To The Manor Born by Mary Lloyd Estrin

Maybe I'm just imagining this—but it seems like this decade has produced a (relative) abundance of photo books centering around the marriage of style and wealth, particularly focusing around the 1970s. A few examples being the late Town & Country photographer Slim Aaron's three books: Once Upon A Time, A Place in the Sun, and his most recent publication Poolside with Slim Aarons. Then there's A Privileged Life: Celebrating Wasp Style by Susanna Salk, Mr. Classic, The Last Mrs. Astor: A New York Story, and Ricky Lauren's book—and that's not even counting design books like Island Life by India Hicks and In the Pink. So I've made my point, there's a lot of Wasp style books being published. The most focused, most telling, most exposing photo book I've ever seen on the subject however is a 1979, now out of print, chronicle of Lake Forest, Illinois residents by Mary Lloyd Estrin. To The Manor Born was given to my parents as a gift in the mid 1990s as a joke (I believe the inscription reads something like "shoot me if I ever look like this") and ever since I've been infatuated with the candor of Estrin's subjects. I can't believe this book is out of print, but you can still buy used copies ($27-$129) on Amazon.



Love those Bertoia Diamond Chairs.