The Diary Of 'Helena Morley'
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INTRODUCED BY DIANA ATHILL
An enchanting Brazilian classic.
'No wonder Bishop fell in love with this book . . . No adult writer, however skilful . . . could write with the nonchalant vivacity and ease that she unwittingly commanded' DIANA ATHILL, GUARDIAN
'A delightful, funny and revealing memoir, a little bit of Austen in the Americas' SPECTATOR
'When we read her, we enter the classical serenity of a new country' ROBERT LOWELL
From Elizabeth Bishop's introduction:
'When I first came to Brazil, in 1952, I asked my Brazilian friends which Brazilian books I should begin reading . . . They frequently recommended this little book, "Minha Vida de Menina" . . . In English the title means "My Life as a Little Girl" or "Young Girl", and that is exactly what the book is about, but it is not reminiscences; it is a diary, the diary actually kept by a little girl between the ages of 12 and 15, in the far-off town of Diamantina, in 1893-1895 . . . The more I read the book the better I liked it. The scenes and events it described were odd, remote, and long ago, and yet fresh, sad, funny and eternally true. The longer I stayed on in Brazil the more Brazilian the book seemed, yet much of it could have happened in any small provincial town or village, and at almost any period of history - at least before the arrival of the automobile and the moving-picture theatre.'
An enchanting Brazilian classic.
'No wonder Bishop fell in love with this book . . . No adult writer, however skilful . . . could write with the nonchalant vivacity and ease that she unwittingly commanded' DIANA ATHILL, GUARDIAN
'A delightful, funny and revealing memoir, a little bit of Austen in the Americas' SPECTATOR
'When we read her, we enter the classical serenity of a new country' ROBERT LOWELL
From Elizabeth Bishop's introduction:
'When I first came to Brazil, in 1952, I asked my Brazilian friends which Brazilian books I should begin reading . . . They frequently recommended this little book, "Minha Vida de Menina" . . . In English the title means "My Life as a Little Girl" or "Young Girl", and that is exactly what the book is about, but it is not reminiscences; it is a diary, the diary actually kept by a little girl between the ages of 12 and 15, in the far-off town of Diamantina, in 1893-1895 . . . The more I read the book the better I liked it. The scenes and events it described were odd, remote, and long ago, and yet fresh, sad, funny and eternally true. The longer I stayed on in Brazil the more Brazilian the book seemed, yet much of it could have happened in any small provincial town or village, and at almost any period of history - at least before the arrival of the automobile and the moving-picture theatre.'
- Published: Jun 05 2008
- Pages: 352
- 197 x 132mm
- ISBN: 9781844084937
Press Reviews
Diana Athill
GuardianNo wonder Bishop fell in love with this book . . . No adult writer, however skilful . . . could write with the nonchalant vivacity and ease that she unwittingly commanded
Robert Lowell
When we read her, we enter the classical serenity of a new country
- Sunday Telegraph
Her cosmopolitan life is reflected in the breadth of her writings, all suffused with curiosity and quiet intelligence
- Diana Athill, GUARDIAN
No wonder Bishop fell in love with this book . . . No adult writer, however skilful . . . could write with the nonchalant vivacity and ease that she unwittingly commanded
- Spectator
A delightful, funny and revealing memoir, a little bit of Austen in the Americas