Life Stories #33: Alexandra Aldrich

Alexandra Aldrich is a direct descendant of the Astor dynasty, but the family fortune had long since evaporated by the time she was born. She grew up with her parents living in the run-down servant quarters of a sprawling mansion, away from the parts that were kept open for tour groups. In The Astor Orphan, she writes about one particular summer when, as the daughter of the black sheep of the family, her circumstances became particularly frustrating, and her desire to break away from her family and its past reached a tipping point...