Testament of Friendship The Story of Winifred Holtby by Vera Brittain

Testament of Friendship

The Story of Winifred Holtby

Vera Brittain

Published 1940

English Biography

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After extremely enjoying Testament of Youth, by Vera Brittain, I was encouraged to read Testament of Friendship, also by the same author. Brittain has a deeply emotional writing style, which I like, and she does not disappoint in this fairly long biography about her intimate relationship with Winifred Holtby. 

They met at college (1919) and flourished into a genuine friendship until Holtby's death in 1935. If you do the math, you will see they only had about fifteen years to grow together, but it was so full of experience and history that it was equal to a lifetime. Brittain said of their relationship, 

Although we didn't exactly grow up together, we grew mature together, and that is the next best thing.

You could say they were cut from the same cloth: both were history majors and both became journalists, authors, lecturers, and activists. They travelled together and were roommates for a while. When Brittain married, Holtby lived with Vera, her husband, and their children. They also encouraged and inspired each other in their careers and private lives, which actually weren't so private since they knew everything about each other. Both women were essential parts of each other's lives.

Just a sidebar: My children and I are reading about Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and I chuckled to find her companionship with Susan B. Anthony and the parallels of their passions extremely similar to Brittain's and Holtby's relationship and inspirations. Stanton was the married mother, like Brittain, and Anthony remained single, like Holtby. Anthony was so close to Stanton and her children that she was known as "auntie," just like Holtby was. 

Back to Testament of Friendship...there was much history in this biography: the attack on England during the War, conditions of post-WWI Europe, the problems with the League of Nations, the state of English occupied South Africa, the issues of feminism, and so much more. Brittain purposefully used the opportunity to give a thorough picture of the historical setting of her friendship.

I finished this book a few months ago and found it wasn't as intense as Testament of Youth, the powerful memoir of Brittain's experience during WWI. Friendship does not compare to Testament. Instead, I was left smiling and coveting that Holtby left such an impression on Brittain, inspiring her to write and paint a most beautiful picture of their relationship. It should make all of us wish for such a friendship with another human being. I suppose that is what I take away most from having read this. 

I did wonder the validity of their platonic relationship, and apparently I was not the only one. Brittain denied any questions about a lesbian romance, and frankly, it is not important because it is their business. But there was no denying that they cared intimately for one another, and their friendship was a blessing to have during life's greatest trials of war, heartbreak, pain, and suffering. We need to have more friendships like this.

SHOULD YOU READ THIS?

If you like biographies, memoirs, history, feminism, and poetry -- Holtby was a poet -- and you appreciate deeply emotional narratives (told at a slower pace), then you may like this story about love, life, and friendship.