Do Admit
The Mitford Sisters and Me
by Mimi Pond
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Pub Date Sep 16 2025 | Archive Date Nov 15 2025
Drawn & Quarterly | Drawn and Quarterly
Description
Mimi Pond crafts a gorgeous, dazzling biography of the Mitford Sisters
Born with pedigrees but without the pocketbooks to match, The Mitfords were certainly no strangers to lies, intrigue, or scandal. Nancy, Pamela, Diana, Unity, Jessica, and Deborah. All six sisters were weaned on their family’s well-documented upper class eccentricities: a ne’er do well would-be entrepreneur father; a stern, stiff-upper-lipped mother; a revolving door of governesses of varying propriety, all against the backdrop of a crumbling estate falling into disrepair.
The sisters grew from cloistered turn-of-the-century country girls into debutantes who would marry into political influence—for better or worse. Is it any wonder that a young, working class Mimi in Southern California becomes enamored with The Mitfords’ downright fanciful rich-and-famous lifestyle? This charming, inventively cartooned, and lovingly researched biography captures the dramatic, over-the-top antics of high society’s strongest personalities as they rubbed elbows with some of history’s most infamous fascists and communists.
Pond’s genius for classic cartooning in the vein of the Vanity Fair caricature and the satirical illustrations of Charles Addams brings the aesthetic decadence of the 1920s and ‘30s to life with effortless aplomb, warts and all.
Advance Praise
"A spectacular, dizzying romp through the tumult of the twentieth century. Her kinetic drawings and boisterous, endlessly inventive layouts somehow bring coherence to the sprawling, branching plots of her subjects’ lives. The visual world Pond creates is phantasmagoric, drawing on deep veins of vintage graphic design. And her grip on the words is equally deft. She’s clearly spent so much time steeping in the rich textual legacy that this family has left the world—their books, letters and secret family lingo—that she begins to sound suspiciously like a seventh member of this sophisticated and scandalous sorority. Brava." –Alison Bechdel, Cartoonist of Fun Home
“Whether you know nothing (or everything) about the infamous Mitfords you will be wildly entertained by this exhaustive tome about them. A massive work almost big enough to encompass the enormous egos and lives of these fascinating (and sometimes frightening) woman. Told with wry charm and wit (the kind the Mitfords themselves might have appreciated) and endlessly visually-inventive. It is the sort of historical biography that will remind you that, yes, truth is always stranger than fiction.”–Seth, Cartoonist of Clyde Fans
“Mimi Pond’s Do Admit is a dazzling, acrobatic swirl of graphic invention. It mingles the fascinating story of the famous, fabulous sisters with scenes from the author’s glamourstarved childhood in 1950s San Diego. Pond’s dry humour fits seamlessly with that of her eccentric British characters, but she is at her empathetic best portraying the heartbreaking losses and turns of fortune they endure. Her love for them shines forth from every page.”– Maurice Vellekoop, Cartoonist of I’m So Glad We Had This Time Together
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781770468047 |
| PRICE | $29.95 (USD) |
| PAGES | 444 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
LB H, Librarian
We will be purchasing this one at our library. This is the kind of subject and format that has always been a hit with our student patrons.
Emily S, Librarian
A Dazzling Graphic Biography That Captures the Glamour and Complexity of the Mitford Sisters
Mimi Pond's Do Admit: The Mitford Sisters and Me is a masterful blend of personal memoir and historical biography, brought to life through her signature wit and expressive illustrations. This 444-page graphic novel delves into the lives of the six Mitford sisters—Nancy, Pamela, Diana, Unity, Jessica, and Deborah—whose aristocratic upbringing and divergent political affiliations made them both celebrated and controversial figures in 20th-century Britain.
Pond intertwines her own 1950s Southern California childhood with the Mitfords' stories, offering a unique perspective that highlights the sisters' influence on her imagination and artistic sensibilities. Her dry humor and empathetic storytelling provide depth to each sister's narrative, capturing their individual complexities and the broader societal shifts they navigated.
The artwork is a visual delight, reminiscent of classic Vanity Fair caricatures and the satirical illustrations of Charles Addams. Pond's illustrations vividly depict the opulence and decay of the Mitfords' world, enhancing the narrative's emotional resonance.
Critics have lauded Do Admit for its inventive storytelling and rich visual style. Alison Bechdel praised it as "a spectacular, dizzying romp through the tumult of the twentieth century," noting Pond's ability to bring coherence to the sprawling narratives of the sisters' lives. Seth described it as "a massive work almost big enough to encompass the enormous egos and lives of these fascinating (and sometimes frightening) women," emphasizing its entertaining and visually inventive approach.
Whether you're well-versed in the Mitford legacy or new to their story, Do Admit offers an engaging and insightful exploration of their lives. Pond's fusion of personal reflection and historical biography results in a work that is both informative and deeply personal.
