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Savage Grace: The True Story of Fatal Relations in a Rich and Famous American Family | 
 enlarge | Authors: Natalie Robins, Steven M Aronson
Publisher: Touchstone
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
Buy New: $8.95
You Save: $7.00 (44%)
New (20) Used (8) from $8.75
Avg. Customer Rating:  12 reviews
Sales Rank: 15438
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 512
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.4 x 1.3
ISBN: 1416572961
Dewey Decimal Number: 364.1
EAN: 9781416572961
ASIN: 1416572961
Publication Date: December 18, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Over 600,000 Feedbacks Posted!!! BRAND-NEW IN-HOUSE READY TO SHIP!!! NOT A REMAINDER, BARGAIN OR BOOK CLUB BOOK!!! WE ARE A FIVE-STAR SELLER!!!
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Product Description
A spellbinding tale of money and madness, incest and matricide, Savage Grace is the saga of Brooks and Barbara Baekeland -- beautiful, rich, worldly -- and their handsome, gentle son, Tony. Alternately neglected and smothered by his parents, he was finally driven to destroy the whole family in a violent chain of events.Savage Grace unfolds against a glamorous international background (New York, London, Paris, Italy, Spain); features a nonpareil cast of characters (including Salvador Dali, James Jones, the Astors, the Vanderbilts, and European nobility); and tells the doomed Baekelands' story through remarkably candid interviews, private letters, and diaries, not to mention confidential hospital, State Department, and prison documents. A true-crime classic, it exposes the envied lives of the rich and beautiful, and brilliantly illuminates the darkest corners of the American Dream.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 7 more reviews...
 Loved it! July 14, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I bought this book for beach reading, and was buried in it until the last page. I could not put it down. Contrary to what some have said, I found the format very easy to follow, and in fact very creatively composed. Just when you're scratching your head about something, it's answered in the next entry. Coincidentally, after reading through the first few pages, I came to find out that one of the main contributors used to be my landlady- not long after the book was originally published. I thought she was wacky back then, and now I realize that she was from a world far weirder than I could have ever imagined! This book is definitely a testament to the saying, truth is stranger than fiction.... MUCH stranger!
 This is not a biography July 13, 2008
A biography is written by an author, a biographer. This is a compilation of transcribed interviews and letters. This book was not written, it was compiled. An amazing family tragedy, however the format of the book made it confusing, boring and frustrating to read. Oh if only Dominick Dunne had chosen to write about this family, a page turner it would have been. Don't waste your money.
Savage Grace July 8, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
An appropriate title for this book. Very interesting indeed--made even more so by the fact that this is true. This is a nightmarish tale of a "Mama's Boy". This story has everything. Insanity, murder, obscession, betrayal, jealousy, wealth, homosexuality, even incest. With parents like these, no wonder Antony Baekeland snapped. I enjoyed it thoroughly, even though it is not written in a traditional way. Taken from slices of interviews, journals, and documents, this book is a great read. Very interesting, however it is not for everyone. If strange family relations are not for you, stay away. If you are of the stereotype that incest only happens in the south (which is untrue anyway), and not to wealthy, "normal" jet-setting families, this is not to you.
"Mommie Dearest" without the eyebrows July 7, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I could not, and didnt want to put this book down. A consistant page turner. The style in which it is presented is easy to grasp and far from confusing as stated by other reviewers. The unique style of presentaion makes the "voices" come to life as if the recollections were taking place with the reader right there. The movie starring Julieanne Moore is not to be missed. "Mommie Dearest" without the eyebrows. rent it on pay perview or IFC-In-Demand until the DVD is released.
Its about the characters July 3, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This was truly a fantastic book. Many will say they dislike the format, and I will agree it can be confusing (a Baekland family tree might have been helpful) but to state that these characters do not matter is an unfair judgment. The characters are absolutely astounding the way they interact. And the format plays to the benefit of the story, because it hints that the real truth will be forever lost, and additionally because all of the characters tell their version of one event so one can see the true motivations of each character. Such as Brooks Baekland (Tony's father) who strives to be a dashing intellectual, at which he arguably succeeds in doing, protects the family name through a blatant yet subtle ostracization (I think thats a word) of his wife and son. Then one can see where the actions and feelings of Tony are coming from. This book was utterly fantastic and I would suggest it to anyone. This is not so much historical True Crime, it is a deep delve into the psychologies of the old-money aristocracy.
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