The Fall of the House of Wilde

Vivid and meticulously researched ... The name of Wilde stands for what is singular, independent-minded and fearless . Words that also describe this splendid book -- Frances Wilson * The Mail on Sunday * A valuable addition to the scholarly reclamation of the Wilde name ... The Fall of the House of Wilde does justice to the name * Irish Times * O'Sullivan vividly evokes the cultural vitalities Oscar inherited from the house he was born into ... Hugely readable -- John Sutherland * The Times * Emer O'Sullivan has made an indispensable contribution to Wildean literature. She goes back to the beginning and finds out where Oscar came from. Where he really came from. O'Sullivan's detailed portraits of Wilde's father, mother, and brother are, at every page, compelling, informative, and fascinating-especially to one who made the vain mistake of thinking he just about knew it all. The meticulous scholarship and insight she brings are fantastically valuable . . . This is a book that reminds us how very unlikely it is that a genius will be born in a vacuum: Oscar was, O'Sullivan demonstrates, every inch his parents' child. -- Stephen Fry Every era has the biography writer it deserves. The Fall of the House of Wilde presents its subject for the age of Siddhartha Mukherjee's The Gene * Times Literary Supplement * Elegantly articulated * Spectator * Engaging * Sunday Telegraph *