Audrey: Her Real Story

Bought this book as a gift for my Audrey Obsessed Niece At this price point you would expect something decent but NO thats not what i got the cover was disgraceful and totally unable to be gifted it was a bad ripped photo copy badly covered in plastic and sticky tape i seriously cover my kids school books better then this Very disappointed would not recommend

I have had your used books before & when they arrived they were in just about new condition. This book I bought for my son who hasnt got it yet, but I was surprised to see someone had written numbers on the inside of the book cover & the next page, I dont know if this is also considered as a used book. The book came on time & was suitably packaged.

The author seems to have done scrupulous research, particularly with regard to Hepburn's early years. However, this bio contains more conjecture and fewer direct quotes from Hepburn "insiders" than the Barry Paris book. It also goes into more detail about her early career, her parent's fascist connections, and her relationships with her costars and husbands. Curiously, her adult relationship with her mother is largely ignored by the author. It's entirely possible that Walker had less cooperation from Hepburn's friends, family and associates, because this book is somewhat less flattering than the Barry Paris bio. For example, Walker makes no bones (bad pun) about her alleged off and on battle with anorexia, while Paris blows the rumors off. The author makes one egregious ommission; he fails to note Hepburn's last work, the superb Gardens of the World series for PBS. He notes only a "coffee table book" by that title for which he says Hepburn wrote the text. As she did not write the script for the series, it's unlikely that she would have written the text for any companion book. Gardens of the World does not even appear in the book's index! For credibility's sake, Walker really should correct this error in any future editions. Nevertheless, all in all this is a satisfying read for any fan of Audrey Hepburn. I'd recommend reading both books to get a more balanced view of this great lady.

I'm not someone who usually chooses biographies to read, however, having become fascinated by Audrey Hepburn's early movies I wanted to find out more about this wonderful actress. And this book proved to be an excellent choice. It is extremely informative and, more importantly for me, written in a style which is easy to read and also actually made me laugh out loud in places. The writer has an excellent turn of phrase which can puncture the most self-obsessed actor or lighten the saddest of episodes. The only downside for me, in this paperback edition, was the relatively poor reproduction of the photographs. Then again, there are so many high quality photos available online it doesn't really matter. I shall definitely be seeking out other works by this author.

This was an inspiring read and showed remarkable courage of the Dutch people under German occupation. As a child Audrey lived through some terrible times and yet rose above those difficulties to bring great pleasure to many people as an actress. In her work as an ambassador for UNICEF she had a particular understanding of what it meant to be hungry.