A review by annyway47
Emily Dickinson: Letters by Emily Fragos, Emily Dickinson

5.0

"...you know some cannot sing, but the orchard is full of birds, and we all can listen."

I started this collection of letters as a follow-up to reading and loving [b:Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson|303865|Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson|Emily Dickinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1447107816s/303865.jpg|26747087].

Dickinson's letters were lovely to read. A lot of them were filled with some of the same themes as her poems - nature, spirituality, mourning. Others were just mementos of a life lived with love, displaying closeness, attentiveness, caring for her friends, family and neighbors and an incredible capacity for contemplation.

"... when I try to organize, my little force explodes and leaves me bare and charred."

"...I hope that nothing pains you except the pang of life, sweeter to bear than to omit."

I love the way she writes. Be it a trivial life situation or a serious observation, her phrasing mesmerizes me, immerses me into her experience, creates a unique atmosphere.



This made me laugh:

"Father was very severe to me; he thought I'd been trifling with you, so he gave me quite a trimming about "Uncle Tom" and "Charles Dickens" and these "modern literati" who, he says, are nothing, compared to past generations who flourished when he was was a boy" 1854

All in all, I recommend it. Especially to those who enjoy Dickinson's poetry, or who are interested to see the time period through the eyes of someone who was right in the process of experiencing it.