Mary Astor’s Purple Diary by Edward Sorel
When noted illustrator Edward Sorel renovated a New York City apartment in the 1960s, the linoleum he ripped from the kitchen floor revealed a cache of old newspapers that led to a life-long obsession. The New York Daily News and the New York Mirror of 1936 detailed the scandalous child custody case between silent film star Mary Astor and her husband. Of great interest in the trial was the numerous affairs Mary had with some of the most famous figures of the day. With humor and wit, not to mention 50 of his wonderful illustrations, Sorel weaves Mary’s tale with his own, each with a fascinating, engaging story holding the reader’s interest in an absorbing, entertaining, breezy way.
Ginger, Breakwater Books,
Guilford