Bunny Mellon: The Life of an American Style Legend by Meryl Gordon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I gave this book five stars because I found it to be a well-written, balanced and researched biography of Bunny Mellon, whose influence and philanthropy are legendary, especially in the northern Virginia area. The audio version was beautifully narrated, making it compelling to listen and follow. I was drawn to the biography because I wanted to learn more about the Mellons’ avid art-collecting that characterized their marriage and enriched many museum collections. I found greater value, however, in learning how personal and historic events that transpired during Bunny’s lifetime, spanning more than a century, affected her and, in turn, the impact the Mellons had upon the communities they touched.
While it was difficult for me to relate to some of the capricious extravagances described in the book, or her calculated lifestyle-over-love choices, I admired the grace and determination with which Bunny Mellon became a pre-eminent style-maker, gardener and landscape architect. I enjoyed the descriptions and historical background of familiar places in the area that I have visited and love. I recommend this book for readers interested in learning more about the Mellons in the Virginia Piedmont, and their involvement with the National Gallery. They were very active during the mid-century Kennedy years, and throughout the decades that followed, leading up to the early twenty-first century.
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