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Join us for a visit by Anna Mathias, traveling from the United Kingdom totrace her mother's cross-country road trip, which made headlines everywhere she went, and share the story behind *The Greyhound Diary, *which Anna edited. Her mother, British aristocrat Judy Montagu, cousin to Winston Churchill, had enlisted at the age of 18 to become a Captain in Gunnery, directing anti-aircraft defence for the British Army. Demobilised in 1946, Judy set out in search of fun and freedom in America. In 1949, determined to understand the United States more deeply, she embarked on a three-month tour of the country by Greyhound bus.
Thanks to introductions from friends such as Joseph Alsop and Minnie Astor, at each stop Judy met newspaper editors, political leaders, and celebrities. She performed in a rodeo in Texas, had tea with Mary Pickford in Hollywood, and sought to understand the American identity in every encounter. Springfield and Chicago were Judy’s last stops, and having corresponded with Adlai Stevenson throughout her journey he invited her to stay at the Gubernatorial Mansion, where she fell in love with him, an
affair that would continue into the mid 1950’s.
“Adlai Stevenson came bustling in. He’s a smallish man with a strong face and piercing bright blue eyes surrounded by lines of great charm and humour…[he] is by far the most exceptional man I’ve met…he gives one the feeling also of overpowering fairness and justice…” ––Judy Montagu
Anna is a dual citizen via her father, the noted critic, photographer and diarist, Milton Gendel (his are edited by editor-at-large Cullen Murphy and published by FSG as *Just Passing Through: A Seven-Decade Roman Holiday: The Diaries and Photographs of Milton Gendel,* one of *Vanity Fair’s* Best Books of 2022), and a wonderful storyteller about her childhood in this extraordinary family and their circle of close friends, which included
Princess Margaret.
"I hugely enjoyed *The Greyhound Diary.* Judy Montagu writes with a wit and fluency that not only brings her attractive character alive, but also conjures up the sights and smells and manners of the southern states of America as they existed nearly eighty years ago. Superbly edited by Anna Mathias, this fascinating and original book is a gem for anyone who enjoys
diaries, travel writing, and social history." –– Robert Harris, author of *Precipice* and *Conclave*, whose books have sold over ten million copies.
This will be a very special event--we hope you can be part of it!
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1774 2nd St, Highland Park, IL, United States
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