Troublemaker: The Fierce, Unruly Life of Jessica Mitford

"Writing about someone like Jessica Mitford is quite an undertaking. The Mitford sisters have gotten a lot of press lately in America, but the way Kaplan approached it was to show how Jessica (who went by the name ‘Decca’) was the black sheep of the family, explain why that was, but then to explain her life without it being contrasted so much against her other sisters. Here, she is actually the important person. Kaplan’s attention to detail in this comprehensive biography gives us insight into this famous Muckraker’s life whose fearless approach to journalism still reverberates today. This book was so well-researched. I know she got files directly from the family, including from Decca’s daughter Dinky. Kaplan doesn’t take a non-traditional approach, but she does change the way we see the Mitford sisters from the inside of her biography. Oh yes. It’s made me so optimistic. Not only because of the books we chose for the shortlist, but for the books I got to read all year round. There are so many important biographies being written right now, so many fascinating ways people are going about it. I can’t wait to read more of them next year."