TJ's Reviews > Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune

This book was recommended to me by a friend, who informed me that it dealt with many of the places and people near where I live. So, there needs to be a bit of background for this review.

Right above all the popular volleyball nets on the beach in Santa Barbara (CA) lies a fabulous mansion. It can’t be seen readily but all the locals knows it’s there. The curiosity has always been keen, however, because no one really knows anything about it. Most who live in the area are familiar and pretty nonchalant about all the huge houses because so many celebrities occupy them. So one where no one ever goes in or out and there are no signs of life ever does catch our attention. Especially since it occupies an absolutely idyllic area - right next to the cemetery (arguably the most beautiful cemetery known to man considering it overlooks the Pacific Ocean) and looking down on one of the most stunning beaches in Southern California.

This book unravels that mystery and boy is it an odd whopper! It’s the true story of Huguette Clark, the reclusive, heiress daughter of W.A. Clark (the copper baron). W.A. became one of the top three richest men in THE WORLD at the turn of the 20th century, right up there with Carnegie and Rockefeller. So why is he not just as well-known? Well, he didn’t leave any of his money to philanthropic causes like libraries, or name New York Centers, squares and buildings after himself.

This story is one of the most interesting biographies I have read in a Looong time! It is written in such an easy to read style, yet its extensive research shows through as the engrossing facts come to life. It encompasses life from the wilds of Butte, Montana to the overtly wealthy 5th Ave, to the opulent mansions of the Northeast and Midwest, all the way to the warmth of that Santa Barbara palatial mystery.

Although a bit slow to start while the reader is filled in on how all that wealth came to be, it really takes off once Huguette comes to the page. The authors never shy away from the foibles of the family, yet are able to keep a sympathetic tone that endears the readers to this woman, in spite of the excesses. I would highly recommend the book to anyone who enjoys American history, the Industrial Revolution and the Uber-wealth it created or for those who just love a touching story about a very shy girl who inherited the world.