Time to Be in Earnest: A Fragment of Autobiography

Fans of James' mysteries will relish this autobiography: a personal memoir which takes the form of a diary of a single year of her life. From reflections on her writing career and topics to the evolution of her style and opinions on modern times, this provides readers and prior fans with an intriguing glimpse into her personal life.

Diane C. Donovan

It's wonderful to read this autobiography and learn what the Baroness P.D. James does from day to day over the relatively short period covered in this work. It's intelligent and witty and full of great photos of family and friends--there is one particularly nice shot of Miss James and Ruth Rendell. After reading all her great mysteries, it was a pleasure to read how she puts her books together and weaves the rest of her life around her work. Easily worth five stars! Thanks....

As an avid fan of PD James's pyschological thrillers, I was looking forward to a good read from her "fragment of autobiography". Ms James wrote a memoir for one year - the year of her 77th birthday. It is both a daily diary and a reflection of the past - both personal and historic and has commentary on her writing and books. I found it mostly interesting, but at times very dry. Perhaps we are conditioned to expect too much in the way of personal anguish to be satisfied with bare bones, but I felt that was what we were mostly given. I would recommend it for Ms James'fans, but perhaps not more widely.

P.D. James, the renowned crime novelist, has given us a fragment in the life, "a year that otherwise might be lost not only to children...but with the onset of the dreaded Alzheimer's, lost also to me" (the author). This engaging but all too brief memoir tells of the author's moving experiences (parent's unhappy marriage, a husband doctor returning insane after WWII, etc.) paired with the author's uplifting experiences (career in the Police and Criminal Law Department which explains her detailed knowledge of forensics as shown in her fiction, children and grandchildren, etc.). The current that runs beneath these experiences is her moral philosophy - her belief in the power of traditional institutions and a powerful explanation of her fascination with murder and violence. Indeed, a rewarding experience, especially for avid readers of James' novels.