From Publishers Weekly
No one ever expected the youngest son of financier William Mellon to establish and manage a hospital in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. But that is exactly what William Larimer (Larry) Mellon Jr. did during the last 35 years of his life (he attended medical school in his 40s). In this double biography, ParisAwho himself makes a surprising turn from Hollywood biography (Audrey Hepburn, Garbo, etc.)A beautifully, if somewhat uncritically tells the story of Larry, his second wife, Gwen, and their hospital in Haiti. Taking a page from the Mellons' lifelong passion for music, Paris organizes the entire book, from its "Overture" to its "Finale," around a musical theme. Drawing on extensive interviews with GwenAwho, now in her 80s, has been running the hospital since her husband's death in 1989Aas well as on Larry's private journals and his correspondence with Dr. Albert Schweitzer, Paris crafts a moving and largely sympathetic portrait. He also traces the history of the vast array of community development projects the Mellons initiated, arguing that the couple dedicated their uncommon lives and fortune to Schweitzer's motto "Help life where you find it." Along the way he provides plenty of relevant photos and helpful background: a history of Haiti, the story of the Mellon dynasty and an assessment of voodooAhe calls it "a largely positive force with no particular agenda and without the proselytizing (or televangelical abuses) of Christianity." Inspirational and dramatic, this book fills in a long-forgotten gap in the history of both American philanthropy and compassionate humanity. (June) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
As in his other acclaimed biographies (Garbo, Audrey Hepburn), Paris captures the passion of lives well lived. In what is essentially a love story about Larimer and Gwen Mellon, he tells of the couple's transition from the world of high finance (Larimer was the youngest son of banker William Mellon) to service as healthcare providers in one of the "neediest spots" in the world. Inspired by the medical missionary work of Albert Schweitzer in Africa, the Mellons made a mid-life decision to devote their energies to building a hospital and serving the poor in Haiti's Artibonite Valley. Larry, who graduated from medical school in his mid-forties and served in Haiti until his death, is presented as a reflective renegade; Gwen, now in her eighties and still working in Haiti, is seen as a feisty Mother Teresa. After three years of researching private journals and unpublished correspondence and conducting extensive interviews, Paris has written a definitive exploration of the Mellons' impact not only on the episodic healthcare of Haiti but on tropical medicine research and public sanitation reforms. This is not just a biography but a gem of medical anthropological literature. Recommended for all collections in public and academic libraries alike.DRebecca Cress-Ingebo, Fordham Health Sciences Lib., Wright State Univ., Dayton Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Book Description
This moving story of a couple who left a life of wealth and luxury to found a hospital in rural Haiti is a vibrant and inspiring portrait of a marriage, of two cultures, and of the practice of medicine in the Third World. The youngest of the sons of William L. Mellon, Larimer Mellon seemed destined to follow his father and uncles into a life of high finance and wealth accumulation. But Larry Mellon was made of different stuff. Graduating from medical school in his mid-forties, Mellon and his wife Gwen, a medical lab technician, left their comfortable Arizona ranch and moved to poverty-stricken Haiti. In the Artibonite Valley, where life expectancy was the lowest in the hemisphere, they built the Albert Schweitzer Hospital. Larry Mellon served as a physician there for the rest of his life. And Gwen Mellon, now in her eighties, still lives in Haiti and works for the hospital. Written by an acclaimed biographer, Song of Haiti bridges the worlds of the super-rich and the very poor and finds in a lonely valley in Haiti a mystery, a love story, and an inspiration. 24pp. photos.


About the Author
Barry Paris is a biographer, film historian, music and art critic, and linguist. He writes for The New Yorker and Vanity Fair and is a contributing editor of Art and Antiques. His biographies of Louise Brooks, Audrey Hepburn, and Greta Garbo are considered the definitive works on their subjects.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Song of Haiti is the story of Larry and Gwen Mellon and of the passion that inspired them to leave behind a world of luxury and instead devote their lives to the practice of medicine among the poorest of the poor. It is a book about the exotic and haunting cultural landscape of Haiti. And it is a book that explores how people choose to live their lives. Song of Haiti bridges the worlds of the super-rich and the very poor and finds in a remote valley in Haiti a mystery, a love story, and an inspiration.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

No one ever expected the youngest son of financier William Mellon to establish and manage a hospital in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. But that is exactly what William Larimer (Larry) Mellon Jr. did during the last 35 years of his life (he attended medical school in his 40s). In this double biography, Paris--who himself makes a surprising turn from Hollywood biography (Audrey Hepburn, Garbo, etc.)-- beautifully, if somewhat uncritically tells the story of Larry, his second wife, Gwen, and their hospital in Haiti. Taking a page from the Mellons' lifelong passion for music, Paris organizes the entire book, from its "Overture" to its "Finale," around a musical theme. Drawing on extensive interviews with Gwen--who, now in her 80s, has been running the hospital since her husband's death in 1989--as well as on Larry's private journals and his correspondence with Dr. Albert Schweitzer, Paris crafts a moving and largely sympathetic portrait. He also traces the history of the vast array of community development projects the Mellons initiated, arguing that the couple dedicated their uncommon lives and fortune to Schweitzer's motto "Help life where you find it." Along the way he provides plenty of relevant photos and helpful background: a history of Haiti, the story of the Mellon dynasty and an assessment of voodoo--he calls it "a largely positive force with no particular agenda and without the proselytizing (or televangelical abuses) of Christianity." Inspirational and dramatic, this book fills in a long-forgotten gap in the history of both American philanthropy and compassionate humanity. (June) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

Library Journal