guinness is good...?

For some years now, I've always thought I'd like to read the biography, (diaries by, even) of Alec Guinness. For some reason he seemed to be the quinntessential English gent. So I'm reading the only "official" biography of him, by Piers Paul Read. So far, it's painted quite a picture of the knight, and quite different to what my original thoughts were. Only 2/3 of the way through and will be glad when I'm finished it... Am getting a bit put off by the subject matter, and feel incredibly sympathetic to his son and wife (dec.), and what they had to put up with.