Women born and bred to be nothing more than wives, mothers, arm candy or trophies. Damaged men and women who either ignore or overwhelm their children. Sex with each others husbands despite the friendships. Truths about their pasts shushed up, like the makeup hiding scars. The perfect wife with a staff of many to do the cooking and cleaning. What a leader Babe Paley could have been had she not been so programmed by her mother! She may not have had the education she deserved or wanted, but she was bright and clever. But that was the generation -- so I suppose they all did the best they could with what they had at the time. The best clothes, jewels, art, furnishings, homes and travel -- and yet none of them seem all that fulfilled. Dig a bit and at least CZ Guest has her gardens and horses, and a farmer's tan while in a fancy ball gown. And a more discreet and practical approach to life. Pamela Harriman uses her position and seduction skills to work her way into a place in the diplomatic core. The rest are 'fashion icons' or 'it girls.' A couple of them really only average pretty. How terribly sad. So much waste. The bulk of them were so bored they played with the devil and got burned. Katherine Graham and CZ Guest -- the only two who I wish I could have met. 
 And then there's the devil. Capote. He had talent, intellectual capacity, drive, ambition, focus -- and he broke. And he threw it all away. But he really was a selfish, warped little turd. He really didn't understand friendship or human nature as well as he thought he did. 
 But like not trusting a gossipy gay guy, I don't really trust this book. It's too sweet and cloying ... like too too many expensive heavy perfumes around a lunch table. Too much artistic license? Is it a true picture or one just cobbled together from decades of gossip columns? 
 It was a disappointment. I put it down with the feeling that the author's own fascination was satisfied, but nothing new or valuable came into my life because of this book. 
 I do wonder about the final three left standing ... even though two were a bit younger. Lee Radizwill, Gloria Vanderbilt, and Marcella Agnelli. It seems they all three took something from their life as swans and found more purpose.