Selected Letters of Nathaniel Hawthorne

Joel Myerson, editor

“This is a very fine, representative selection of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s letters to make up a strong, aptly done Selected Letters edition. It is most fitting that The Ohio State University Press be the publisher of this single volume, reader-friendly edition of Hawthorne’s letters to complement the six volumes of the Centenary Edition.” —Steven Fink, The Ohio State University

“A carefully edited, well chosen volume of Hawthorne’s letters.” —Bruce Ronda, Colorado State University

This book is the first-ever selected edition of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s letters—169 personal letters and eight letters written while Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American consul. Myerson carefully selected letters focusing on Hawthorne’s relationship with famous people of the day; letters written to his wife, Sophia; letters describing everyday life in Salem, Boston, Concord, Britain, France, and Italy; letters in which Hawthorne comments on contemporary literature and his career as an author; and letters that reveal Hawthorne’s thoughts and beliefs.

Myerson’s single-volume Selected Letters of Nathaniel Hawthorne is a welcome addition to the twenty-three-volume Centenary Edition of the Works of Nathaniel Hawthorne (OSU Press).

Joel Myerson is Carolina Distinguished Professor of American Literature at the University of South Carolina.