This
work gives an insider's, in-law view of the family Freud, its
foundations, and flaws. The relationship between Esti, daughter of a
wealthy Vienna attorney and her husband Martin Freud is foreshadowed by
the young lovers' fathers. At first meeting Esti, Sigmund told his son
the glamorous woman was "too beautiful" for the clan, meaning her
splendor belied a lifestyle not conducive to the frugal Freud ways. And
Esti's father, on hearing of her love for Martin, expressed regret she
was involved with a man who was "not a financially favorable linkage,"
and that his family was not respectable since patriarch Sigmund was
"just another psychiatrist, and one who writes pornography books at
that." Thus begins the ill-fated relationship that would rock two
families and a generation of children to come. Sophie weaves into the
text letters she inherited, including letters from Martin while he was
a prisoner of war, and excerpts from her own diary, kept as an
adolescent. The resulting mosaic will fascinate--and perhaps
disturb--readers interested in Freud and psychoanalysis, as well as
those intrigued by relationships and family.