Giving the daughters of the famous Churchill family their due, The Churchill Sisters: The Extraordinary Lives of Winston and Clementine's Daughters by Rachel Trethewey sheds new and fascinating light on the drama, passion and tragedy surrounding Diana, Sarah, Marigold and Mary, and the pivotal role each played in their father's illustrious political career, before and during World War II through the postwar years. Marigold did not survive to adulthood, her loss a permanent scar on the family's psyche.
The Churchill Sisters features intimate family scenes set against the resplendent backdrop of Chartwell, the family's home in Kent, and the mutual devotion between Churchill and his daughters reveals a tender, unexpected side of the great politician. The sisters, intelligent and politically astute, traveled with their father to historic world events as his confidantes and informal advisers. Capturing with sensitivity Diana and Sarah's mental health struggles and the tragic impact of their mother's emotionally distant parenting, Trethewey also includes plenty of what she calls "country-house colour" in the sisters' stories. Their glamorous cousins, the Mitford girls, make sparkling appearances throughout the book.
Trethewey (Before Wallis), an accomplished British journalist, author and historian, draws on hundreds of previously unpublished family letters to delve into the complex sibling and familial dynamics and personal challenges that shaped the sisters' destinies. This richly drawn, gorgeously written group biography is the first-ever account devoted to Churchill's daughters. Diana, Sarah and Mary are ultimately defined by their attempts to establish meaningful lives of their own, away from their charismatic parents and the demands of living up to their famous name. --Shahina Piyarali, reviewer