Wear and Tear

July 4, 2016
Hollywood costume designer Tynan begins her juicy yet touching memoir by recounting the challenges of growing up in London as the only child of legendary theater critic Kenneth Tynan, creator of the avant-garde revue Oh Calcutta!, and novelist Elaine Dundy, who divorced Kenneth on Tynan's 13th birthday. During breaks from boarding school, Tynan spent most of her time in the U.S. with her mother, who moved to New York to reinvent herself. Tynan was able to detect her mother's alcoholism at a young age and vividly recalls her mother's embarrassing behavior while under the influence. Tynan's love of and fascination with clothing became the guiding force in her life. Descriptions of outfits or items of clothing are woven into the narrative as she recounts encountering family friends such as Orson Welles and Tennessee Williams and becoming attuned to her mother's addiction and her father's well-known penchant for sadomasochism. Tynan captures the hedonism of London in the swinging '60s, and the emotional journey of a survivor.

October 15, 2016

Clothing plays an integral role in this work by writer and film costume designer Tynan (Great Balls of Fire). The child of renowned theater critic Kenneth Tynan and novelist Elaine Dundy, the author's young world was populated with scores of notable family friends (Laurence Olivier, Mary Martin, Katharine Hepburn) in London, New York, and beyond. Both her parents were celebrated for their talents, distinctive dress, and, regrettably, innumerable personal problems. Tynan honestly relates these earliest years, beginning in the 1950s through adulthood, underlining her growing affinity for fashion, a passion that eventually led to a career. VERDICT Tynan presents universal insight and wit in this striking volume that will have a wide appeal. [See Memoir, 4/15/16; ow.ly/D3XI304zY5C.]--Carol J. Binkowski

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