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Letter or Diaries in Literature
I belong to a literary society in which members have to give a 20 minute book talk on the general topic nominated for the year. The topic for 2011 is Letters and Diaries and at the moment I can't think of a suitable book. I would appreciate it if anyone could come up with any suggestions for books which may fit into these categories.
Comments
Adrian mole (Sue Townsend)
Bridget Jones (Helen Fielding)
Letters to a Portugese Nun (?)
Frankenstein (Mary Shelley)
Dracula (Bram Stoker)
Carrie (Stephen King)
84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff. It says on the back it is unmitigated delight from cover to cover and it fulfills those expectations for me. It is also quite short.
Not too demanding would be The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady - point of interest is that the poor lady who wrote it (Edith Holden) fell into the river and drowned when collecting nature specimens in the interests of her hobby. Her illustrations in the diary are works of art.
There's a good book called '800 Years of Women's Letters' - containing a huge cross section of letter writers including such peoples as Elizabeth 1st Charlotte Bronte and those of lesser mortals.
I gave that to a friend as a gift. She said it was the first time she'd received a book that she'd have chosen herself. I thought it looked good and I knew she was interested in both history and literature.
"compulsively readable...funny, sharp and stylish..." The Times.
Looks like our Ambassadors preferred to get their angst off their chests rather than spoiling guests with their nutty chocolates at parties.
Perhaps of interest to anyone who's lived abroad.
Holy cow, that's innovative!