Phyllis Grosskurth (1924–2015)

It wasn't easy to be a pioneering sexual investigator born in the hey-day of Victorian Britain, particularly not if you were married to a lesbian, and if your own sexual interests focused on "urolagnia" (look it up). But Havelock Ellis was nothing if not resourceful, and he managed to have a full, productive, and generally satisfying life.

Grosskurth isn't a particularly good writer; this biography isn't graceful, and probably contains too much information for most readers. But it gets the job done, and leaves you appreciative of the courage and obstinacy of Ellis, who didn't mind going against the mainstream of British society and culture of his time.… (altro)

3061 Byron:The Flawed Angel, by Phyllis Grosskurth (read 15 Mar 1998) Even though I have read Leslie Marchand's masterful three-volume biography of Byron I decided to read this. I can't say I was overly enthralled by this book. The author really does not spend much time in analysis of Byron's writings, and maybe that is OK for his obscure works, but some of his famous work I thought could have been more thoroughly discussed. Grosskurth is so absorbed in Byron's flamboyant and tumultuous life that the book gives his poetry inadequate attention. But the book was enjoyable in a way though, since there is so much I want to read, I am not sure this was worth reading since Marchand's work covered Byron's life so adequately.… (altro)