure and arguments… but it was utterly fascinating and because it finished with the story of Vita’s mother Victoria who was an utter eccentric with the budget to match her personality it felt decadent when I finished it.
Review Accuracy || ****
I will quote one review I read of this book ‘if you have an ounce of romance in your soul you should read this book’. Apart from that I can only say that I agree wholeheartedly with the majority of the reviews I have found of ‘Pepita’. If you do not know who Vita is, if you have no interest in the history of Knole and if biographies leave you feeling cold - my advice would be to watch ‘Vita and Virginia’ and start from there. Do not ruin for yourself something which is such a pearl.