The Astor orphan : a memoir / Alexandra Aldrich.
Author: Aldrich, Alexandra.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: New York : Ecco, c2013.
ISBN: 9780062207937 (hbk.)
0062207938 (hbk.)
Description: x, 259 p. : ill. ; 22 cm.
Subject: Aldrich, Alexandra.
Aldrich, Alexandra Family.
Astor family.
Aldridge family.
Upper class Hudson River Valley (N.Y. and N.J.) Biography.
Hudson River Valley (N.Y. and N.J.) History 21st century Biography.
Contents: Rokeby dreams. The legacy ; Guards of order ; The mentor ; Venison stew ; The Conference ; A meticulous record -- Elements of disorder. Sunday mornings ; The outlaw ; Past perfect -- Artists and drifters. The irregulars ; A seed is planted -- All in a summer's plunder. A parallel universe ; An imported order ; Repossessed ; Indisputable ; Animal wars ; A manly endeavor ; Like proper aristocrats -- Other exiles. Home and away ; Migrations ; Practically orphans ; Into the mouth of Hell ; A dream fulfilled -- In search of self. Blending in ; Interviewed ; The elusive edge.
Summary: Aldrich, a direct descendant of John Jacob Astor, tells the story of her eccentric, fractured family, including her 1980s childhood of bohemian neglect in the squalid attic of Rokeby, the family's Hudson Valley Mansion, and her escape from the clan.
