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Start giftingLetters of Note: Music
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An inspired and inspiring collection of letters on the theme of music, from the curator of the globally popular Letters of Note website.
The first volume in the bestselling Letters of Note series was a collection of hundreds of the world's most entertaining, inspiring, and unusual letters, based on the seismically popular website of the same name--an online museum of correspondence visited by over 70 million people. From Virginia Woolf's heartbreaking suicide letter, to Queen Elizabeth II's recipe for drop scones sent to President Eisenhower; from the first recorded use of the expression 'OMG' in a letter to Winston Churchill, to Gandhi's appeal for calm to Hitler; and from Iggy Pop's beautiful letter of advice to a troubled young fan, to Leonardo da Vinci's remarkable job application letter. Now, the curator of Letters of Note, Shaun Usher, gives us wonderful new volumes featuring letters organized around a universal theme.
In this volume, Shaun Usher turns to music in all its forms. Music elicits the full range of emotion from the human heart: from joy to despair, humour to awe. Letters of Note: Music brings together a riveting collection of letters by and about musicians and music that enrich our lives. Includes letters by Charles Mingus, Helen Keller, Nick Cave, Roger Taylor, Angelique Kidjo, and many more.
Featuring letters read by Sanjeev Bhaskar, Louise Brealey, Simon Callow, Nick Cave, Crystal Clarke, Benedict Cumberbatch, Adrian Edmondson, Stephen Fry, Danny Huston, Toby Jones, Jude Law, Stephen Mangan, Miriam Margolyes, Clarke Peters, Juliet Stevenson and Mark Strong, with extra performances by Jarvis Cocker and Matt Berry.
Reviews
Praise for Shaun Usher and Letters of Note:“Reading through them is addictive, like dipping into a bag of variously tempting assorted candies, knowing that the next one will always bring surprise and pleasure. Usher has an evident knack for selecting letters that land with the force of a good short story, with personalities and dramatic arcs emerging swiftly, from just a page or two. Many of the writers are famous people, caught in a moment of accessibility and rawness or off-the-cuff virtuosity.” —The New Yorker
“Funny, tragic, brilliantly incisive, historic, lyrical, romantic, and studiedly offensive, this stupendous compendium of letters ancient and modern is my book of the year. You will never tire of it.” —Stephen Fry
“The literary equivalent of a box of chocolates—bite-sized and pure addictive pleasure . . . The result is beautifully produced, with photographs and colour facsimiles of much of the correspondence. A gorgeous Christmas present.” —The Sunday Times
“It is hard to see how Letters of Note could ever be surpassed.” —Mail on Sunday
Praise for Shaun Usher and More Letters of Note:
“Another mailbag stuffed with funny, heartbreaking, and passionate letters . . . engaging, eclectic, geekily and gleefully enthusiastic and laugh-out-loud funny.” —The Times
“Shaun Usher’s More Letters of Note mines the archives for more gems of the epistolary arts.” —The Guardian
“Funny, shocking, and poignant, More Letters of Note must be one of the most entertaining books of the year.” —Financial Times
“From the genuinely funny: Marge Simpson duelling with First Lady Barbara Bush to the truly heartbreaking: Julius and Ethel Rosenberg’s last goodbye to their children before execution. Usher’s book is unlike anything else you have read. After all, where else can you find out why Norman Mailer refused money to his father, or how Janis Joplin felt before breaking America? Exactly.” —GQ
“Some of the letters will make you laugh, other heartbreaking examples will make you cry.” —Independent Expand reviews