A selection of letters sent to editors, friends and other people directly involved in her literary realm, D'Hadrien à Zénon by Marguerite Yourcenar is first and foremost a testimony of old times letter writing skills. Old times, before the Internet launched the race against time to communicate as much as possible, as fast as possible, but not necessarily as consistent as possible.
Although she published before, Mémoires d'Hadrien, that saw the publishing light as she was 48, consecrated her as a writer. The first woman to be elected in the Académie Française, Yourcenar had to overcome a contract-related issue for publishing her book, and the exchange of letters with Grasset and Gallimard, France´s main publishing institutions, are an example of intellectual elegance in approaching even the most mundane everyday life issues with the sharpness of the written word.
Equally interesting are her research interests and tracing the sources of literary research. Entering the world of a writer´s inner rooms may be as interesting as getting to know their books.
The letters cover a wide range of topics, including corrections and words of appreciations she sent to her reviewers. Her style and approach belongs to a civility I may deeply regret but I know that on my side, it´s almost impossible to achieve. I am living under completely different time and emotional pressures, therefore, the direct - even rude - way may be sometimes the easiest way to achieve your aims, including in the literary field.
For those interested in getting to know more about Yourcenar and the French-speaking publishing world, this massive collection of letters may help make an idea about the timeless art of letter writing.
Rating: 3.5
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