D. H. Lawrence: A Personal Record

This is the classic account of D. H. Lawrence’s childhood and youth, written by Jessie Chambers, the girl who was the model for Miriam Leivers in Sons and Lovers. It was written and published after Lawrence’s death, partly in reaction to Middleton Murry’s Son of Woman. Jessie Chambers wanted to present her direct and very clear understanding of Lawrence’s nature, both against Murry’s second-hand psychologising and against Lawrence’s own account in Sons and Lovers. Chambers effectively launched Lawrence’s literary career by sending his work to the English Review. Though her rejection and what she saw as his misrepresentation of her in Sons and Lovers wounded her deeply, she was large-minded enough to write this profoundly understanding account. She had written a novel under the pseudonym Eunice Temple. The name was reduced to its initials for this book, which shows a clear firm mind and a natural gift for writing.