B-Berry and I Look Back
| Company type | Book |
|---|---|
| Industry | Literature |
| Founded | 1958 |
| Founder | Dornford Yates (Cecil William Mercer) |
| Products | Fictionalized memoir |
B-Berry and I Look Back represents the second installment of fictionalized memoirs authored by English writer Dornford Yates (Cecil William Mercer), released in 1958. This work features the well-known 'Berry' ensemble—Berry, Daphne, Boy, Jill, and Jonah—and serves as a sequel to the 1952 publication As Berry and I Were Saying, marking Yates's final literary contribution.
Contents
The author clarifies that the volume contains authentic memories embedded within a fictional framework, stressing that "the memories themselves are strictly true and that I have exaggerated nothing." The book begins with a narrative reminiscent of earlier 'Berry' stories before transitioning into a reflective format akin to that of its predecessor. It closes with an epilogue styled as a letter from the servant Bridget Ightham, who recounts her retirement life alongside Berry & Co in Portugal.
Critical reception
According to Yates's biographer AJ Smithers, the work is a "patch-work" comprising brief vignettes involving the Bar, theatre, and London entertainment venues now largely vanished. Critics have described these memoirs as "denunciations of the changing times," presenting strongly subjective perspectives that idealize the past while critiquing the post-war era, notwithstanding assertions of factual accuracy.