Diana in Search of Herself

Diana in Search of Herself: Portrait of a Troubled Princess is one of the books about Diana, Princess of Wales. The book was written by best-selling author Sally Bedell Smith and was published by the Times Books in 1999.[1][2] The book is the first authoritative biography of the Princess.[3]

Diana in Search of Herself: Portrait of a Troubled Princess
AuthorSally Bedell Smith
LanguageEnglish
GenreBiography
PublisherTimes Books
Publication date
1999
Media typePrint
Pages320
ISBN0-8129-3030-4

Content

The 320-page book focuses on troubled life of Princess Diana.[2][4] Smith interviewed nearly 150 people whose reports are used in the book to narrate the life of the Princess.[5] These people were mainly Diana's intimates, including British tabloid journalists.[6]

The most significant claim made in the book is that the Princess had suffered from borderline personality disorder.[2][7] It is also claimed that she could not fix her serious eating disorder and was not able to manage to sustain relationships.[8]

Sales

The book was included in the best seller lists of the following: The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today Top 50, The Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, Newsday, Barnes & Noble and Publishers Weekly.[9]

Reception

Linda L. Richards of the January Magazine stated that the book provides an unbiased portrait of the Princess.[4] In a similar vein, the Newsweek review of the book indicated "Smith has done a remarkable job extracting what's genuinely pertinent and interesting about Diana...If you're going to read one Diana book, this should be it."[9]

On the other hand, the author was criticized by Dorothy Packer-Fletcher because of her claim that Diana had been experiencing borderline personality disorder.[10][11] Packer-Fletcher suggested that in order to establish this diagnosis there should have been psychiatric examination.[10] She further argued that the author's statement was harmful because it was a "posthumous diagnosis of mental illness".[10]

The book became a bestseller and was also cited as controversial.[11]

References
  1. "Diana in Search of Herself". The New York Times. 1999. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  2. "Diana's Last Loves". People. 52 (7). 23 August 1999.
  3. Sally Bedell Smith (1999). Diana in Search of Herself: Portrait of a Troubled Princess. ISBN 0812930304.
  4. Linda L. Richards (August 1999). "The Final Word?". January Magazine.
  5. Elaine Cassell. "Diana: In Search of Herself". Psych on the Shelves.
  6. Joseph P. Kahn (12 September 1999). "Portrait of a Troubled Princess". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  7. Margaret Moser (30 August 1999). "The Huntress Captured by the Game". Weekly Wire. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  8. "Diana in Search of Herself". Publishers Weekly. 8 January 1999. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  9. "Praise and Reviews". S. Bedell Smith. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  10. Dorothy Packer-Fletcher (February 2000). "Book Review". Psychiatric Services. 51 (2): 259–260. doi:10.1176/appi.ps.51.2.259.
  11. Deirdre Donahue (29 January 2012). "'Elizabeth' Shows Many Facets of Britain's Queen". Tribune-Review/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
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