New & Current Releases
Archives: A-Z By Title
Archives: A-Z By Author
Advanced Search

All-Time High Scores
Best Of 2006
Best Of 2005
Best Of 2004
How Metascores Are Calculated
Discuss Books In Our Forums

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed books.

February House
The Story Of W. H. Auden, Carson McCullers, Jane And Paul Bowles, Benjamin Britten, And Gypsy Rose Lee, Under One Roof In Wartime America
by Sherill Tippins


9.6

based on 17 reviews
read critic reviews
how did we calculate this?

based on 3 votes
read user comments
rate this book

Compare prices at pricegrabber.com

Buy it at powells.com

Buy it at amazon.com

Buy it at amazon.co.uk

Official Publisher Site

If there were a reality show for the literary crowd, it would look something like February House. In 1940 and 1941, a group of writers, poets, composers, artists and burlesque performers shared a Brooklyn brownstone, and Tippins' book recounts their days of communal living (and, in some cases, loving), as well as their parties, relationships, discussions, and creative work during this period.

Houghton Mifflin, 224 pages
02/01/2005
$24.00

ISBN: 061841911X

Nonfiction
Biographies & Memoirs
History
Literary Criticism

All reviews are classified as one of five grades: Outstanding (4 points), Favorable (3), Mixed (2), Unfavorable (1) and Terrible (0). To calculate the Metascore, we divide total points achieved by the total points possible (i.e., 4 x the number of reviews), with the resulting percentage (multiplied by 100) being the Metascore. Learn more...

The Globe And Mail [Toronto] Lynn Crosbie

February House is a compelling serial biography that never falters in either its acuity or depth of its exploration. In macrocosm, it is the work of a literary architect, who has rebuilt this house from foundation to roof, with each gaudy Victorian exterior and interior detail intact. [9 April 2005, D5]

Booklist Allison Block

Tippins masterfully blends fact, drama, and dish in this tale of young artists who pursued the truth "before the events of history blew out the illuminating candle."

Boston Globe Denis Donoghue

A tremendous amount of research lies behind February House, and despite the fact that it doesn't always cohere as well as it might, it truly is an engrossing tale.

Kirkus Reviews

A lively literary history with some surprising depth. [1 Dec. 2004, p. 1140]

Library Journal Ron Ratliff

[A] fascinating literary history about a group of artists living together at a turbulent time; the only disappointment is learning that the house is no longer standing. [1 Feb. 2005, p.80]

New York Observer Jean Nathan

[A] tremendous amount of research lies behind February House, and despite the fact that it doesn't always cohere as well as it might, it truly is an engrossing tale. [14 Feb. 2005, p. 20]

San Francisco Chronicle Brenn Jones

Rather than focus on the conflicts of the house, Tippins focuses on the characters' contradictions and internal struggles. The biographical heft that grounds the narrative also skews it some -- as it turns out, most of the drama in these artists' lives was outside the sphere of their cohabitation.

The New York Times Book Review Amanda Vaill

If Tippins, a former television producer, does not always manage to make a convincing case for 7 Middagh Street as a vital creative crucible... she nonetheless makes a deliciously readable one. [6 Feb. 2005 p. 8]

The New Yorker

Tippins's book is a cozy, gossipy read, punctuated by solid, if perfunctory, literary criticism. [7 March 2005, p. 78]

Washington Post Dennis Drabelle

Overall, this is a bracing story. A number of gifted artists came together, stimulated one another and got started on important works. The house itself has long since been demolished, but Sherill Tippins has rebuilt it with intelligence and charm. [13 Feb. 2005, T4]

Publishers Weekly

This enjoyable and well-paced read should appeal to anyone interested in 1940s American intelligentsia and Brooklyn history alike.

Houston Chronicle Michael J. Bandler

Ultimately, the personalities are what make this slice of literary history so tasty.

Daily Telegraph Philip Hensher

Just as breathless and entertaining as you could wish.

The Independent Michael Arditti

Tippins's highly original and entertaining piece of literary detective work unearths the creative, emotional and sexual struggles of this eccentric household.

Daily Telegraph Claire Harman

Her synthesising of the available material and thorough recreation of the historical background is excellent. But somehow her tone seems brighter than the story would merit, for it is really a war story about displaced persons of one kind or another.

TLS: The Times Literary Supplement Peter Parker

Although Tippins usually writes more coherently than this, some of her would be literary flourishes go badly awry... Even so, Sherill Tippins has a fascinating story to tell and her book stands as a welcome contribution to the cultural history of the twentieth century.

Los Angeles Times Linda Yellen

"February House" might have worked better as a shorter, tighter piece -- say, an extended Vanity Fair article -- without losing any of the gained insights. [30 Jan. 2005, R9]

The average user rating for this book is 9.6 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

James gave it a9:
Solidly crafted. Many insights. In the summer of 1946, George Davis (my uncle) and my family and I walked acorss the Brooklyn Bridge. I was youngster then, but I remember how we loitered on the bridge. The view probably had great meaning for my uncle, who by that time was living up on East 86th Street in a magnificent brownstone on the south side of the street, in the 300 block, if memory serves me correctly. The book brought back a time and a place that were even then no longer in existence.

Rachel H gave it a10:
I've just come back from a visit in the US and went o Brooklyn Heights to see Middagh ST. Coming home I read the book seeing it all in front of me. Amazing book! I learnt so much about the artists whose work I love, like Auden, Britten and Klaus Mann. And also the others: so intersting to find out about those behind their works. Thank you, Sherill Tippins!

Eileen K gave it a10:
Historical synthesis is beautifully conveyed in this treasure.

Discuss this book in our forums

Return to top of page

February House The Story Of W. H. Auden, Carson McCullers, Jane And Paul Bowles, Benjamin Britten, And Gypsy Rose Lee, Under One Roof In Wartime America by Sherill Tippins

February House
The Story Of W. H. Auden, Carson McCullers, Jane And Paul Bowles, Benjamin Britten, And Gypsy Rose Lee, Under One Roof In Wartime America
by Sherill Tippins