in2reading's review against another edition
4.0
It's pretty amazing to see pictures of the actual envelopes upon which Emily Dickinson wrote drafts and ideas for her poetry. It makes me sad to think that those who compose upon computers will never leave this kind of evidence of their writing process. But maybe poets gravitate to paper and pen???
elizafiedler's review against another edition
5.0
AMAZING. And timely, as I'm sitting in solitary quarantine (March 2020), to be reading these by a woman who sought out isolation and still yearned for human connection. All these envelopes and poems... they take your breath away.
bookish_sue's review against another edition
5.0
This is a fascinating book. I took the poetic fragments to be drafts, wordplay. Which made me feel both close to and ever more curious about Dickinson as a creative.
The book ends with a couple of essays that are a bit too academic for my taste. That said, one essay reproduces a letter Dickinson received from a friend vacationing/recuperating in Santa Monica (!!!!! I always think of Dickinson as more ancient than her 19th century and that mash-up to a pre-modern Southern California has lit my imagination on fire) and matches some fragments to a supposed response from Dickinson. The friend: self-absorbed in her heath issues; Dickinson: using the friend’s letter as inspiration to write a wholly reflective yet refractive version of the friend’s state of being. Dickinson avoids putting herself on the page while entertaining the other.
The book ends with a couple of essays that are a bit too academic for my taste. That said, one essay reproduces a letter Dickinson received from a friend vacationing/recuperating in Santa Monica (!!!!! I always think of Dickinson as more ancient than her 19th century and that mash-up to a pre-modern Southern California has lit my imagination on fire) and matches some fragments to a supposed response from Dickinson. The friend: self-absorbed in her heath issues; Dickinson: using the friend’s letter as inspiration to write a wholly reflective yet refractive version of the friend’s state of being. Dickinson avoids putting herself on the page while entertaining the other.
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
My favorite part about going to museums is getting up close and study the brushstrokes. I get a better understanding of a painting when I see get up close and personal with it. This book provides an experience similar to that. By creating life-sized reproductions of the envelope fragments, I get the opportunity to get closer to one of my favorite poets...the only thing missing is not being able to see how hard she pushed pencil into paper as she did so... I'm not complaining, though, quite the opposite. I feel almost blessed to have had this opportunity.
witchy_woo_13's review against another edition
5.0
What a cool collection. I highly recommend checking this out if you are an E. Dickinson fan!
elainemullane's review
4.0
The Gorgeous Nothings is a treasure trove of words that will excite and delight any Emily Dickinson fan. It is the first published work to include an entire collection of Dickinson's manuscripts, in this case her "Envelope Poems". Handwritten in pencil by Dickinson, in her famous, immediately identifiable scrawl, this collection includes sentences, stanzas, and full poems in draft version. Not only does it give us a new peek at the late work of one of our favourite poets and further insight into her private and reclusive life, The Gorgeous Nothings also delivers a museum-like experience from between its pages. I love how this is collection is presented; it truly is a work of art. A must for anyone who admires Emily Dickinson and her work.