Every letter contains a miniature story, and here are some of the greatest. From
Oscar Wilde's unconventional method of using the mail to cycling enthusiast Reg
inald Bray's quest to post himself, Simon Garfield uncovers a host of stories th
at capture the enchantment of this irreplaceable art (with a supporting cast inc
luding Pliny the Younger, Ted Hughes, Virginia Woolf, Napoleon Bonaparte, Lewis
Carroll, Jane Austen, David Foster Wallace and the Little Red-Haired Girl). Ther
e is also a brief history of the letter-writing guide, with instructions on when
and when not to send fish as a wedding gift.
And as these accounts unfold, s
o does the tale of a compelling wartime correspondence that shows how the simple
st of letters can change the course of a life.
