Letters and Books

I forgot to mention yesterday that the green top is close to complete.  I  am on the bottom edging right now and that will go on till the yarn runs out.  I may have to redo sleeves though.  there seemed the be some pulling on the shoulder pieces as if there were too few stitches there.  All things considered, plus math and lack of skill with said math, it may very well be.  I will try it on again before I decide but so far my mind is set on redoing them.  It is such a little sleeve and doesn't take any time at all.  It is also possible that the count is right but the distribution is wrong.  We shall see.

But that is not really what I wanted to to about today.  I wanted to talk about letters and collections of them.  I am not talking about formal letters but rather the kind of things you would write more casually, more conversationally.  

I love books of letters.  I have for years.  I have a couple in my book library. 

My book of a collection of Thomas Jefferson's letters fascinates me. 

And endlessly readable is a collection of love letters from Antonia Fraser.  

This last contains letters from Napoleon to Jesephine, Abelard and Heloise, Catherine of Aragon to Henry VIII.  They are beginnings and Endings and everything in between to dowith love.  Really a sweet little book.

I have a book of Jane Austens letters in my digital library too.  That has been read many times.  

I think it started when I first saw the movie 84 Charing Cross Road.  A movie of letters.  sigh.  It was lovely the first time, and every time since.  A few years ago, I came across a copy of the movie in a bin of movies.  It gets regular rewatching.  But I never had the book till recently.

The audio book came across my email feed a few weeks ago, an audible daily deal I think.  I didn't blink, but bought it immediately and finally got around to reading it last night.  What a lovely way to not fall asleep.  I couldn't, not when the whole story was  playing out in time and place.   I know the story, I know it well.  I thought it would be a great thing to listen to to fall asleep by.  But it took a long time for the voices to get me to sleep.  It was just too interesting  being carried along by the letters and charmed by the lovliness of it.  I was so invested in their relationshop  and fascinated by the books they talk about.  It was gentle and slow and made me feel very content.  

Except for the books.  I wish I had those books.  I think I would have loved that store and loved her library.  

But not sleepy.  So, I am going to go back to bed now for a bit to have a morning nap.