Diana in Search of Herself

Content

The 320-page book focuses on troubled life of Princess Diana. Smith interviewed nearly 150 people whose reports are used in the book to narrate the life of the Princess. These people were mainly Diana's intimates, including British tabloid journalists.

The most significant claim made in the book is that the Princess had suffered from borderline personality disorder. It is also claimed that she could not fix her serious eating disorder and was not able to manage to sustain relationships.

Sales

The book was included in the best seller list of the followings: The New York Times Book Review, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, USA Today Top 50, Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, Newsday, Barnes & Noble and Publishers Weekly.

Reception

Linda Richards of the January magazine stated that the book provides an unbiased portrait of the Princess. In a similar vein, the Newsweek review of the book indicated "Smith has done a remarkable job extracting what's genuinely pertinent and interesting about Diana...If you're going to read one Diana book, this should be it."

On the other hand, the author was criticized by Dorothy Packer-Fletcher because of her claim that Diana had been experiencing borderline personality disorder. Packer-Fletcher suggested that in order to establish this diagnosis there should have been psychiatric examination. She further argued that the author's statement was harmful because it was a "posthumous diagnosis of mental illness".

The book became a bestseller, and was also cited as controversial.