Love Letters of Great Men

By: Ursula Doyle

Narrated by: Anton Lesser

Length: 3 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

Remember the wonderfully romantic book of letters by Beethoven, Byron and Napoleon that featured in the Sex and the City film? That collection never actually existed, but all of the letters referenced in the film were real; so Macmillan decided to create Love Letters of Great Men. . .

From the private papers of Mark Twain and Mozart to those of Robert Browning and Nelson, Love Letters of Great Men collects together some of the most romantic letters in history.

For some of these great men, love is a 'delicious poison' (William Congreve); for others, 'a nice soft wife on a sofa with good fire, & books & music' (Charles Darwin). Love can scorch like the heat of the sun (Henry VIII), or penetrate the depths of one's heart like a cooling rain (Flaubert). Every shade of love is here, from the exquisite eloquence of Oscar Wilde and the simple devotion of Robert Browning, to the wonderfully modern misery of the Roman Pliny the Younger, losing himself in work to forget how much he misses his beloved wife, Calpurnia.

Taken together, these Love Letters of Great Men show that perhaps men haven't changed so very much over the last 2,000 years; passion, jealousy, hope and longing are all represented here - as is the simple pleasure of sending a letter to, and receiving one from, the person you love most.

©2008 Selection and commentary - Ursula Doyle (P)2008 Macmillan Digital Audio

Critic reviews

"The letters are thoughtfully chosen, intelligently juxtaposed and provided with informative biographical links, but what makes the audiobook sensational is that it is read by Anton Lesser, who copes as well with Henry VIII's pompous egotism in addressing Anne Boleyn as with Napoleon's besotted fury at Josephine's failure to write to him." [ The Times]