A review of All Sorts of Lives by Claire Harman

For genius structure: If anything can add (even more) depth to Katherine Mansfield’s short stories it is this biography of her short and troubled life. Harman oh-so-brilliantly divided every chapter into two parts: a Mansfield short story followed by a slice of the life Mansfield lived before or during its creation. Like a maypole dance, Harman chronologically weaves the ribbons of Mansfield’s experiences and fiction without ever tangling the two. Harman is a seasoned biographer of women’s lives, a short story writer, and a professor of Creative Writing. Can she write anything more outstanding than All Sorts of Lives? Step aside, Katherine Mansfield, I want to study Claire Harman.

Available to buy at All Sorts of Lives by Claire Harman | Waterstones